How do you prevent the fuses from blowing?

1. Start the heater at the lowest setting so the peak power is lower.
2. Purchase a soft starter that lowers peak power.
3. Consult a qualified electrician on whether the fuse in the fuse box can be replaced by a C-type circuit breaker.
4. Do you have 2 patio heaters? Wait a little while to turn on the second one. This way, you avoid double the amount of peak power.

To provide you with heat, a heater requires a lot of power. That can sometimes be a problem for your electric circuit. Every device uses more power to start up. We call that peak power. When you switch on a device, it often requires 2 to sometimes 10 times more power than when your patio heater works normally. With a 1000W heater, that means 2000 to 10,000W. That peak voltage only lasts 1 second. Your heater will then run on normal power. But that one second is sometimes enough to cause trouble. When there's more power than your electric circuit can handle, the fuses will blow. And that's a bummer.

A standard house installation has groups of 16 amperes. The total capacity of such an electric circuit is 3600W. When your heater requires more power, the fuse blows. Do you have a heater of 1000W and do you connect it to an empty circuit? There's no problem. But do you want to heat your garden with 2 1600W heaters each and also have outdoor lights connected to your electric circuit? Then it's a different story. The required power then becomes too high for 1 second.

Before you connect your heater, always calculate how much power your products require in total. That can't be more than 3600W. When you calculate this, also take the peak power into account when switching on your products. With normal consumption, your products can reach up to 3600W. But when switch them on the power becomes way too much for a second.

Do you have a patio heater with multiple settings? First, turn the heater on at the lowest setting. That way, the peak power is less high in the beginning than when you switch on the patio heater right away at full power. After that, you can slowly adjust the heat intensity yourself.

For 2 or more patio heaters that are connected to the same electric circuit, we recommend not switching them on at the same time. First switch on one patio heater and then the other. This way, you avoid double the amount of peak power on your fuse box.

Don't these tips work? You have 2 options to prevent the fuses from blowing. For the first way, you need the help of an electrician. You can have your fuse in the fuse box replaced by a C-type fuse, which can handle peak power. The second and easiest way is to use a soft starter to switch on or dim your patio heater. A soft starter lowers your peak current in such a way that it doesn't affect your electric circuit. In addition, a soft starter extends the lifespan of your heater by up to 30%.