You can buy the same " type " of heater at WalMart for
$99.00. It's a 1000 watt heater in a nice box. Buy a 1000
watt base board heater for $29.95. Believe me the Amish don't give away nothing. You'll go broke paying the shipping and handeling. It's not a scam but close.

I thought they were snake oil myself, but my parents have two and like them.

Now wait folks, lets remember it has earned the 'coveted UL approval'...or so that commercial states! Google fo many topic on these type heaters. I got my oil fin heater at HD just after Xmas for half off last year. $35.

That did impress me that it won that 'coveted' UL approval. Coveted by whom, I wonder, though? Meantime, what really got me was an ad stating that they only use $.09 an hour and so you can lower your heating bill.

Coveted maybe because it cost about $15K for a manufacturer to obtain the UL rating. If it uses 1K of electric per hour, the .09 is true, at least in PPL territory.

First off, they're not Amish, at least the ones they're showing in the advertisements. At best, they're Mennonites.

Second, you're paying for the wood mantle that goes around the heater. The heater is nothing special. It's a 1500 watt electric heater. You can, as others have noted, buy one of those at Wally World for a LOT less. You just won't have the pretty mantle around it.

Third, the Amish, at least Old Order Amish, wouldn't use one of these heaters. Why? Because it runs on electricity.

Fourth, the advertising is true. You CAN save on heating bills using one of these. You can also save on heating bills using just about any electric heater because it's cheaper to turn your thermostat down and spot heat the room you're in than to heat the entire house in anticipation that you're going to be in some room at some point during the day.

Fifth, for what one of those Amish heaters costs, you're half way there to getting a pellet stove from Lowes or Home Depot.

I was also wondering, why would the amish be playing with electricity when they don't use it, claiming it's worldly? So that part didn't make too much sense to me unless they say well, they don't use it, they only install it. OK, I'll buy that reason maybe. Interestingly, though, the last ad I saw said you can save up to 20% on heating bills. I thought: that's not that much. But what is a pellet stove? and thank you all for your thoughts and suggestions. Much, MUCH appreciated.

Continuing on...I was catching up on my newspapers and came across the ad this morning. They're hardly able to keep up with production since they started giving heaters away free. Sounds like a good business model!

There's a strict limit of 2 heaters per household. I guess my parents maxed out with their two.

Two heaters provide a whopping 10K BTUH! Considering that a home in PA can't get by without at least 60K BTUH, the market for mittens will skyrocket. But, they suggest getting two, so long underwear might not be needed. People in Europe have individual heaters in the house and only heat the room they're in.

As one who lives nearby the PA Amish, they could be either Amish or Old Order Mennonites. They aren't averse to making money, no matter how they dress or if the telephone is at the end of the driveway. They're actually some pretty sharp people.

When they need a good horse, it's nothing to pull out 10 grand in cash to pay for it. And that was years ago.

But, it's all tongue in cheek. I'd say, skip the mantle, and buy a little oil radiator or fan unit.

Baymee, interestingly enough I was checking primarily for a friend who lives in western PA who was talking to me about her need for a new boiler. We currently live in south Florida and anyway we have electric heat gratis the condominium, so no need for anything else right now. I told her about the "Amish" heaters and she said she would inquire, but then said something the whole house. I'm not sure what she meant, I'll tell her about the Europeans (why is it Americans think they're always the best, the finest, and know everything about everything and nobody else knows nothin') who heat only the room they're in? That makes sense to me rather than wasting money. Whoever thought of that marketing campaign for the promoters of the product sure was sharp. Now you beg the question -- do they REALLY give it away for free? Would your parents have REALLY gotten a better deal if they had waited?

"As one who lives nearby the PA Amish, they could be either Amish or Old Order Mennonites."

Yep. I grew up around the Amish & Mennonite communities in Juniata, Mifflin, and Snyder counties.

I'm currently in Mifflin County, home for Christmas. I passed several buggies this afternoon.

More than a few stores in this area have buggy parking areas with horse hitching.

Oh, and the people in the advertisements are OOMs, either.

The heater is free, the outside mantle frame is not. However, if you want to build your own mantle, they will gladly SELL you the heater. LOL.

I don't know why my parents bought them. They're happy and that's all that matters.

Heating only the room you're in makes sense as long as you're keeping the rest of the home warm enough to prevent the pipes from freezing.

skizot, that is probably why she (my friend) said something about the rest of the house. I didn't quite hear everything she said. But then I wonder if it would be cost-saving to have a heater in one room and keep the rest of the house on minimal heat.

When I first saw the commercial, I thought, "Yeah, whatever. Those are actors and if anything is made by the Amish it's just the mantle itself." Pfft! This heater commercial, the ShamWow commercial and anything with Billy Mays drive me nuts. Gimicky stuff drives me nuts.

We have one of the Amish furniture stores in town, Treeforms. It's damn fine furniture and it's supremely priced, but it seems you get your money's worth.

Some house with open floor plans cannot easily heat just one room at a time (like mine...sigh). I have a 23 foot ceiling- it is across the whole front area of the house- there is no way I could heat this area with any one heater.

Oh- as for the Amish doing anything for money- just look at the puppy mills they have- they are the worst people to abuse animals. At least a couple of them have been shut down in PA this year.

At one time I was interested in the Amish concept of life/religion- until I became more educated about them. From what I read, they are not as they seem- just simple God loving people- it seems they are pretty well known for making a buck any way they can- whether it is all of them or just a few, I don't know. It did sadden me that they aren't really what they try to portray themselves, though...

Hello ilmbg. A couple of things I learned from this discussion: 1) I can get the same type heater for presumably a lot cheaper elsewhere, 2) I don't need to keep the house itself at a higher temperature if I can heat only one room and keep the rest warm enough so the pipes don't freeze, and 3) the Amish are materialistic, despite their "other-worldly" claims. And 4) it's too bad they would mistreat animals in the name of money. Regardless of how people act today, 2 Peter 3:13 is worth looking at.

Maybe this has been touched on in the forums; I don't know; just started reading thread titles at the top. If I'm beating a dead horse, I apologize. I haven't tried the Amish heaters (which I can't see would be effective), but since the EdenPure's are often marketed similarly, I thought I would chime in with what (little) I know about them.

1. I went to a friend's house that had the EdenPure heater. Two of them keep my friend's 1,000 square foot warm (comfortable in shirt sleeves - I didn't check the thermomenter), but her house is extremely tight.

2. So, I bought an EdenPure heater(the larger model) myself, because (long story), I don't have any heat in my house (furnace broke; but I don't want more debt right now so I am toughing the winter out with space heaters rather than buying a furnace or a heat pump).

The EP heater keeps my small bedroom warm enough that I don't have to wear a coat to sit in there. That's a great improvement over my oil-filled space heater, which did (eventually) warm up the room somewhat but never warmed it enough to be comfortable; I'd have to wear my coat when I sat in my rocking chair in there.

So, I'm happy to have one room in the house where I can be comfortable in the winter, and to me, that makes the EdenPure worth it. The other plus is that it does heat the room much more quickly than the oil-filled space heater did; the oil heater took about 24 hours to warm the room moderately (as in, you had to walk out of the room to the other rooms to realize the bedroom was warmer); the EP takes about an hour to heat my room from scratch.

I do not know yet whether the EP is more economical to run; my heating bill using the EP and an oil-filled space heater in the washroom (keeping the pipes there from freezing; the rest of the house I just leave the water run a little bit) is about $100/month compared to $190 when I was running two oil-filled heaters full-time; but then again I am being very careful to run the heaters only when the temperatures are actually at freezing or below (in central Virginia, the winters are cold but not horrid, like in Ohio or Montana), so I can't positively say that the EP is as economical as advertised.

I would say it is over-priced; I paid nearly $400 for it, and it's probably about as good as two-three space heaters, but unless your house is extremely tight it will not warm 1,000 square feet. But, as I can't plug in that many space heaters in one room or I'll blow one of my cute little glass fuses (old house with electrical issues, another long story), I am pleased with the EP.

I do not have any idea why something with the same wattage heats so much better than something else with the same wattage, but that has been my experience. I would buy another one, maybe two - and tough it out another winter or two until I can afford geothermal.

FWIW.

Verdant Croft

edenpure. consumer reports says its hype. uninformed consumers say its great. who are you going to believe. i guess if you pay 400 for something you can easily delude yourself into thinking its better.

http://www.wcpo.com/content/news/localshows/dontwasteyourmoney/story/EdenPure-Other-Space-Heaters-Tested/PdondT-tOkKTOuXc3gCxLw.cspx
Our partners at Consumer Reports magazine have tested it and other heaters.

Is the EdenPure Amazing?

The results of the test of the heavily advertised EdenPure were not promising.

The $400 EdenPure ended up at the bottom of the ratings. It was the worst performing of 20 space heaters tested.

Top Performing Heaters

Top rated: The Honeywell Electric heater HZ-519, for just $60.

I would buy another one, maybe two - and tough it out another winter or two until I can afford geothermal.

FWIW.

Verdant Croft

Wow !! That's almost like saying I'll keep my broken-down 1976 AMC Hornet up on blocks for now, but in two years I'll save enough to buy a Rolls Royce.

Wow, a flame war. Woo hoo.

My observations were anyone considering alternatives. FWIW, I've read the negatives also, and, since I have several other electric heaters (oil-filled, water-filled, quartz, etc.), I have a form of comparison. Despite what Consumer Reports said, the EP heater is by far the best. By FAR. No, not up to hype, but seriously much better than any of the other types of heaters.

Baymee, I guess I'll have to forward you my income statements, etc. so you can make a more informed judgement. That was a really stupid statement, based on ignorance.

Verdant Croft

baymee: "The heater is free, the outside mantle frame is not. However, if you want to build your own mantle, they will gladly SELL you the heater. LOL."

hmmm right. the heater is free -- once the cost is added into the mantle, lol. Man, if I were a cheater, (which I try not to be) and I sold hotdogs (which I did) I might jack up the price of a package deal and tell the customer the 2nd frank is free while I charge more than enough for the 1st frank...:-) I didn't do that, BTW, but I could see it being done... Wondering how much they charge for the heater w/o the mantle. :-)

I think they knock off about $50 if you just want the heater instead of the heater and the mantle combo.

Looking at the add, since when do the Amish use hydro powered buildings and power tools ? Maybe they are the new wave Amish? B.T.W. that "Mighty Mend " that Billy Mays sells doesn't work with---- ( this site is censored ) but you get my drift. Once in the wash and everything comes apart. Been there done that with a similar product that was supposed to be even better. The original product.

Maybe both ads are like the one on the radio every hour about the 20-30 pounds "that SOME experts think" is a spackle-like paste that lines the inside of the colon and is the reason why many people can't lose weight. Why buy that? Drinking water from a pond will do that for free.

hahaha, baymee. Whenever I think of a diet and they say ALL I HAVE TO DO is what, drink 8 glasses of water a day -- or something so easy like that, I try it, and after the 2nd glass I kind of think this is too much trouble...but I am so glad I asked about the "Amish" heaters and I'm so glad you all have answered me. Now I know more about how to heat a room at less cost (buy a cheaper heater and keep the rest of the house at a minimum heat). Love y'all!

My mother in law bought one and I looked at it when I was there in her townhome. Her TH is built on a slab with an older Lennox furnce (downflow) and her living room (farthest from the furnace) is always cold. Plus she has a patio door in the living room and outside door near the combined DR/entry/kitchen.

Being older we feel the cold more? I liked the style of the cabinet and it went well with her nice furnishings. (An oiled filled white electric radiator on wheels would not).

The dancing flames were attractive and the fan forced heat coming out seemed to warm that colder portion of her home nicely. Now, she can keep the tstat down lower or wheel the thing into her bedroom if she will spend time there.

Whatever the cost, I think it was a wise investment for her.

It's nice to know that some people are enjoying it.

I have had two of these heaters at first I was impressed then the first one started to snap and crackle and it wasn't the sound a fireplece should make I called they sent me a replacement ( a more updated version ) it was suppose to have a thermostate guess what that doesn't work
I would not recommend this to anyone

Thanks for the info. You just kept me from ordering two of those "Amish" heaters. My son in law ordered four, he kept two and gave his sister two. I was impressed with the warmth but he lives in a modular home which is tight anyway. My 200 yr. old house has more drafts than the Draft Board of WW2! Plus I have high 12' ceilings. My electricity ran around $380 and my natural gas around $330. Me thinks it might be cheaper living in a motel. At least I'd have daily maid service!