non-electric heater?
 

Any recommendations on an indoor heater that does not run on electricity? I'm thinking of getting one for in case we go through another round of rolling black-outs this winter. (having an electric heater would not help...)

We use our gas stove. We have a generator that should be able to run a small space heater. We have a through-wall electrical plug, so we don't have to have a door or window open to get power into the house. Since we got the generator a couple years ago, we haven't lost power. It's good insurance against power outage, but rather expensive.

We put a ventless gas wall-mounted heater (propane) in our living room after being without power for 11 days in "07 due to our horrible ice storm. Our living room is the coldest room in the house anyway, so this can be turned on when the room is a little cool. It would keep that room and the dining/kitchen warm during a power outage if turned on "high"
The gas company came out and installed it.

HTH - hope this helps.

Just yesterday bought a kerosene 23000 BTU heater to replace using electric heat. The Dura Glo has all 5 star ratings. We'll see! Right now the wick is soaking for another 30 mins.

Please be extra careful with these...you may need to vent the room a bit for safety.

We keep our Kerosun in the garage for DH to work out there sometimes. If need be we would bring it in and we have a gas fireplace that we can turn on. Just be careful to vent whatever you use. Too many people die from using heaters with poor ventilation.

Thanks Susie! Dumb me just spend 1/2 hr ventilating the house and trying to get the smoke alarm to stay off! Usually the stupid thing ignores burning food but goes off for steam from boiling water!! Manual = small odor and smoke when lit the first time. NOT! Anyway, even on the lowest heat my house is cozy now! Kerosene is usually about $54 but our local feed store had it on for $29.99!!

We had a propane heater installed in the studio for my mom, it didn't require electricity to run, had a piezo electric starter, the reason we got that one was because it didn't use electricity. Do you have a local gas company? If so, I would contact them, they will usually sell them and install them. They can run on gas or be retrofitted for propane.

We have a wood burning stove to help warm dining, living and kitchen, gas heat in rest of house. Husband wanted to get a ventless insert for dismantled fireplace. I have a Cockatiel and afraid there may be some fumes that would kill her. Not worth the risk.

Our fireplace is a gas one set on a therometer so any time the power goes out, we still have heat. Just don't have the fan running. It's our backup heat source. We use our generator for the fridge, freezer... those kind of things.

Kitsie does your kerosene heater have an odor? I have never been able to handle the smell of kerosene however a friend told me the new ones don't have an odor.

We have a propane fireplace in a corner of the living room that we use when the power goes out - fan doesn't run but it is toasty. I would be afraid to use anything that is not vented or at least a window open a little close to it, you can get gassed without realizing it.

Marysewfun

Emergency essentials carries ventless propane heaters. You could get the brands and check them on the net.
Lynda

We have a couple of portable propane camp heaters. They take the small tanks like you use on camp stoves, put out alot of heat & last quite awhile. They really help take off the chill. I think they run around $40, so you may want to check them out too...

You'all are smart to plan ahead. Last year we had a power outage when temp was down in low 20's and I was never so miserable. I live in a small house with a crawl space, wood floors, never thought about how cold it gets, I have always lived in a house on a slab and had a gas fireplace. But in the country we seem to loose power a lot. I am going to have to think about propane heater.

We bought a small house heated with two monitor heaters (2 oil tanks) we decided to get rid of them and install a wood stove. We should be able to heat the house enough that it's comfortable for around 800.00 for the winter. The stove will heat a 1500 sq foot area. This should pay for itself in the money we save by next Christmas or sooner and since we're out in the country we don't have to worry about the electricity going out and not having heat, plus if needed we can cook on it. So far we love it.

The 1st house I owned had no central heat and the 1st year we heated with a woodstove and a Kerosun (we moved in in January). The Kerosun was great. There was no kerosene smell as long as the wick was properly trimmed and adjusted. We NEVER refilled the heater when it was hot, and Always in the garage with a syphon pump specifically for this purpose. A bit of a pain. There was enough "natural airflow" in that house we didn't worry about venting :) It kept us very comfy that first year in combo with the woodburner. It could not heat the entire house by itself. After the furnace was installed in the spring, it was relegated to the garage for heat out there. We did use it in every house to heat the utility area when the power is out to keep pipes from freezing. Now that the kids are grown I just close off the rest of the house and heat the kitchen with the stove and stay in there all day and pile on the quilts at night!
I wish I had a spot for some type of fireplace or stove in this house.

They have spill and tilt sensors and are safe for use by persons with common sense!! Follow the directions and buy quality kerosene.