A portable electric heater is what you hire when combustion is out: no flue, no carbon monoxide alarm to chase and no water vapour added to a space that is being painted or dried. A 5 kW unit hires for roughly $35 to $60 a day and a 30 kW machine for $120 to $175. The catch is entirely electrical.
Output is small next to a fuel fired heater
A 5 kW electric heater delivers around 17,000 BTU an hour. A common direct fired torpedo delivers many times that from a propane cylinder, which is why nobody heats an open frame in January with electric. Electric holds temperature in an enclosed, reasonably tight space; it does not warm a shell against the weather.
The circuit is the ceiling on the hire
A 1.5 kW unit lives on a standard 120 volt outlet. Around 5 kW you are into a 240 volt circuit with a proper connector. From 20 kW upward it is three phase through a distribution box, wired by an electrician. Confirm what is available at the exact spot before booking, because temporary wiring has rules of its own.
Where electric is the only sensible answer
Occupied buildings, plant rooms, basements without ventilation, spray and resin work, and anywhere a landlord bans open flame. It also suits drying and finishing, since adding no moisture is the point when the plaster or the screed is what you are trying to dry out.
Pairing one with a generator rarely pays
If there is no supply, a generator big enough to carry a 30 kW heater is itself a substantial hire plus fuel, and it is burning fuel to make heat twice over. On a site with no power, a fuel fired unit is far cheaper to run. Electric earns its place where the building already has the circuit.
Questions people ask about portable electric heater rental
How big an electric heater do I need?
Start with the volume of the space, how tight it is and what temperature has to be held. Electric suits enclosed rooms rather than open structures, so if the target is a habitable temperature in a sealed room, size on the volume and check the circuit second.
Can I plug a jobsite electric heater into a normal outlet?
Only the small ones. A 1.5 kW heater is a 120 volt appliance, and it is all a standard circuit will carry once other loads share it. Everything above that needs a dedicated higher voltage supply, which is the question to settle before the delivery is booked.
Is an electric heater safe to leave running overnight?
Safer than a fuel unit, because there are no combustion products, but it is still a hot appliance on temporary wiring. Keep the required clearance from materials, run it on protected wiring rather than a domestic cord, and check what the site rules say about unattended equipment.