Space Heater

The Space Heater is a simple power building used to raise the temperature of an area. It is most useful as a short-term fix when a room only needs to be nudged a few degrees warmer, rather than as part of a long-term heating plan. Its main appeal is convenience: it is cheap to build, cheap to run compared with more advanced heating infrastructure, and easy to automate with a nearby Thermo Sensor.

In terms of efficiency, the Space Heater is weak. It produces only 150 DTU/s per Watt, so it is not a good choice when sustained heating is needed. Its power draw is modest at 120 W, the same as an Oxygen Diffuser, which makes it easy for early colonies to support. Because of that low cost, it works well for emergency warming, for temporarily keeping a room above a threshold, or for stabilizing a small space without setting up more elaborate heat transport.

For long-term use, other options are usually better. Liquid Tepidizer provides far more heat per watt, and the Ice Maker is also a more efficient heating source while additionally supplying Ice. Natural heat sources such as Geysers can also outperform active heating buildings when they are available. In many cases, passive temperature management is simpler than powering a heater at all: well-placed Metal Tile, Tempshift Plate, or Insulated Tile can help move or contain heat without requiring additional infrastructure.

Once a colony has access to more advanced systems, moving heat around is often preferable to generating it directly. Heat carried through piping from electrolysis, Rust Deoxidizer output, or high-temperature sources such as Magma can be redirected to where it is needed instead of being recreated from electricity. With careful material choice and routing, this approach can warm crops or other temperature-sensitive areas, including plants such as Pincha Pepperplant, while sending the cooled contents onward for storage or disposal.

• Best used for temporary heating, not permanent climate control.
• Easy to automate with a Thermo Sensor.
• Cheap enough to deploy early, but inefficient compared with advanced heaters.
• Becomes less attractive as a colony gains access to heat transport and better thermal tools.

When active, the Space Heater also plays the sound of the Florid Postern from Don't Starve Together, another Klei game.