I can’t believe it took someone this long to make a bitcoin mining heater

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The Heatbit is a new space heater that allegedly uses energy produced by computationally intensive Bitcoin mining to heat your home. It also costs $1,200, though the company insists it will cover “100% of your electricity bills” from the payments you receive by allowing it to perform calculations that verify cryptocurrency exchanges. . In my other life, I oversee the Wirecutter guide to heaters, so the idea of ​​this sort of thing has been on my radar for a while. Consider this Vice article from 2018 on using cryptocurrency mining to make money and stay warm during a Nor’easter:

As I wrote elsewhere, the mining rig consists of six GPUs and gets quite hot when running. Each GPU operates at a temperature between 100 and 125 degrees Fahrenheit and when placed close to each other is a bit like having a small fire in the room.

Most cryptocurrency miners see wasted heat from mining as a problem, as it usually requires a significant investment in cooling devices (air conditioning, weed tents, etc.) to prevent the ambient temperatures around the platform to soar. But for people who already live in cold climates, this additional source of heat from cryptocurrency mining is something of a bonus.

Of course, in 2018 the value of popular cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum was steadily increasing. In addition to being a hot computer mining process, they were also hot commodities. Over the past year, however, crypto prices have fallen to wild swings. Although things have largely stabilized in recent months, there is an argument to be made that public confidence and curiosity in crypto has also plummeted, thanks to things like the FTX scandal.

While Heatbit was presumably in the works for a long time, it still makes it an unfortunate time for a product launch. At Bitcoin’s current value, this will only earn you around $20 per month, according to the company’s own calculations. It’s not clear if that’s supposed to be $20 on top to cover the rest of your electric bill, but I’m skeptical. It’s not the only red flag either. The Heatbit’s security features are incredibly vague, which is also very concerning. As I wrote on Wirecutter:

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, space heaters are involved in more than a thousand home fires each year. The National Fire Protection Association puts that number in an even gloomier context, noting that space heaters are the cause of about 43% of home heating-related fires (which includes items like water heaters and chimneys) and 85% of associated deaths.

So yeah, I wouldn’t necessarily trust this heater to operate safely. Although it supposedly only uses 1400 watts, instead of the average 1500 watt high running power of most electric heaters. We don’t know if it’s a constant level of heating, but hey, if it does and earns you some extra money? I guess crypto is already a risk, so it’s a small step to risk your home fire safety as well.

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