I purchased two of these units both failed after a few weeks. Problem was identical the units would work fine, but when shut off, would not power on again. The indicator light might blink, but then nothing.
I have found the problem is the cheap, polished 2 prong power plugs on these heaters. After a few uses they do not conduct enough current for the electronic control to be able to apply full power to the element.
The fix? Simple. Use an emory board to "roughen up" the plug power prongs so that a decent contact is made when the plug is inserted in the outlet. Then, buy a decent three conductor, grounded power cord and replace the AC cord entirely. At least, cut off the cheap power plug and replace it with a good plug with conductors that can carry the current needed.
If you can't do this competently, take the units to someone qualified to perform the repairs. Obviously, poor electrical connections can cause fires and would, if these units didn't have the "smarts" to see the faulty power and shut off the unit entirely.
Sunbeam Low profile heater digital
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We bought this heater for our living room to try to avoid using our central gas heating very much this winter. Our living room is fairly large, and this heater is doing a pretty good job so far. We closed doors so that it's heating just our living room and kitchen, and it has stayed very comfortable for the most part. There have been a few nights though where it was a little colder (in the 20s and 30s we live in Georgia!) and it did seem a little chilly in the room, but not COLD. We haven't noticed any significant change in our electric bill either, and we run this heater almost 24/7. Overall, it's a decent heater for keeping our living area comfortable, but if you live in an area that gets very cold, this may or may not work well for you (depending on the area you want to heat and the insulation of your home).
***UPDATED*** 12/15/09
It was nice while it lasted. We woke up this morning and the heater was off. We tried everything, and nothing would get it to turn back on no buttons worked, unplugging it and then plugging it back in didn't work, nothing. It worked well for the month that we had it, and now it just suddenly died.
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I purchased two of these last year ('08). I had to take one back to the store because it failed, but the replacement worked perfectly. I click the auto temp to 65 degrees and my rooms are warm (I also have 12' ceilings). I used these in place of the baseboard oil heat (when oil was $4 a gallon) and my heating bill was about $350 a month through the cold northeast Pa. winter. Oil would've been about $1000 a month.
I am buying 2 more to replace other models I tried that just don't work as well as these.
Honest reviews on Sunbeam SLP3310-UM Low-Profile 1000/1500-Watt Convection Heater
This unit has changed the way I heat my home in the winter.
I live in Minnesota in a commercial loft with 12' ceilings, 10' windows and hardwood floors. Heating this place evenly can be a challenge! However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that a few of these heaters were up to the task; they've made all the difference for me. I had been relying on my natural gas forced-air furnace, but the ceiling registers were too high in the air to heat the place evenly. Placing a few of these along the walls areas gave me nice, even heat throughout the apartment and sharply reduced my furnace's workload.
Even with all the cubic space created by 12' ceilings, a single heater can handle an impressively large area: each unit heats about 250-350 sq ft in my home and it doesn't seem to have a hard time keeping up. The programmable thermostat allows you to toggle-select temperatures from 65-85 (in 5-degree steps), the automatic shut-off timer has settings for 4, 8 and 12 hours. The energy saving feature cycles the wattage to save electricity consumption over a long period of time. This does reduce the heat produced (despite the claim that there is no noticeable difference) but the reduction is slight enough that I consider it a pretty good trade-off.
Outside it's variable "energy saving" mode, the unit uses a continuous 1500 watts and about 12 amps. The unit doesn't seem to be fragile and looks/feels well made. Dependability hasn't been an issue for me at all, and I now have three of these that I've pretty much been running continuously. These units are also pretty light and easy to move: there's even a small hand grip on each end to make it easy to grab. The claim that this is a silent heater is absolutely true you won't hear it at all except for some soft metallic expansion "pops" from the metal grate as it initially heats up. The size is pretty manageable also. It's about as wide and tall as the boiler drawer beneath a standard oven and is about as thick as a box of Kleenex.
All in all, I've been really pleased with these heaters. For a pretty small investment, they've made my home much more comfortable this winter and haven't been intrusive while doing so.
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I bought this item from another vendor in person and paid a little less than Amazon's list price. So far so good though with this heater. It was easy to get startedjust remove the packaging materials and plug it in. At first, like your furnaces, the unit smells as it heats up. It puts out a fair amount of heat too. I am using mine in combination with a second space heater to avoid turning on the gas furnace as long as possible. I have a small home so it's nice and warm. I would recommend this to people who have a small space to heat. I'll be testing it in the basement soon. That is also the reason for only 4 stars. I really haven't had it long enough to put it through all of it paces yet. Once I do, and I expect it to pass with flying colors, I see myself getting one more possibly.
If anything changes I will post an update.
