How to actually size an infrared heater for your bathroom
Getting the wattage wrong on a bathroom heater is a pain. You either end up wasting a ton of money on electricity because the unit is way too big, or you’re standing there shivering because the heat just isn’t reaching your toes. That’s why we go with shortwave infrared lamps. Instead of trying to heat up all the air in the room—which takes forever—these lamps heat you and the surfaces around you directly. It’s a much faster way to get warm.
Finding the right power for your space
How much power you need mostly comes down to how big your bathroom is and what your walls are made of. If you’ve just got a tiny powder room (under 4m²), a single 400W to 600W lamp usually does the trick. But if you’re dealing with a big master bath (somewhere between 8m² and 12m²), you’ll want to jump up to 1000W or 1200W. Here’s a tip: keep an eye on your ceiling height. The higher the ceiling, the more heat escapes before it ever hits you. And if the room is huge, resist the urge to just buy one massive, high-wattage lamp. It’s better to install a few smaller units spread out. Otherwise, you’ll end up with “hot spots”—where you feel like you’re being scorched in one spot while the other side of the room is still freezing.
The trade-offs and the “wet zone” problem
The higher the wattage, the faster it feels. A 1200W lamp hits that peak temperature almost the second you flip the switch. But there’s a catch. More power means a bigger pull on your electricity. Just make sure your circuit can handle the load so you aren’t constantly tripping the breaker. Since bathrooms are, well, wet, we only use IP65-rated housings. This is basically a tight seal that keeps steam and splashes away from the electrical guts. Without that seal, moisture creeps in, corrodes the terminals, and eventually burns out the element or causes a short. To make your lamps last as long as possible, just make sure they aren’t sitting directly in the line of fire of the shower spray. Simple as that.