Vornado Recalls 255,000 Tower Heaters After Eight Fires
Maria Solano
Former appliance warranty claims adjuster turned investigative repair journalist. Maria's 'What Went Wrong' teardown series has made her the most feared woman in the white-goods industry.
Vornado Air is recalling about 255,000 SRTH Small Room Tower Heaters because the fan blade can detach from the motor shaft, causing the unit to overheat, melt, and potentially ignite. The Consumer Product Safety Commission posted the recall (number 26-532) on June 4, 2026.
The company has logged 32 reports of overheating, 8 fires, and 1 report of smoke inhalation. That's a serious tally for a $40 space heater.
These heaters had a long run on store shelves. They sold from August 2013 through May 2026 at Costco, Kohl's, Bed Bath & Beyond, Ace Hardware, Vornado.com, and Amazon, priced between $40 and $50. A 13-year sales window means a lot of these are still sitting in bedrooms, offices, and dorm rooms.
What Fails
The problem starts at the motor shaft. The fan blade can work loose and separate from the shaft. Once the blade is off, airflow across the heating element drops, heat builds with nowhere to go, and the plastic housing can melt. In the worst cases that ends in fire.
Vornado said in its release that consumers should stop using the recalled heaters immediately.
What Owners Should Do
Stop using the heater and unplug it. Vornado is offering a full refund. There's no repair kit here and no replacement blade to swap in, so don't try to reseat the fan and keep the unit running. A heater that has already been flagged for a detaching blade isn't worth the risk of a second try.
A space heater that suddenly runs louder, rattles, or pushes less warm air than it used to is worth pulling from service on any brand. Reduced airflow across a resistance element is exactly the condition that lets heat build past its safety margin.
The Bigger Picture
Portable heaters remain one of the more common sources of winter house fires, and moving parts near a live heating element are the weak point. When the part that keeps air moving fails, the safety design that depends on that airflow fails with it.
For homeowners rethinking how they heat a cold room, our guide on energy-efficient appliance upgrades walks through options that don't rely on a small plug-in unit running unattended.
Owners looking to confirm whether their heater is covered should check the model against the CPSC listing linked below and start the refund process directly with Vornado.
Sources
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. "Vornado Air Recalls SRTH Small Room Tower Heaters Due to Fire Hazard" (Recall 26-532). cpsc.gov