Making Your Bathroom Actually Warm (The Smart Way)
Ever step out of a steaming hot shower only to be hit by a wall of freezing air? It’s the worst. Most heaters try to warm up the air in the room, which takes forever. Infrared is different. It sends heat straight to your skin and the surfaces around you. It’s that cozy, sun-on-your-shoulders feeling, right when you need it most. Why it works so fast These heaters use short-wave infrared, which is a fancy way of saying they don’t mess around. They hit their top temperature in a fraction of a second. When you hook these up to a smart home relay, that annoying “warm-up” period just disappears. You tap a button on your phone or walk past a sensor, the switch flips, and boom—instant heat. No waiting. No shivering. Getting it hooked up Now, you can’t just plug these into any old smart plug. These lamps pull a lot of power, so you’ll need a heavy-duty relay or a switch that can handle the load without frying. The best part is the automation. I love setting mine for 7:00 AM. By the time I actually shuffle into the bathroom, the walls and floor are already radiating warmth. It makes waking up a lot less painful. A couple of things to watch out for Here’s the catch: if you’re putting these into an older house, check your wiring first. You don’t want to trip your breakers the second you turn the heat on. It’s worth having someone double-check that your circuits can handle the draw. Also, keep in mind that this heat travels in a straight line. If you put the heater in a weird corner, you’ll end up with “cold spots.” The trick is to mount them in the ceiling. That way, the heat covers the whole room, and you don’t get a sudden chill the moment you take one step to the left.