Patio heater size: what 22 heaters are rated to cover

Output and maker-rated heat area for 22 gas and electric patio heaters from Bromic, Infratech, Fire Sense, East Oak, Mr. Heater and Heat Storm, with the BTU per square foot each rating implies and a calculator for your patio.

By BuyerDecisionUpdated 18 October 2026

Output and coverage figures read by hand from each maker's page, catalog or manual on 18 October 2026. We have not tested any of these heaters. How we research | How links work

The short answer

Size a patio heater from that model's own coverage rating, not from a flat 20 BTU per square foot rule. Across the 22 heaters here, makers' ratings work out to 35 to 205 BTU per hour for each square foot they say they cover (middle values: 162 for gas, 114 for electric). So a 168 sq ft seating area needs far more than the 3,360 BTU/h the 20 BTU rule gives: by most makers' own figures, one 40,000 to 50,000 BTU propane tower or two or more electric heaters.

Title card: patio heater size, with rising bars — Illustration, not a photograph of a specific product.

How many heaters does your patio need?

168 sq ft

Enter your seating area. The result lists how many of each heater its maker's rating says you need.

Every heater, by BTU per square foot of rated coverage

Lowest first. A low number means the maker claims a lot of area for the heat it puts out. Electric output is watts x 3.412 unless the maker states a BTU figure. Where a maker gives a diameter or radius, the area is that circle.

Heater	Fuel	Output (BTU/h)	Watts	Maker-rated area (sq ft)	BTU/h per sq ft	Mount height	Power	Maker's wording	Source
Heat Storm Tradesman 1500-Watt Infrared Heater with Remote (HS-1500-OTR-R)	Electric	5,200	1,500	150	35		110 V plug	"Coverage (Primary Heat): Up to 150 sq. ft.; Coverage (Supplemental Heat): Up to 300 sq. ft."; Heat Output: 5,200 BTU	Heat Storm
Mr. Heater Low Profile Patio Heater (MH30LPPH)	Propane	30,000		750	40			"Heating-area-sq-ft 750 (the feature list says Heats up to 1200 square feet)"; Input btu 30,000. Feature list says 1,200 sq ft, spec list says 750 sq ft; we use the spec list.	Mr. Heater
Bromic Eclipse Freestanding 2900W	Electric	9,895	2,900	121	82	8 to 10 ft	208 to 240 V	"Max Heat Area 121ft2"	Bromic
Bromic Tungsten Electric 3000W	Electric	10,236	3,000	100	102	8 to 10 ft	208 to 277 V (series range)	"Max Heat Area 100ft2"	Bromic
Bromic Tungsten Electric 2000W	Electric	6,824	2,000	65	105	8 to 10 ft	208 to 277 V (series range)	"Max Heat Area 65ft2"	Bromic
Bromic Tungsten Electric 4000W	Electric	13,648	4,000	130	105	8 to 10 ft	208 to 277 V (series range)	"Max Heat Area 130ft2"	Bromic
Bromic Platinum Electric 3400W	Electric	11,601	3,400	108	107	8 to 10 ft	208 to 240 V (series range)	"Max Heat Area 108ft2"	Bromic
Bromic Platinum Electric 4500W	Electric	15,354	4,500	143	107	8 to 10 ft	208 to 240 V (series range)	"Max Heat Area 143ft2"	Bromic
Bromic Platinum Electric 2300W	Electric	7,848	2,300	65	121	8 to 10 ft	208 to 240 V (series range)	"Max Heat Area 65ft2"	Bromic
Bromic Tungsten Electric 6000W	Electric	20,472	6,000	160	128	8 to 10 ft	208 to 277 V (series range)	"Max Heat Area 160ft2"	Bromic
Infratech W-4024 single element	Electric	13,648	4,000	100	136	8 to 10 ft	240 V	"Average 10' x 10', cold 8' x 8', protected 12' x 12'"	Infratech
Fire Sense (Well Traveled Living) Square Pyramid Flame Patio Heater (64381)	Propane	40,000		254	157			"radiating warmth in a 9-foot radius"; 40,000 BTU output	Fire Sense
Infratech W-2624 single element	Electric	8,871	2,600	56	158	7 to 8 ft	240 V	"Average 7' x 8', cold 5' x 5', protected 9' x 9'"	Infratech
East Oak TORCH 50,000 BTU with Cone Table	Propane	50,000		314	159			"Up to 20-foot diameter heat range (the same page also says a 20-foot radius)"; BTU Max: 50,000 BTU. Page gives both a 20 ft diameter and a 20 ft radius.	East Oak
Infratech W-3024 single element	Electric	10,236	3,000	64	160	7 to 9 ft	240 V	"Average 8' x 8', cold 6' x 6', protected 10' x 10'"	Infratech
Bromic Tungsten Gas 300	Natural gas or propane	26,000		160	162	8 to 10 ft	110 V (ignition)	"Max Heat Area 160ft2"; 26,000 BTU	Bromic
Bromic Platinum Gas 300	Natural gas or propane	26,000		160	162	8 to 10 ft	110 V (ignition)	"Max Heat Area 160ft2"; 26,000 BTU. The catalog text says Platinum gas models range from 23,600 BTU; its spec table says 26,000 BTU for the 300.	Bromic
Fire Sense (Well Traveled Living) Stainless Steel Commercial Patio Heater (61629)	Propane	46,000		254	181			"Heat Range: up to 18 ft. diameter"; 46,000 BTU	Fire Sense
Bromic Platinum Gas 500	Natural gas or propane	39,800		215	185	8 to 10 ft	110 V (ignition)	"Max Heat Area 215ft2"; 39,800 BTU	Bromic
Infratech W-2024 single element	Electric	6,824	2,000	36	190	7 to 8 ft	240 V	"Average 6' x 6', cold 4' x 4', protected 8' x 8'"	Infratech
Bromic Tungsten Gas 500	Natural gas or propane	43,000		215	200	8 to 10 ft	110 V (ignition)	"Max Heat Area 215ft2"; 43,000 BTU	Bromic
Infratech W-1512 single element	Electric	5,118	1,500	25	205	6 to 7 ft	120 V	"Average 5' x 5', cold 3' x 3', protected 7' x 7'"	Infratech

Two pages contradict themselves. Mr. Heater's Low Profile Patio Heater (MH30LPPH) page lists 750 sq ft in its specifications and 1,200 sq ft in its feature list; we use the specification. East Oak's TORCH page says both a 20 ft diameter and a 20 ft radius; we use the diameter (314 sq ft), because the radius reading would be four times larger.

Infratech is the only maker here that says how conditions change coverage. Its W-1512 covers 9 sq ft in cold conditions, 25 on average and 49 when protected, so a sheltered or covered patio can roughly double a heater's reach and cold or wind can cut it by more than half. Dr. Infrared's DR-238 and Fire Sense's 1,500 W electric heater pages give output but no coverage, so they are not in the table.

Next step

Measure only where people sit, divide by the rated area of the heater you are looking at, and round up. Prefer makers that publish their conditions, and check whether a coverage figure is a radius or a diameter before you trust it.

Common questions

Is 20 BTU per square foot enough for a patio heater?

Not by any maker's rating we read. At 20 BTU per square foot, one 1,500 W heater (5,118 BTU/h) would cover about 256 sq ft. Infratech's own chart says its W-1512 covers 25 sq ft on average. The lowest ratio among the 22 heaters here is 35 BTU per sq ft (Heat Storm Tradesman 1500-Watt Infrared Heater with Remote (HS-1500-OTR-R)).

Why do two heaters with the same output have such different coverage?

Makers measure coverage differently and rarely say how. Heat Storm rates its 1,500 W heater for 150 sq ft of primary heat; Infratech rates its 1,500 W heater for 25 sq ft. Same wattage, 6 times the area. Treat the figure as a claim and compare heaters from makers that publish their conditions.

Does wind or a roof change the size I need?

Yes. Infratech is the only maker here that publishes it: its chart gives a smaller "cold" area and a larger "protected" area for each heater. For the W-1512 that is 9, 25 and 49 sq ft. Other makers give one number with no conditions.

Radius or diameter: which is the maker giving me?

Check the wording. A 9 ft radius is a circle of about 254 sq ft; a 9 ft diameter is about 64 sq ft. East Oak's page for its 50,000 BTU tower says "20-foot diameter" in one place and "20-foot radius" in another, which is the difference between about 314 and 1,257 sq ft.

Method

Heaters. Current gas and electric patio heaters whose maker publishes both output and a coverage figure, read one page or document at a time on 18 October 2026. Sites that blocked a plain read were skipped.
Area. Copied as the maker states it. A diameter d becomes pi x (d / 2) squared; a radius r becomes pi x r squared. Infratech's "feet x feet" areas are multiplied out.
BTU per square foot. Output in BTU per hour divided by the maker-rated area. Electric output is watts x 3.412 unless the maker gives its own BTU figure (Heat Storm states 5,200 BTU for 1,500 W).
Calculator. Seating area divided by each heater's rated area, rounded up, gives how many of that heater the maker's own figure implies. It applies no wind, roof or temperature factor of ours.
Not covered. Comfort, wind, clearances to combustibles and local gas or electrical codes. We did not test any heater. Gas heaters are for open-air use only; follow the maker's clearances.

Sources

Changes

2026-10-18: Published. 22 heaters from 6 makers, each read on the maker's page, catalog or manual on 18 October 2026.