SPCR

This time of year, I love to have a little space heater pointed at my feet under the desk to keep them toasty warm. But the little ceramic model that I use - while feeling great - has a fan that would drown out even the noisiest PC. Surely I'm not the only one who appreciated warmth and quiet. Any suggestions out there for a nice and quiet space heater that can keep bare feet warm through the winter?

How about wool socks?

I like them and they are pretty quiet.

lm wrote:How about wool socks?

I like them and they are pretty quiet.

Nope. I grew up in Florida with my toes in the sand and I will never give up the freedom of feet unfettered by footwear. I have to wear shoes and socks when I venture outside of the house, but in the comfort of my own office - not a chance!

You could maybe hack something together from an aluminum plate and some power-resistors (just put your feet on it), there are also (at least here in sweden) heaters without a fan (mainly meant for mounting on walls but small ones can be free-standing).

The difficulty here is that warm air tends to rise. Your little space heater, by using the fan, gets it to you before that can happen too much.

I've been using a parabolic heater to warm myself at my desk for a few years. They're fanless and noiseless. However, they're either angled slightly upwards or at best straight horizontal, which wouldn't help your feet very much. If you tip such a unit downwards it will likely automatically shut itself off.

The best I can think of is that there's one small heater of this type that's intended for use sitting on a desk. If you were to somehow mod it with a kind of metal canopy, however, and place it on the floor, it just might be able to get the heat to your feet. It's an iffy proposition, but someone with the proper skills might be able to pull it off. Try searching Froogle (Google) and Amazon for "parabolic heater".

Be aware that heaters of this type often put out a lot of light -- and I mean a lot of light.

How about a Prestonia-era dual Xeon? Warm toes and pretty good computing at the same time!

I use one of those oil-filled electric heaters that looks like an old-fashioned radiator type heater. It's dead quiet, heats nicely and is cheap to run.

Something like this, but mine is about half that height.

Ralf Hutter wrote:I use one of those oil-filled electric heaters that looks like an old-fashioned radiator type heater. It's dead quiet, heats nicely and is cheap to run.

Something like this, but mine is about half that height.

I was going to suggest the same thing. You can get smaller ones about the size of a cereal box too, so maybe that's what Ralf has.

The only problem with them is that they are designed to heat up a room and rely on convection. I don't know how well they'd transfer heat if you were to try blowing air through them like a radiator...

If you're just trying to keep your feet warm though, what about laying an electric blanket or bed warmer on the floor under the desk? Completely noiseless and probably cozy as well.

Snake mat?

i.e. the heater mat you'd put under a snakes' home in your house (can't think of the right word...).....