I had no idea about patio heaters before the pandemic.
I mean, I knew they existed, but I hadn’t reallythoughtabout them.
That meant any trip to a restaurant or bar entailed careful consideration of the outdoor heat situation.
I kept mental rankings of the various types.
Thebest outdoor heaterI experienced was a little propane guy at a restaurant in Philadelphia that was sneakily effective.
That glass of pinot grigio came at a very cold, wet expense.
But they’ve stuck around, becoming fixtures at restaurants and bars and hotels and people’s homes.
Shutdowns of gathering places and lockdowns that kept people at home fostered a new appreciation for the outdoors.
But heaters are ubiquitous, and they’re not going away.
For establishments such as restaurants and bars, keeping patrons warm outdoors was a key part of survival.
For people bored at home, a patio heater became a way to keep themselves from going stir-crazy.
Tabletop and portable models in particular were popular.
The season was “even pandemic-level strong,” he said, and business remains above the pre-pandemic level.
“It just really shifted the awareness that they exist.”
During the pandemic, she created aFacebook pagefor Black women who love outdoor living spaces.
It now has nearly 250,000 members.
“The pandemic opened up everybody’s world and to being able to extend their inside to their outside.
“People started sitting outside and feeling like, man, this is freedom, this feels good.
And just because it’s cold outside, I don’t have to stop.”
“I’m looking for one that’s really sturdy,” she said.
Otherwise, the right wind gets it, and “it’ll knock the whole thing over.”
While people are still buying patio heaters, what’s not clear is whether they’re buyinggoodones.
Kahn, from Alfresco Heating, told me he doesn’t usually recommend the tube ones.
But the real bane of his existence is the cheap portable heaters people buy online.
He jokingly refers to them as “disposable lighters.”
“They think they’re junk, so they’re buying junk,” he said.
Patio heating does seem to have a bit of a reputational problem.
But the confusion could be beneficial to the industry, too.
Emily Stewartis a senior correspondent at Business Insider, writing about business and the economy.
