The Popular Winter Patio Heater You Can Get From Costco (But Is It Worth It?)

If you prefer not to have to spend all your time indoors when the temperature starts to drop, there is a wide variety of highly-rated patio heaters to help you enjoy your outdoor space for longer. Those that work off propane gas bottles are popular but are not the only option. There are also electric versions, and options that use wood pellets for fuel.

Manufacturers of pellet-burning patio heaters argue that they are cheaper to run than propane models and more eco-friendly. There's also the ambience of having real flame, but it is contained behind glass so it's safer than a fire pit. The FlamePro 81"H Steel Patio Pellet Heater from Costco falls into this category. It comes with an 18-pound gravity hopper (so there's no need for electricity) that can keep it running for up to 4 hours. It spreads 75,000 BTUs of warmth over a 120 square foot radius. It also comes with a fire poker, a removable ashtray for easy cleaning, and a protective PVC cover.

It sounds like it might be a nice way to get some winter warmth, but at $279.99 you might wonder whether patio heaters are worth the heavy price tag. Added to that, customers only give the FlamePro patio heater an average rating of 3.4, which suggests there are other issues beyond the cost. So to help you decide whether it's worth it or not, we'll check out what they're saying.

Although some assembly is required, it seems straightforward and wasn't mentioned as a problem in reviews; however, the packaging was. Numerous people complained that the glass was broken on arrival and that replacements suffered the same fate. There are also frequent reports of rust when the patio heater was relatively new, despite the powder-coated finish. To start this heater, you need to open the door, pour some lighter fluid over the pellets, and light them manually, but even when it had been burning for some time, quite a few owners felt that it didn't generate the amount of heat that was advertised.

Overall, the majority of people were happy with their purchase. However, a significant minority would not recommend it. There are other patio heaters you can find at Costco to stay cozy on chilly nights, each has higher customer ratings, and only one of them is more expensive. There are, of course, plenty of other places to shop for winter patio heaters. So while Costco is usually somewhere shoppers get good value for money, and you might get a trouble-free version of the FlamePro patio pellet heater, there are plenty of buyers who will tell you it's not really worth it.