Not all heaters are equal in terms of inherent safety, energy efficiency and their effectiveness at heating people.

A wide range of heater types are in use around the UNSW campus; bar radiators, oil heaters and other convection heaters and fan heaters. A review has been prepared comparing different heating technologies and their application to personal heating at UNSW.

Please note that staff may not bring personal heaters into UNSW work spaces from home or other sources. Instead they should request an approved heater from their school or department. Administration officers can use the heater purchasing scheme outlined on this website to buy these heaters for a good price. Uncontrolled growth in personal heater use at UNSW is causing load problems (circuits tripping). It is creating safety risks and is leading to inefficient use of energy. If that is not bad enough, some of the heaters brought onto the campus are ineffective and are wasting energy for little benefit. If you already have a heater, you  may wish to help mitigate these problems by talking part in the swap program.

The only approved personal heaters at UNSW are special forms of radiant panel heaters (compact conventional radiant panel heater and moderate wattage micathermic radiant panel heaters). Floor heating mats, with safety cut-outs are also OK. These heaters have many advantages over bar radiators, oil heaters, other convection heaters and fan heaters. They create infrared heat and warm the user directly. Radiant heaters are particularly useful in draughty spaces and large or poorly insulated rooms where other forms of heating are ineffective or extremely inefficient.

The long term strategy at UNSW is to gradually phase out existing inefficient and ineffective heaters. This will be achieved by no longer purchasing such heaters in future and by replacing existing inefficient heaters. UNSW FM Energy Unit and Security have teamed up to run a heater swap program to encourage staff to obtain a new efficient replacement heater.

Have a look at our personal heater review to find out if your existing heater is an efficient and safe option. If it is not one of the special radiant heaters approved for use at UNSW then email energy@unsw.edu.au and request a replacement heater. It is especially important that you do this if your existing heater is a bar radiator, strip heater, quartz infrared heater, or any other type of high temperature radiant heater. Sometimes high temperature radiant heaters have other forms of heating element built in (ceramic heating elements for example) and they may also have fans. Whatever the element combination and heater configuration, high temperature radiant heaters create arisk factor. Even though you may be aware of the risks these heaters pose and operate your heater in a cautious manner, Murphy's Law always applies.

High temperature radiators create an inherent OH&S risk and cannot be used at UNSW. Take the heater home, return it to your administration officer or take part in the heater swap program. We can provide you with alternative radiant panel heater that is inherently much safer and more energy efficient than a bar radiator.

Even if your existing heater is an oil heater, convection heater or fan heater please consider taking part in the swap program. In many applications, these heaters are ineffective and waste energy. If you have one of these heaters and it is , in your case, actually keeping you reasonably comfortable, the odds are it is using a lot of energy to achieve this result. We can supply a more efficient alternative.

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If you work in a particularly cold building the FM energy Unit staff can still tailor an effective, energy efficient and safe heating option for you. In addition to supplying special radiant heaters and floor mats the FM Energy Unit is also looking into radiant ceiling panels and ways to improve the thermal performance of rooms.

Remember to dress for winter and follow some of our helpful tips. In Sydney this means putting on warm clothing for around 3 months out of 12 each year. The rest of the time we can enjoy the great climate and allow other considerations to influence how we dress.

To alert people to the swap program, Security staff in the course of their normal rounds will put post it notes on ineffective, inefficient or dangerous heaters and/or on nearby desks.

The note will invite people to take part in the heater swap program and provide a contact email address, energy@unsw.edu.au. It will also refer people to the www.energy.unsw.edu.au website for information on portable heater choices and the reason why they are being asked to swap their heater.

If people take part in the program then a combination of one or two compact energy efficient radiant panel heaters and a heating pad will be delivered to their room. Alternatively a micathermic radiant heater may be offered for the swap. FM Energy Unit staff will set the heater(s) up for safe operation. The system is then on trial for a week. The trial period will allow the participant to alternate between heaters and experiment with different heater placement.

At the end of a week FM Energy Unit staff will return and ask whether the participant wants to keep the new set up. If this is the case then the old heater will be removed. If the participant owns the old heater and wants to take it home, then this is fine. The serial number of the heater will be recorded and the participant be asked to sign an agreement to remove it within one week. 

If you are dressing for winter, have tried your new heating system for a bit and then come to the conclusion you are worse off then before, then let us know by email. We will investigate your room and heating system to identify simple practical ways to improve its performance.

If your old heater was bar radiator or other high temperature heater we cannot and will not return it to you. We are quite confident, however, that we can swap these dangerous forms of heating with alternatives that are just as good, yet are much safer and more efficient.