Radiant Floor Heating: Renaissance of a Traditional Heating Technique

By Thomas MacIntosh

The technology of heating up floors using radiant heat is not something new, and it is making a kind of a comeback in many of the new homes that are being built these days.

The history of radiant floor heating can be traced back to the Roman times. Then they used an air heating system. Now, of course you also have the options of electric and liquid under floor radiant heating systems. However, before you decide on the particular type of radiant floor heating system to meet your requirements, it is imperative that you have a proper understanding of how actually the system works.

What happens in a radiant floor heating system is that electric cables or little tubes carrying hot water are embedded inside a concrete floor or are attached to the under-surface of a tiled floor. So during colder months, instead of heating up the air and then having it circulated throughout the house, radiant heat actually works from below to upwards. And not only is the air that gets heated, but also the floor, the carpet, the furniture and even people receive the warmth. And it must also be noted that we require less energy here to keep the people warm than what is required if we first heat up the air through an electric heater.

There are different technologies of radiant heating available to us these days.

Hydronic Radiant Heating

This is the most popular of all the types of radiant heating. A chief reason for the popularity is that this technology is very cost-effective. Here, hot water from a boiler is pumped through a polyethylene tubing that runs underneath the floor. The temperature that you need can be controlled by regulating the flow of the water. In fact you can have separate temperatures for separate rooms by using a series of thermostats and zoning valves.

Electric Heating

For tiled floors one can also opt for electric heating. The cables can be embedded under the surface of the tiles or in a poured-concrete floor. If you are using carpets for your floors you can also go for the portable mats which come with the wires and can just be laid under the carpet. This requires no installation so not only do you save on money but also on time.

This article, we believe, has initiated you to the radiant floor heating system and the advantages of it. Now you can choose if this suits your needs.

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