Costco Heater Recall Sparks Fire Fears

A tiny fan blade coming loose inside your space heater can start a house fire — and 255,000 of these heaters have already been sold at Costco and other major stores across the country.

Quick Take

Vornado SRTH Small Room Tower Heaters are recalled due to a fan blade defect that can cause overheating and fire.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission confirmed 32 overheating complaints, including eight fires and one smoke inhalation injury.
About 255,000 units were sold at Costco, Target, and other major retailers over several years.
Owners should stop using the heater immediately and contact Vornado for a remedy.

The Defect That Turns a Heater Into a Fire Starter

The problem starts with a small mechanical failure. The fan blade inside the SRTH tower heater can slip off the motor shaft. When that happens, the fan stops spinning. Without airflow, heat builds up fast.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warns that the plastic enclosure can melt, and if the heater’s built-in thermal cutoff or fuse does not kick in fast enough, the melted parts can catch fire and break through the outer casing. ^[6]

This is not a theoretical risk. The CPSC recorded 32 complaints tied to this exact failure mode. Eight of those complaints involved actual fires. One person suffered smoke inhalation. Those numbers are not enormous by mass-recall standards, but a space heater fire inside a home is a different kind of danger than, say, a cosmetic product defect. Fires spread fast, and they do not wait for business hours. ^[2]

Where These Heaters Were Sold and for How Long

Vornado sold the SRTH model at Costco, Target, Walmart, Home Depot, and other major retailers. They were also available online. Sales ran across multiple years, meaning many units are sitting in closets, garages, or guest rooms right now — used only in winter and forgotten the rest of the year. That seasonal storage pattern makes this recall harder to act on. People may not even remember they own one. ^[1]

A separate but related recall adds more context. Vornado’s VH2 Whole Room Heater was also recalled, that time for electric shock and fire hazards. Those units were sold exclusively on Amazon and only specific date codes from July and August 2024 are included. If you own any Vornado heater, it is worth checking both recalls carefully before the next cold snap. ^[3]

Why Space Heater Recalls Follow a Predictable and Dangerous Pattern

Space heater recalls are not rare. A small wiring error or a loose mechanical part can produce serious fire risk, but defects like these often go undetected until enough complaints pile up to trigger a formal investigation. By that point, the product has been in homes for years. The CPSC acts on the data it receives, but that data depends on consumers actually reporting incidents — and many people never do. ^[4]

Vornado has not publicly disputed the CPSC’s description of the defect. No engineering rebuttal or alternative explanation appears in the public record. That silence is telling. When a company challenges a recall finding, they usually say so.

The absence of pushback suggests the fan blade separation issue is real and not in dispute. Common sense says: if the agency that exists to protect consumers from dangerous products issues a recall backed by eight fire reports, you take that seriously. ^[7]

What to Do If You Own One of These Heaters

Stop using the heater right now. Do not wait until winter. Do not use it “just one more time” to stay warm while you figure out next steps. The CPSC is direct: immediately stop use. Owners should call Vornado at 844-205-7978 or visit the company’s website to find out what remedy is available. Remedies in recalls like this typically include a refund or a replacement, but you have to initiate the process. ^[6]

Check the model name on your heater. The recalled unit is the SRTH Small Room Tower Heater. If you are unsure, the CPSC recall page has photos and additional identifying details. If you bought a Vornado heater at Costco or any other major retailer in the past few years and it is a slim tower style, take two minutes to verify it is not on the list. Two minutes now beats a house fire later. ^[5]