I tested this affordable Dunelm oil-filled radiator to see if it could outperform my central heating — it’s safe to say that I’m impressed

This Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator review puts this oil-filled radiator to the test to see if it has the power to heat a home in the middle of winter without driving up energy bills.

After testing, I think it's one of the best oil-filled radiators you can buy today. Especially if you’re on a budget.

In a nutshell

The 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator may not have come from a big-name oil-filled radiator brand, but it can certainly compete with the big dogs. Offering a stylish and compact design, three heat settings, a thermostat and castor wheels for everyday portability, it can successfully act as an additional heater or replace your radiators when you want to save energy and keep your heating off.

As I unboxed the product, it was clear to see that it’s not the prettiest type of heater you can buy - especially compared to some of the best electric heaters - but in terms of oil-filled heaters (which are generally quite unattractive), it’s certainly not the ugliest.

Plus, the heat output was impressive no matter which room I tested it in, successfully heating up a space that had had the radiators turned off the night before (in the middle of winter) and keeping a larger living space at a constant temperature throughout the day.

And while the controls do take a little bit of getting used to, by the second or third use it had just become part of my everyday appliance routine.

2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator product specs

• Energy use: 2000W
• Temperature settings: 3 heat settings (800W, 1200W, or 2000W)
• Dimensions: H 65.5cm x W 43cm x D 13.5cm
• Weight: 6kg
• Thermostat: Yes
• Timer: No
• Auto tip over shut off: Yes
• RRP: £59

Unboxing, setting up and first impressions

The Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator was delivered extremely quickly, and as someone who receives a lot of parcels every week, I didn’t have to do any guesswork as to what this particular parcel was. The branding and the product name were clear as day on the packaging - which was, unfortunately, slightly damaged (but not so much that it damaged the product inside).

From the box alone, I was impressed. It was incredibly light and extremely slim - something I was eager to see after recently testing the very slim AENO Premium Eco Smart Panel Heater just a few weeks earlier. Not only that, but it was also encased in minimal packaging. In fact, aside from the main delivery box and a smaller box for the castor feet and the wheel plates, there was no other packaging present. So, it scored major eco points from me.

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The only thing I will say is that the oil-filled radiator comes without the feet on it, which means it’s impossible to stand it upright while you’re getting the smaller box of components out of the main box. This is something I learned the hard way when the whole thing fell on my foot and left a very nasty bruise on my foot (and my ego). However, it didn’t take me long to pop the feet - albeit with the help of my husband.

To do this, all we had to do was turn the oil-filled radiator upside down and attach the castors to the wheel plates using the domed nuts which are supplied. You then have to tighten them with a spanner, which, annoyingly, isn’t supplied.

While it wasn’t difficult, I will say that it’s perhaps a two-person job if you want to get the assembly done and dusted quickly and efficiently. So, this is something to consider if you’re buying it solo or are buying it for elderly relatives.

Design

By all intents and purposes, oil-filled radiators aren’t pretty. They’re often very big and clunky, and the obvious fins make them impossible to hide. In fact, I typically tend to lean more towards the modern, digital oil-filled radiators like the Pro Breeze 2000W Digital Oil-Free Radiator with Eco Mode as the fins aren’t as prominent, and it looks a bit more like one of the best electric heaters instead.

However, I do have to say that this Dunelm oil-filled radiator is more stylish than most. The contemporary look adds some curves to what are often very harsh and brutal appliances, and the black colourway I tested adds a sense of sophistication to the overall look. It’s also available in grey and cream - but I do think that Dunelm would benefit from having a white colourway as well.

I also LOVED the fact that this Dunelm oil-filled radiator comes with cord storage on the side. This makes it so easy to store and move around the home, and means you can tuck it away without tripping on the cord or stepping on the plug when it’s not in use.

Ease of use

The controls of oil-filled radiators tend to fall into one of two categories; digital and manual. And while you’d assume that digital controls are easier, almost every oil-filled radiator on the market is confusing when it comes to the controls - and the Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator is no different.

In total, there are two dials on this model - the main heat setting switch (with 0 indicating that it’s turned off, Ⅰ indicating low heat, Ⅱ indicating medium heat, and Ⅲ indicating high heat), and the temperature thermostat - and both require a simple turn clockwise to turn the oil-filled radiator on and to crank up the thermostat. A red light will then turn on.

However, there are no numbers on the thermostat or any indication of what temperature you want to turn it to. Instead, the only way to control the temperature of this particular model is to turn the thermostat anti-clockwise until the red light extinguishes. It will then maintain that temperature until you want to turn it off completely.

But without any numbers on the dial, I had no indicator of what temperature the thermostat was at during testing - and as someone who always runs cold, I felt as though I probably kept it up higher than it needed to. In fact, one day my husband came home and complained that it was sweltering hot in the living room.

So, I would appreciate a little indicator of temperature. And while it wasn’t rocket science to work out how to use it, I do wish oil-filled radiators (as a whole) would make the user experience a little easier.

Performance

To measure the performance of the Dunelm oil-filled radiator, I wanted to see how well it would fare in a very cold room. So, the night before I planned to use it for the first time I turned the radiators off in my home office and shut the door so the heat from other rooms wouldn’t waft over.

By morning, my office was freezing cold (for my liking, anyway) and had dropped to around 14℃, so I turned the oil-filled radiator on and waited for the magic to happen.

I know some oil-filled radiators can be noisy, so I was pleasantly surprised to see/hear that this one was relatively quiet. It was also extremely quick to heat up. And just ten minutes after I’d turned it on, it was already too hot to touch.

Because of this, it wasn’t too long before it had greeted the whole room, and it was about 45 minutes before I felt comfortable enough to turn the thermostat down to where it would maintain this temperature. During this time, I didn’t ever feel the need to turn my radiators back on.

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However, I like to test products on multiple occasions and in multiple rooms to get a better judgment on them, so I continued to use it over the next two weeks in my living room and even in the bedroom. For my small home - where no room is bigger than 3.5mx3.5m, it was more than enough to take the chill off the space when the central heating was on. Especially as you can increase and decrease the heat output to suit you throughout the day.

The only thing I will say is that the electrical cord is quite short, and although the instruction manual told me to keep it as far away from furniture and soft furnishings as possible, the short lead proved to be a little too short - even in my small home. So, I do feel as though those with larger homes may struggle with the positioning, which may ultimately affect the heat output. After all, the closer you are to it, the more you get to make the most of it.

However, the cord storage on the side of the oil-filled radiator was a nice touch, and allowed me to tuck the whole thing away when I was finished and wanted to roll it out of sight on the castor wheels.

Energy use

Ultimately, the cost to run an oil-filled radiator depends on the wattage of the model you have and the current price of electricity. At the time of writing and according to the current energy price cap, the Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator cost me 50p per hour to run.

This is similar to the claims made by Dunelm that this particular model should cost around 45p per hour. And while it’s not the cheapest electric heater to run, it’s certainly not the most expensive, either.

Plus, a major perk of the oil-filled radiator vs ceramic heater debate is that oil-filled radiators will turn themselves off when the desired temperature has been reached - or at least maintain a constant temperature. This means that it doesn’t waste energy when you don’t need it, which can save you some pennies in the long run.

How does it rate online?

The Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator rates extremely highly online, and at the time of writing, it has over 150 reviews with an average score of 4.4 stars out of 5. Customers praise how quickly the oil-filled radiator heats up, how quickly it can heat smaller areas of the home, how cheap it is to run, and the fact that it’s easily transportable.

However, some have criticised the overall size of the Dunelm oil-filled radiator and stated that it’s not as suitable for larger spaces as it is for smaller ones.

How does it compare to similar models?

In terms of appearance, the Dunelm Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator is most similar to the VonHaus 6 Fin 800W Oil Filled Radiator, which offers the similar black colourway and the very obvious fins. However, that’s where the similarities end. For starters, the Dunelm oil-filled radiator offers more power (with a max power of 2000W instead of the VonHaus’s 800W), more temperature settings (three instead of the VonHaus’s one), and fins (nine fins instead of the VonHaus’s six).

However, the VonHaus offering does trump the Dunelm oil-filled radiator in terms of price. Although the Dunelm model is still relatively affordable at just £59, that’s fairly expensive compared to the VonHaus’s £29.99.

In terms of performance, the Dunelm oil-filled radiator is very similar to the Pro Breeze 2500W Oil Filled Radiator with 11 Fins - but there’s no doubt that the Pro Breeze does offer more in terms of power and performance. The Pro Breeze features 11 fins, 2500W of power, three temperature settings, and a timer (which the Dunelm oil-filled radiator doesn’t have).

The Pro Breeze is bigger and chunkier than the Dunelm oil-filled radiator, but the Dunelm oil-filled radiator is cheaper than the Pro Breeze model - so if you’re happy to sacrifice a little bit of power for a cheaper price and a smaller size that can easily be tucked away when you’re done, then the Dunelm model could be a better option for you.

Should you buy the Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator?

If you’re looking for an affordable oil-filled radiator that won’t break the bank but will help you to beat the chill, then I do recommend the Dunelm oil-filled radiator. The range of colourways means you can tie it into your home decor and the castor wheels allow you to move it out of the way when you’re not in use, and the overall heating power was impressive.

If you’re looking for something with more advanced technology and features, however, this model might not be for you. It’s very basic and uncomplicated when you get used to it, but those who want a timer or more detailed temperature control won’t get what they want.

So, it’s best to weigh up what exactly you want from an oil-filled radiator before you part with your cash.

How we tested

Lauren Bradbury

Lauren is Ideal Home's Content Editor for the House Manual section, and it's her job to research and review products that will make your home life cheaper and more efficient - including oil-filled radiator, electric heaters, dehumidifiers, vacuums, and more.

You can find more information on how we test products at Ideal Home here. For this review, the Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator was tested by Lauren, Ideal Home’s Content Editor for the House Manual section. She tested this oil-filled radiator over two weeks in her small Victorian terrace in Kent.

Throughout testing (conveniently completed during the colder months of January and February), Lauren assessed everything from how easy it was to assemble to its heat output, overall design, heating controls, and how much it cost to run.

As well as following our specific and detailed testing guidelines, she aimed to use this Dunelm oil-filled radiator as naturally as possible to understand how the everyday customer would use the product. In doing so, she could easily assess the perks and potential pitfalls that customers would encounter if they were to buy it themselves.

At the end of the testing process, Lauren assessed all of the information at her disposal and her own experience of the product to determine whether she thought the Dunelm oil-filled radiator was worth the price tag. With this information in tow, she could also give it a score out of 5.

Although Lauren was sent this oil-filled radiator to review for Ideal Home, this did not impact her fair and impartial review process. She has shared her own experiences with the Dunelm 2000W Contemporary Round 9 Fin Oil Filled Radiator.