If you're looking into getting radiant floor heating, you already know about some of it's advantages. With in floor radiant heating, you get warm, even, luxuriant heat without any unsightly radiators, exchangers, vents, or ducts. It's also super quiet, so you don't have to think about anything except for how warm the room feels. Very cool stuff.
So, how do you go about installing this amazing heating? To help you understand what's involved, lets talk about the different types of in floor heating systems available.
First, we have electric in floor heating. Electric systems much like an electric blanket that sits underneath your floor. These require no central device to provide heat, making them easy to install anywhere you have electrical wiring.
However, since electricity is expensive, you don't want to be running these things all the time. To help accomplish this, electric radiant floor heating is best installed over a concrete slab, which will absorb the heat while the system is turned on, and release it gradually as time goes on. This works great if you get discounted electricity during non-peak hours, since you can run the floor during those times, and enjoy the radiated heat throughout the day. If you can't install on a slab, though, you won't get to enjoy this benefit.
If this is your situation, try hydronic radiant floor heating. Here, a central boiler heats and pumps water through a network of pipes that run underneath the floor. Since water holds heat, these are more efficient that electric systems. These systems can be installed in one of two ways. The traditional "wet" system embeds the tubing into a concrete slab on the floor, which provides that same benefits as mentioned above with the electric system.
A "dry" system places the tubing underneath the floor framing. The heat is contained and spread evenly by means of a series of reflectors and diffusers. These systems are great if you don't have or don't want to deal with a concrete slab, but they aren't quite as efficient. However, they are still a great option if your house dictates it.
The big question that comes up is whether you should do this all yourself, or hire it out to a professional. In the case of an electric system, installation by an intrepid do it yourselfer is more feasible. Hydronic systems, due to their complications, are not an ideal do it yourself project. You will likely want to seek professional help here.
This should all help give you some idea of what it takes to install a radiant floor heating system. There are many options and configurations available, so be sure to shop around. Ideally, you should get professional radiant floor heating installation so that you can ensure that your system runs well and is up to code. However, the choice is up to you. Either way, you're sure to enjoy the warmth from your new in floor radiant heating system!
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.
Both David Wilson & Thomas Macintosh are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
David Wilson has sinced written about articles on various topics from Camping, Team Building and Bad Credit Loans. David Wilson is the man behind the . Visit the site to learn more about the various types of radiant floor heating, including. David Wilson's top article generates over 1500000 views. to your Favourites.
Thomas Macintosh has sinced written about articles on various topics from Boating, Home Appliances and Home Improvement. Thomas MacIntosh writes about on Radiant Floor Heating: Renaissance of a Traditional Heating Technique to visit :- . Thomas Macintosh's top article generates over 27100 views. to your Favourites.