Heat Storm HS-1500-PHX-WIFI Infrared Heater, Wifi Wall Mounted

The heater looks good mounted on the wall. The heat output is great, and the thermostat shuts it off once the desired temperature is reached. It’s very easy to use. The timer is a great function if you need heat for only a specific amount of time. It is not loud at all.I love the wifi functions and the ability to control it from anywhere. It, also, works great with Alexa. I use it as a supplemental heat source in a room that stays colder than the rest of the house.I would highly recommend this heater, and I’ve been thinking about buying another one for the bathroom attached to the room.

This review is for the Heat Storm HS-1500-PHX-WIFI Wifi Wall Mounted Heater.I bought one of these heaters when on a limited time deal and was very happy with it. I actually had a use for a 2nd one so checked the next day and there was a $5.00 coupon with the same limited time deal, so I bought another.These are replacing two Lasko high tech tower heaters, one of which has an odor that never went away and gives me a headache so I don’t use it at all, other than its excellent fan mode during the summer.*** Some key components to using any space heater for zone heating is first of all, don’t overestimate the unit’s capability. These are meant to be used as supplemental heat but in some situations, can be used as a primary source also, but again, be realistic.Secondly, and more important, isolate the space you are heating. Close the doors/windows/openings to other rooms, etc., and keep it as draft free as possible. This may not seem like a big thing, but it is.Also, an insulated space is a big plus when using the heater. The better insulated, the more heat will be realized and held longer. Common sense, but sometimes not so common.The above is important when comparing heater reviews. Also what is the outside temperature at the time of usage, and as mentioned above, how big a space is being heated, and what is the temperature expectation; are we trying to heat to 75 degrees, or a more realistic 65 - 68 +/- degrees.Both my Heat Storms are used in rectangular rooms in my semi-finished basement. The larger room is 23’ x 14’ with two unfinished outside walls and a drop ceiling. I heat this room to 64 - 65 degrees only when using it, playing pool or watching TV with my grandson. The other room is a 14’ x 10’ ManCave with one outside wall and a drop ceiling and is where I work out. I heat this room only when using it to 63 - 64 degrees.We use the Heat Storms as true zone heaters; as heating only when using the rooms they are in. Our house has a gas forced air HVAC system but the upstairs is heated pretty much by a ventless gas fireplace, other than the mornings when the furnace brings the house up to heat, so the Heat Storms may be considered as our primary heat for the basement.We live in Michigan and since I have had the heaters we have had temps anywhere from the low teens to the mid 30’s and the Heat Storms have done their job. The larger room will take anywhere from 15 - 40 minutes to achieve the above set temp, while the smaller only around 10 - 25 minutes or so.When on high, the unit hovers around 1500 watts +/-, and when on low, 750 +/- watts. The fan is fairly quiet in my estimation.In the past I have stayed away from the quartz element type heaters because of some bad experiences and my opinion of them not producing as much heat as other ceramic or PTC type heaters. But using Kasa energy smart plugs, which monitors many energy consumption areas, one thing I discovered is some of the PTC heaters although giving instant heat, does so at the cost of pulling upwards and a bit over 2000 watts while ramping up that instant heat. This is only for a very short period of time but can add to the usage cost and possible connection problems. If the outlet being used to plug any electric space heater has a loose fitting plug at all, it should not be used until replaced. This is the cause of most complaints of a burning plug or outlet. Any poor fitting plug to outlet generates heat from high resistance which if left unattended, will overheat and possibly burn.Good points:Has absolutely no odor when in operation, unlike some Ceramic/PTC units, which I have two of also.Keeps the temperature within one degree +/- of the set temperature. I have not come across an electric space heater that even comes close to this. If the temp is set at 64, it turns off when just touching 65, then back on again when touching 63. Can’t get any better than this.Has a 3 speed fan only mode also which I didn’t see mentioned in the advertising. This is great for a bit of summer cool when the AC is not required.Very easy to install using the included template with level and very light weight.Can be used with both Alexa and Google. I use Alexa voice commands and it works very well.This unit has two washable filters, one on each side and I think the way the unit inhales air has a lot to do with its even set temperature accuracy.The Wi-Fi works great. On both my heaters it was a simple setup that took only minutes using the Smart Life app.Bad Points, or I should say ‘Point’, as for my purposes, only one:Setting an on/off timer must be done on the heater itself, the remote control or an Alexa voice command. Although the app has all sorts of scheduling options, plus other features, I haven’t found a way to set an on/off timer using the app. If you want to turn it off in an hour, you have to set it to turn off an hour from the current time.The extended cool down can be offensive but doesn’t bother me since I am turning the heater(s) off and leaving the area.This is a great little heater and if used properly, within expectations and capabilities, should satisfy a lot of people. Limiting usage to a zone type heating should keep the electric bill in check. When I bought, the price was right also. Now, we will check its operational life although I think it should do well as Heat Storm appears to be a reputable company.

We are really pleased with this heater so far. Bought for a bathroom as supplemental heating to main house heating. The product looks clean, smart and modern and functions just the same. The Wifi is a must and the main reason i purchased this device. The app allows you to control the heater from the phone but more importantly to schedule the device to turn on and turn off at preset times (like early morning), at your desired temperature, and on your choices of days (like "work days only" as an example). The heater works by radiant heat but also has a blower. The blower is not overly loud. There are 3 selectable modes for the blower/heat power: Low, High and Auto. Auto mode operates at full power (100%) until the room (ambient) temperature is within a degree or so of the set (desired) temperature and then it "throttles down" to 50% until the room is up to the desired set temperature. High and Low modes simply operate at High (100%) or Low (50%) continually until the desired temperature is achieved and the thermostat turns the product off, the same as a normal HVAC thermostat control. We simply leave it on Auto mode. The display panel is excellent, you can modify the brightness if desired (also from the app!). The current temperature is displayed and you can manually adjust the set level using the + or - keys (it's essentially a touch screen display almost). The new set temperature will flash for a few seconds for you to see (when adjusted) and then the display returns to the ambient temperature as the heater attempts to meet the set level. Both levels (set and ambient) are displayed together on the app so you can see what the room is and what your appliance is trying to get to. I put a new outlet in the bathroom wall and strategically located the outlet at the rear where there is a large cable storage area with a removable storage cover recessed into the rear plastic body of the heater. This way the cord and outlet are not seen when mounted and it is flush to the wall - it looks great this way and looks like it is "hard-wired" - i included a photo. Note that the rating is 1500Watts which is approximately 12.5 Amps so take this into account if you have other loads on your circuit for wire and breaker sizing but remember that this is a continuous maximum rating (100% power) and this product is not designed to run at 100% indefinitely (since it is thermostat controlled). Also be aware that any bathroom outlets need to be GFCI (although this device does not have a ground pin - it does not exempt an additional outlet from being a GFCI). As always, you should consult a certified electrician and adhere to all code regulations especially for bathroom, kitchen or similar applications.The only issue encountered was during initial wifi setup. When downloading the Smart Life app the initial app install asked for some generic global settings about locations services and out of an abundance of caution i declined some of them (security / privacy reasons). After 30 minutes of frustration trying to discover the device using the EZ connect method and then the manual AP method i finally realized that one of these settings was preventing the discovery of the heater on my network. I was just about to call the help line. (Under iPhone General Settings>Smart Life>Local Network slider should be "on" to "allow Smart Life to access". This is not in the App set up or in the product literature. If this is not set to "on" the heater will not connect at all. As soon as i changed it to on it became available. Since then the Wifi has been consistent and never dropped once in 2 weeks. When the unit is unplugged from the outlet for a long duration the settings remain and so the unit reconnects automatically without user intervention (in case of power outage). The unit is wall mount only but i believe that feet for floor standing are available for purchase from the seller via Amazon.In summary, this was a great purchase for looks, functionality, convenience and performance. Highly Recommended and i am not easily pleased!

We have a large Rec room (26 ft x 13 ft) in our basement that always seems cold. I've tried multiple space heaters down there with mixed results. The last one was an oil filled convection heater. I liked it because it was completely silent. However, it took a very long time to warm up the room and it was very uneven. Over time, it started emitting a burnt smell too.I bought this and it does a terrific job of heating up the room quickly... 6 degrees in around 20 minutes. And since it's infrared heat, it warms up people event faster than the room temperature. It keeps the room warm throughout the day, and it feels even throughout the room. From a heat standpoint, it's ideal.However, when the fan is on high, it does seem loud to me. I would prefer something quieter. When the fan is on the low setting, it's still very audible, but more tolerable for me.Overall, I highly recommend this. It's been a great solution for the rec room... installation was very easy, and it looks good on the wall. It's great because it doesn't take up floor space, and there are a lot of options to adjust settings.