If you’re like most homeowners around Toronto, your backyard really gets used for about four months a year. The patio furniture comes out around Victoria Day, and by Thanksgiving you’re stacking it in the garage. That’s the deal we’ve all accepted with Southern Ontario weather.
But here’s the thing: some of the best evenings of the year happen outside those four months. A warm June night with a cool breeze. A golden September dinner as the sun drops early. The first weeks of October when the leaves are turning and the mosquitoes are finally gone. Those are the evenings your backyard was built for — and they’re exactly the ones we give up because the air gets cool after 7pm.
A backyard patio heater changes that math. Not the rattling propane mushroom heater you dodge at a restaurant patio — modern infrared heating is a different technology entirely, and it can genuinely turn your backyard into a three-season (or year-round) living space.
Why infrared beats the old-school patio heater
The mushroom heaters most of us picture work by heating the air. In an open backyard, that heated air just… leaves. The first breeze carries your warmth off to your neighbour’s yard.
Bromic’s Smart-Heat infrared heaters work the way the sun does: radiant energy that warms people and surfaces directly, instead of the air around them. That’s why they’re the choice of architects, hotels, and restaurants around the world — and why they hold up in a way a standard heater simply can’t:
- Wind doesn’t kill them. Radiant heat travels in a straight line, so a breeze that would flush away heated air barely touches the warmth on your skin.
- They warm instantly. You feel it within seconds of switching them on — no waiting for anything to “heat up.”
- They’re commercial-grade. Premium 304/316 stainless steel and weather-resistant construction, built to live outdoors year after year.
Electric or gas: which fits your backyard?
This is the first decision, and it comes down to how your space is set up.
Go electric if you have any kind of overhead structure — a covered patio, a pergola, or a section of the backyard you could put one over. Electric infrared heaters are hardwired into your home’s electrical, mount flush to a beam or ceiling, and are silent with zero emissions and no open flame. They’re the clean, invisible option: you flip a wall switch and your seating area is warm. For most GTA backyards with a pergola or covered deck, this is the choice we recommend most.
Go gas if your entertaining area is open to the sky. Bromic’s gas heaters run on natural gas or propane and deliver up to 43,000 BTU/hr of directional heat — the kind of output that keeps an exposed patio comfortable even on a cool October night. They’re also the answer where running wiring would be impractical, and freestanding versions need nothing but a propane tank.
A quick note on wind: electric infrared units keep performing in breezy conditions, while gas units can lose some efficiency when wind disperses the flame’s heat. If your backyard funnels the wind, lean electric — or let us help you position around it.
Three ways to put heat in your backyard
Mounted under a structure. The most popular setup for homes: one or more heaters fixed to a pergola beam, covered porch, or eave, aimed at your seating or dining zone. They’re out of sight, out of reach of kids and pets, and permanently wired — no tanks, no moving anything. This is where the Platinum Smart-Heat line shines; the black ceramic glass fascia practically disappears against a dark ceiling.
Freestanding. No structure, no problem. The Eclipse freestanding heater brings the same radiant heat to an open patio on a weighted rolling base — poolside, beside the fire table, at the edge of the deck. Move it wherever the evening is happening.
Portable. Bromic’s portable lineup runs on a standard outlet or propane, so you can trial outdoor heating in a corner of the backyard before committing to a full system. A low-risk way to feel the difference radiant heat makes.
Pair heat with shade and you’ve built an outdoor room
Here’s the move that changes everything: combine your heat source with the shade structure you already own — or the one you’ve been thinking about.
A retractable awning or louvered pergola already solves your summer. Add mounted infrared heaters underneath and it solves October too: shade and cooling when the sun is high, radiant warmth the day the sweaters come out. One structure, three seasons of use, without ever firing up the gas BBQ just to stand next to it.
If you’re starting from scratch, we design these as a system — the heat layout, the wiring, and the shade structure planned together, so nothing gets retrofit or compromised later.
What installation actually involves
Every backyard is different, which is why we size and install every system we sell rather than drop-shipping boxes. Here’s the process:
- A walk-through of your space. We look at your seating areas, overhead structures, and wind patterns, and map where heat needs to land. (Bromic’s design team provides heat-map planning for exactly this — we bring that to your project.)
- A heating plan. Heater model, mounting height, and positions chosen so the warmth covers where people actually sit — not just where mounting happens to be easy.
- Professional installation. Wiring and mounting done by our team, controls placed where you’ll actually use them, and a walkthrough before we leave.
Most single-zone residential installations are completed in a single visit.
What does it cost?
Ballpark for homeowners: a single premium mounted electric heater runs roughly $1,500–$3,500 installed, while a gas system or a multi-heater setup for a larger entertaining area typically lands between $3,000 and $8,000 depending on the model, mounting, and gas/electrical work involved. Compared to the cost of the deck or pergola it extends, it’s one of the highest-value upgrades you can make to your outdoor space — it buys you months, not weeks.
Ready to stop surrendering your backyard in September?
Canadian Shade supplies and professionally installs Bromic Smart-Heat heaters across Toronto, Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton, Markham, Richmond Hill and the surrounding GTA. Book a free consultation and we’ll help you pick the right system for your space — and show you exactly where the warmth will land.
