In the present work, an open-type thermoelectric heating system with multiple channels was developed. A mathematical model of heat transfer, based on one-dimensional treatment of thermal and electric power, is conducted. The heating coefficient and production are both correlated in terms of temperature difference, thermal conductivity, electric resistance and electric current. The looped air circulation was designed to simultaneously recycle heat and enhance heater system performance. Experimental investigations were conducted to identify thermal performance of the thermoelectric heater. Effects of airflow rates through the heating side and cooling side, temperatures of heating side and cooling side on the performance were investigated. The heating coefficient was calculated upon that surface temperatures of hot and cold sides were recorded. The results show that the average heating coefficient of the thermoelectric heating system could reach to 1.3, which is greater than that of a typical electric heater with heating coefficient of less than one. The optimal isolation thickness for this thermoelectric heater, i.e., 14 mm, is confirmed by the experimental rig system. Generally, heating coefficient was found to increase first and decrease afterwards when the current was continuously increasing. Analytical and experimental results demonstrate that the optimum performance of the thermoelectric heat recovery heater strongly depends on the intensities of these operating parameters. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.