Garden Furniture And Patio Furniture

Is it green or even ethical to use garden patio heaters? While these types of outdoor appliances are growing in popularity it is clear that they are not green products. Whether or not it is ethical to use garden heating equipment really depends upon your own world view. It could be argued that all heating appliances are “bad for the environment” so why single out garden patio heaters? The main difference really comes down to matters of usage. With standard heating equipment, including things like central heating, electrical and gas heaters as well as things like oil filled radiators, we use them indoors. This means that even if our home is not insulated perfectly, we are still trying to warm a confined space.

The ceiling and walls will trap some of the heat which means as time passes, the area will warm up nicely. However with outdoor patio heaters there are no walls or ceilings to help trap the hot air that is produced. These types of heating appliances are used to literally just pump heat out into the atmosphere. A further issue that this brings up is that to get a decent warm feeling they have to use up energy at a much faster rate than indoor heaters. Some estimates put the figure at ten times as fast. Another interesting figure I found is that a patio heater gives off the same amount of carbon dioxide in two hours as a car releases on average per day. These are startling estimates about the energy usage of garden patio heaters.

So if they are so fuel intensive and bad for the environment, why are they becoming more and more popular? This is an interesting question that I shall now discuss. Part of their popularity is due to smoking bans which many countries have now implemented. In order to entice smoking customers to frequent a bar or restaurant, many now have an outdoor area with one or more patio heaters to provide warmth for their customers. This obviously makes going out for a cigarette more enjoyable particularly in the colder months. Patio heating equipment also offers home users a way to prolong the summer period both in terms of length of summer as well as length of individual days. There is no arguing that a garden heater could make a barbecue more enjoyable if you are having fun with friends and just want to keep going into the late evening.

Some of the negative comments about garden patio heaters come from people like Andy Atkins who is the Executive Director of Friends of the Earth. In an interview in Ethical Consumer he said –

“Patio heaters really annoy me. It’s just so pointless heating the open air and is a complete waste of energy and carbon emissions: if you want to sit outside when it’s cold, go and grab a coat. With dangerous climate change just around the corner we can no longer afford to be frivolous with energy.”

For people who are interested in recycled garden furniture there are many different green options. However outdoor items like garden patio heaters certainly are not the most environmentally friendly purchase you could make. We each as individuals have to weigh up the pros and cons of anything we decide to buy. For some, the negative environmental impact that outdoor patio heaters have is just too much to make them a worthwhile purchase.