Duraflame 1500 Watt Quartz Heater, Black, 8HM1500

I live in a large early 1800s farmhouse in PA and I bought this unit in late December to supplement oil heat (as well as two existing small electric, oscillating tower heaters - Lasko brand).The house has three sections and we mainly stay in one section (living room and bathroom downstairs, bedroom upstairs), so that's where we put this heater. During the day, we section off the upstairs to keep the heat in the main room.Here's the set-up:- I keep the furnace thermostat set to 55 degrees;- this heater sits in the center of the room;- and one of the oscillating tower heaters in the corner.- Overall, it's probably around 800 to 900 square feet.- We have plastic sheeting insulation over all of the nine windows in the room.COST TO RUN: Since buying this unit, we have had it running continuously (turning it off only during the day when we are away, which is infrequent since I work from home), along with the tower heater. Regardless of the temps outside, the temp inside remains in the mid-60s. I haven't used a drop of oil heat for the entire month of January. So, the real test was what our electric bill would be for January. I just got it yesterday (I was waiting to write a review on this until I saw that cost) and it's only about 20% to 25% higher than normal. Compared to oil heat, we saved roughly $300 for January.Of the other two sections of the house, one is closed off for the winter (no plumbing, so freezing temps don't matter) and the other is our dining room and kitchen. That's where we run the other oscillating tower heater (which is on almost all the time). Since the thermostat for the furnace is in the warmer living room, this section is much colder (normally fed by four heating vents from the furnace and now getting none of that heat). It's usually around 45 to 50 degrees in there. Based on my experience with the Duraflame unit, I'm thinking of buying another to use in this section which would run only when we're using the kitchen/dining room for cooking/entertaining.So, pros and cons overview:PROS- shipped quickly and in perfect condition- cheap to run (which, of course, depends on the cost of electric for your area)- cool to the touch (three cats and one dog and no singed hair, burnt tails :) )- we've had this thing running almost non-stop for a month and have had zero problemsCONS- probably wouldn't adequately heat 1000 square feet as advertised. Without the electric tower heater running, we probably would not have been able to maintain the 65 degree temp inside- it is a little noisy, but not to the point where it's distracting. Because we run it all the time, whatever humming/rattling it makes is ambient noise at this point. There does seem to be some slight rattling from time to time, but it doesn't seem to affect performance.

11/10/12: I got the item, plugged it in and let it run on high for about 6 hours. It didn't seem like it was getting very warm during that time -- it's only "warm" if you're standing RIGHT in front of it. The unit is pretty big - for its size, seems like it should pump out much hotter air. The unit didn't maintain established room temp (68F) in a 15x15 room at all. I'm very disappointed in this product. I've asked for a refund from the seller - they are debating whether to allow it. I'll have an update after I contact their customer service.11/24/12: Update... I've attempted to contact the seller for this product but they are not responding. They incorrectly/inappropriately closed my request for a refund on this product. Bottom line: the product does NOT WORK AS DESCRIBED. Worse, the seller's customer service is pretty bad (not the worst I've ever experienced but it's pretty clear that they don't want to refund my money for a very ineffective product. I bought this based on recommendations from other users and because the product description states that it heats up to 1000' square feet. This product does not do that.)I've escalated this to Amazon's customer service team as the seller is not responding -- I'll have an update once I hear back from Amazon.12/5/12: Amazon has opened up the lines of communication with the seller (I had to file a claim). The seller is now in contact with me and is aware of my request for a full refund (purchase price, shipping and insurance costs). More to follow, pending seller's response and turn-around time on the refund. . . .12/13/12: OhhhhhhhKAY here's the deal: Amazon worked it out with Factory Authorized Outlet (FAO) to reimburse me for the $169.99 for the heater and Amazon will pick up the tab for my return shipping and insurance costs. (not sure why Amazon should have to do that but I definitely appreciate that they did! Amazon has my customer loyalty!!) I will reserve comments on FAO until I actually receive the refund. I've gotta say: this has been a PITA process all the way around. The only thing that saved this situation was Amazon's intervention. THANK YOU AMAZON - you truly know what customer service means! Amazon FTW!!!On a side note: FAO wants me to upgrade my seller rating - which I won't do until they follow through with their promise. If they do, I will upgrade my rating. If they don't - then I won't. Simple as that. (FWIW: "back in the day" companies used to give folks "extras" (vouchers, coupons, gift certs, etc) for when their service wasn't excellent. It was just their way of letting their very valuable customers know that they were willing to "right the wrong" completely and to improve customer perception. I don't forsee that happening here. . . If it does, I'll let you know. . . .