In choosing a space heater for energy efficiency, once you have your budget established, in your case $100, you must then take the following considerations in to account.

You must first decide whether radiant or convection space heaters are best for you.

If you need to heat just a portion of the room, such as a general seating area, the bed etc., then a radiant heater is best.

If you intend on using it to heat an entire room uniformly , then a convection space heater would be best.

For radiant heaters, halogen heaters are the most energy efficient. The Soleus Air MS-11 Reflective Halogen heater, available at Wal-Mart for $36 is a great deal. Even on its low energy saving 400 watt setting, it provides great spot heating. I've personally used this model, it heats quite well. The operating cost on this unit in energy saving mode is approximately 5 cents per hour. (based on the national average kwh price of 12 cents per hour)



http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10848163&findingMethod=rr

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For convection space heaters, I would suggest a DeLonghi TRVO715 Heater.

It is a portable, oil filled radiator based convection space heater with a room monitoring thermostat. For a small to medium sized room this will more than suit your needs. They retail for $64.99 from the manufacturers website.

http://www.shopdelonghi.com/product_detail.asp?T1=DGI+TRV0715&trk_src_ss=DGIGBASEWEBMACSS|SEO|GB|



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This latter model would be the most energy efficient, as the internal heating mechanism transfers heat to the oil which in turn radiates to the room. The internal heating element does not constantly need to be on. The estimated operating cost for this model is 4 cents per hour, once optimum temperature has been reached and the unit functions from the thermostat. Operating cost during the initial heating, roughly the first hour, is estimated at 12 to 18 cents per hour.
Source(s):
http://womentodaymagazine.com/money/space_heater.html
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/appliances/heating-cooling-and-air/heate...
http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/cost.html


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