What should I do with a good/bad heater?
My neighbor gave me a portable electric baseboard heater with the statement, "If it works, I'd like it back, but if it doesn't work [and you fix it], you can keep it."
(I had told him I like broken things, to fix them.)
It seemed to work ok, but had a "Caution" light which I thought would go on if I tipped the heater over. It didn't go on when I tipped it, so I looked on the web for an instruction manual.
(What is the purpose of such a light?)
I didn't find a manual but I found a recall notice. I've asked my neighbor two or three times over the last two weeks what he wants to do with his heater, but he never gets back to me. I guess that means he doesn't want it, but I wish people would learn to talk.
Can you think of a use for this thing?? It says below that of 450,000 sold, Honeywell Consumer Products has received 53 reports of these heaters short-circuiting, including two cases where the floor beneath the heater was damaged due to fire. No injuries have been reported.
I have no place to use this thing, but if I had a cold basement or garage, or any place without carpet or wood floors, I probably would use it. I can't give it to Goodwill without a detailed explanation of what is wrong with it, and then Goodwill won't want it.
I feel like I'm forgetting some good option, since 50 out of 450,000 is not many. 2 is even fewer.
(I still have the room heater that my mother bought when I was new born, so she could heat up the bathroom more than the furnace was capable of. 59 years old and even the cloth covered cord is still good. Of course it's hardly been used in the last 30 years.)
Text of recall:
February 7, 2002
Honeywell Consumer Products Announces Recall of Moveable Baseboard Heaters
Honeywell Consumer Products Inc. (HCP), of Southborough, Mass., is voluntarily recalling about 450,000 moveable baseboard heaters. The heating element in these baseboard heaters can short-circuit and ignite combustible material under the heater, posing fire and burn hazards to consumers. HCP has received 53 reports of these heaters short-circuiting, including two cases where the floor beneath the heater was damaged due to fire. No injuries have been reported.
The recalled HZ-514 HCP baseboard heaters are about 40 inches long, 8 inches tall, and 4 inches wide at their widest point. The white baseboard heaters have the name "Honeywell" printed on the front of the unit. The recalled heaters have:
a six-digit date code beginning with "97" on a sticker on the back or the bottom of the unit, or
a date code beginning with the digit "8" or "9" stamped on the flat metal prong of the electrical cord?s plug, or
a date code beginning with the digits "00" stamped on the flat metal prong of the electrical cord?s plug and "TYPE I" or nothing stamped on the bottom of the unit.
Department stores and home centers nationwide sold these baseboard heaters from October 1997 through January 2001 for between $30 and $50.
Consumers should stop using these heaters immediately, unplug them, and contact HCP at (800) 311-4204 between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. ET Monday through Sunday or log on to the company?s website at
Consumers with recalled units will be given instructions on how to mail them back to HCP in order to receive a free replacement heater. Honeywell Media Contact: Barbara Dunlay (952) 474-8546. Baseboard heaters with "01" stamped on the metal prong of the electrical plug or "TYPE II" stamped on the bottom of the unit are not included in this recall.