but they aren't the most popular- they work well if you have good air circulation in your space,and in terms of energy efficiency I'm not sure where they stand.But as a retailer, they don't sell very well compared to the regular electric-fan-forced units-that's probably why you don't see them at your local big box, they just cherry-pick the best numbers...

if you aren't in need of instant gratification. I used one for many years, old-fashioned baseboard design with no bells or whistles except a 1-10 scale thermostat, but coupled with a cheap timer to provide an hour's head start it kept my feet warm under a desk in my little free-standing home office through many a cold Rocky Mountain winter.

Amazon has them on sale, this one is quite nice, a good price and free shipping. Don't buy the cheaper version, reliability problems, but this 715T model has good reviews and the one a friend bought has been trouble free.

(Hint, if you buy one of these. Plug it in outside and run it on high for a couple of days, some kind of nasty smelling stuff in the paint needs to be burned off. Also, check very closely for small pieces of styrofoam around the heating element; sometimes you'll hear complaints about a lingering smell with new heaters that goes on for many days, that will be the odor of decomposing styrene.)

I also highly recommend a stocking cap for indoor winter wear; a knitted Navy watch cap from a surplus store is your best buy. Just like an old house, always pays to insulate the attic.

no worries and fairly reasonable. I picked up two very nice Delonghi radiators last winter - $60 @ - and they were terrific. I know what you're saying, the heat is much better than a space heater, for example. It almost feels like a stove. Speaking of stoves, we've put two gas stoves (like fireplaces) in the house, one in the bedroom, the other in the main living area. Boy howdy, did that put a huge dent in heating bill.

I live in MA and I see them in Walmart, Kmart, places like that. I'm not so sure about Lowes, HD etc. but they very well could be there too. As to why they aren't more available? Maybe folks think they're a fire hazard.

I love this job!

there have been recalls of some, but i can't find whether they're banned or not...

one recall froom 05-- http://www.usrecallnews.com/heater_recal...

Oil-filled radiant heaters are as safe as it gets in life.

which, come to think of it, can be dangerous but somehow I've always survived.

The specific unit I referenced has multiple safety features, including a tip-over shutoff switch, an over-heat shutoff switch, and an external enclosure that stays cool enough that you can lay your hand on it - no accidental burns. So long as you aren't holding the heater on your lap when it springs a leak, it is harmless.

BIO, where'd you get the baseboard model?

I've switched almost entirely from oil heat to a woodstove, which keeps most of my house warm enough for me but can't reach into my north-facing office off the main room, where I spend a good deal of the day especially in winter. I have a separate heat zone from the oil burner for the office and a matching room on the other side of the house, so I can heat it without heating the whole house, but I'd sure like to cut off the oil companies more completely.

My tootsies under the desk are what suffer the most, and no amount of clothing or hat really makes enough difference, so a baseboard electric-powered heater I can turn on now and then would be a godsend. I do a lot of transcribing work, so my feet and the pedal equipment are stuck under the desk, and there's not enough room for even a small stand-up heater.

One small up side to the outrageous price of heating oil is that it's no longer an unreasonable thing to use space heaters for places the central heating doesn't reach. (Same with the comparative cost of local food from small farms vs the transportation costs added to mega-agriculture produce trucked in from California or Chile or something.)

Bought it at a garage sale, gave it away when I moved back to CA. Paid $5 which seemed like a lot, lasted 15 winters so worth every penny. In the way of identification, it was brown; and, that's all I can remember. Sorry, no help on that but here's what I found for a replacement; an electric throw.

Works great, on my lap and down my legs when I'm sitting and also like a throw rug on the floor under my desk, perfectly comfy in tube socks even on cold nights and yes we have them in sunny California, especially in summer when the fog rolls in. Somehow I didn't notice that damp cold when I was living here before, probably nothing to do with having aged.

that had coils behind a grill--the long, low ones...

my current apt is the only one i've ever lived in my whole life where i don't need one (i get too much heat now).

that makes a giant diff in winter too.