Ref: ER/PR/TH/heater.38
INSIGHT - The Consumer Magazine has published the test findings of its
in-house comparative product testing laboratory on eight room heaters
with fans (also called hot air fans) in its November-December 2006 issue.
It has recommended Bajaj (RX-11), Clearline (HL545) and
Usha (FH423N) as the Best Buys among the brands tested.
This product, although widely used in those states in our country where
winters are severe, are not covered under mandatory or statutory certification.
In some brands the temperature rise of hot air was fairly good and rose
to as high as 15.75° C (Bajaj), whereas in others it was as low
as 7.50° C (Black & Decker). In some, thermostats were not provided
(Usha, Omax, Orpat and ABC). But more serious concern was that thermal
cut-out (a safety device) was not functioning in Omax, Orpat (ORH-9007-DX)
and Black & Decker (HX150).
Another safety concern was that in ABC there was no protection
against electric shock. When it came to the issue of consumer information,
most brands gave information on paper glued to the product, which could
easily be removed. Further, the prices ranged from the highest Rs. 1850
(Greenline) to the lowest Rs. 690 (Omax). CERS has requested
the BIS to make the Quality Control Order mandatory and standards compulsory
for Room Heaters (with fan).
The heaters were subjected to 15 performance and safety tests. They
are:
Hot Air Output : This performance
test was carried out to find the volume of air flow and the temperature
rise of the hot air delivered by the room heater.
None of the brands declared these values.
Bajaj registered the highest
temperature rise of hot air i.e 15.75°C at heat setting 1, and 23.17°C
at heat setting 2. The lowest temperature rise of hot air at heat setting
1 was in Black & Decker i.e 7.5°C, and that at heat setting
2 was in ABC i.e 14.54°C.
Interestingly, Black & Decker had the highest air volume
but the lowest hot air temperature output at heat setting 1. (In a room
heater hot air temperature rise is more important than air volume.)
Thermostat: The thermostat is
a temperature-sensing device and can be adjusted to achieve the desired
room temperature. It maintains the temperature by automatically opening
and closing a circuit. Omax, Orpat, Usha and ABC were not provided with
a thermostat. In Greenline (RH701), the thermostat did not work.
Thermal cut-out : The thermal cut-out
should be made to operate 200 times at higher voltages. This device
did not function in Omax, Orpat and Black & Decker.
Electric Shock : This was checked using a test finger. ABC failed
as live parts were accessible from the front grill of the heater.
In Orpat, plug housing is provided for fixing the plug when the
heater is not in use. But when the plug is not fixed, in the absence
of a flap, this part remains open.
Finish : All surfaces of the room heater
should be made of corrosion-resisting material or should be suitably
protected against corrosion. Only Omax failed this test for finish as
part of the inner assembly was found rusted.
Input: This test verified whether the rated wattage (the power the appliance
would consume, as declared by the manufacturer) was the actual one.
The input should not deviate from the rated value by more than ±
10 per cent. Orpat failed this test with its rated figure of 2000W and
an actual consumption of 1700W.
Ease of Use : Eight panellists tested how easy or otherwise it was to
operate room heaters.
The six major ‘ease of use’ parameters considered were : visibility
and clarity of marking on knobs, use of thermostat (if provided), use
of fan/heat setting knob, silent operation, overall use of operation
and physical appearance.
On the basis of the overall analysis, Omax topped the ‘ease of
use’ parameter (97 points), and ABC scored the least (70).
Labelling & Marking: Any marking on the sample must be legible and
durable. Except for Orpat and ABC, the marking information on the other
brands was printed on paper and glued to the product.
Instruction manual was not provided for Omax, Orpat and ABC.
Cord length : The power cord should not be less than 2 metres long.
Except Bajaj, all brands failed. Usha (1.53m) had the shortest cord,
followed by Greenline (1.7m).
Price : The price (marked on the carton) of the heaters ranged from
Rs. 690 (Omax) to Rs. 1,850 (Greenline). Most of the prices lay in the
Rs 1,500 to Rs 1,800 range.
Guarantee & Warranty: Greenline did not provide any guarantee\ warranty.
Bajaj offered a two-year guarantee, Usha offered a one-year guarantee,
and the other five brands offered a one-year warranty.
CERS Action
We have requested the BIS to make it mandatory for the minimum air volume
to be marked on the room heater, include our modified design of air
duct in the standard, make it mandatory to provide an instruction manual,
make the Quality Control Order or Mandatory Certification cover room
heaters with fan and mention Guarantee/Warranty in all consumer durables
as a mandatory obligation.
All the brands tested passed the parameters of Temperature Rise, Starting
of Fan Motor, Insulation, Mechanical Strength & Stability, and Creepage
Distances & Clearances.
As a policy, before publishing and publicising the results, we convey
the test findings to all the manufacturers for their views and comments.
They receive the results of their own products only.
Gryphon,, marketers of Black & Decker, said that there is no thermal
cut-out in their product and it is fitted with 2 thermostats and will
withstand higher voltages. In our tests, at higher voltages it did not
operate!
Manufacturers of Orpat and Greenline did not reply to our letters.
Details of the rating and ranking, the ‘best buy’ and excerpts
of our correspondence with manufacturers have been published in the
November-December 2006 issue of
INSIGHT — The Consumer Magazine.
Annexure: Table on Rating-Ranking & Best Buys
Brands
Tested
The brands tested were — Bajaj
Majesty (RX-11), Usha (FH423N), Omax, Orpat (ORH-9007-DX), Greenline
(RH701), ABC, Black & Decker (HX 150) and Clearline (HL 545).
Standards : The laboratory tested the heaters
against IS:4283-1981 and IS:302-1 (1979) with two and eight amendments,
respectively.
The sample heaters needed to pass all the tests for the general qualities
and design to conform to the Standard. A test for finish (corrosion)
was also undertaken. An additional energy consumption test was carried
out though not given in the Standard.
Date : 06/11/2006
Pritee Shah
Place: Ahmedabad
Editor
Insight-The Consumer Magazine
Consumer
Education & Research Centre (CERC) - Copyrights Reserved 2003.