Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I bought this heater to replace another DeLonghi HMP1500 Mica Panel Heater that I had purchased on Amazon and had provided reliable year round service for the last 11 years. THAT IS CORRECT! My last DeLonghi Mica Panel lasted 11 years!!! (power cable finally became frayed and resulted in damage to the heaters' PC board) The only problem I ever had concerned the casters and their somewhat flimsy nature. If you accidentally kicked the unit or banged it while moving, they tended to break off with very little force. (super glue saved me more than once) The new unit is almost identical to my 11 year old one. Slightly different cosmetics including larger control dials (larger but HARDER to actually “see” what number you are on) , a longer power cord (!!) and sturdier wheel assemblies. It also as a “non freeze” setting you can use for cold storage units where you don't want to heat them but cant let them freeze. The one truly new design feature I do not like is the status light indicator. On the old unit it would light when first turned on, but go OFF when the heater finished cycling to the desired temp, then click on and light up once again when it was heating. It made it much easier to visually confirm it was operating. (if you worry about such things) The way it works now is, the red light is ALWAYS ON when the unit is on. Obviously this was done for safety, so you wouldn't leave your heater on by accident, not seeing a light and thinking it was OFF when in fact it was still ON but just not cycling. (got that?) Bottom line: These are great heaters. While not heating a room quickly, they Do work well for CLOSED rooms. Putting one of these in your open living room would be waste, it just wouldn't put out enough heat to make much of a difference. However, if you have a closed off room of any type (I use mine in a large bedroom and home theater) it will heat it and maintain that heat reliably. Since it is not fan driven, the heat pattern first goes UP, then spreads thru your room until the warmer air begins to fall and is replaced with fresh hot air, etc. Within an hour the entire room is comfy and the thermostat, when used as directed in the manual, will work perfectly. The only way you can KNOW it is working it is feel for heat, or listen for the rather noticeable “click” sound when the unit cycles. I was worried the thermostat was not working at first, but after a few hours of testing, it proved to be working just fine. About the smell: THESE NEED SOME SERIOUS OFFGASSING TIME before your first indoor use. I assembled mine (no tools required) and placed it on the back patio and as directed in the manual I cranked it all the way up on both dials. I checked it every half hour, to make sure power cord and outlet was not overheating. The smell was HORRENDOUS and this was OUTSIDE in a windstorm yesterday! HA HA The paint hasn't fully cured on these units and that is what is offgassing. Nasty stuff, you DO NOT want this in your home. The manual suggests 2 hours of offgassing at a minimum. I needed the heater yesterday, having done without heat for 2 days but I had some patience and gave it a good FOUR HOURS of full offgassing. By the time I had it in the house, almost all the smell was gone. I got a small amount of it the first time I used it in here, but this morning it was not detectable. ONE LAST WORD: You could do a LOT worse than this unit. While the 11 year lifespan of my previous model shouldn't be taken as the norm, it does say quite a bit about their design. I live up in the high desert and it gets mighty COLD here at night and in the mornings The new version seems to be manufactured to an even higher standard and so far I am very satisfied. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED !