Services - Installations - Radiant

Here’s some trivia: The first recorded use of radiant heating in buildings was by the ancient Romans who used it in their well-known bath houses. These building were designed with chambers that allowed fires to be placed under the floors and within walls. The hot exhaust gases were routed through flue-like chambers, giving up their heat to the masonry surfaces along the way. Patrons were not only bathed in warm water, but by the radiant heat from the warm walls and floors as well. These systems were crude and took the meaning of energy and cost efficiency completely out of the picture, but hey … when your Cesar and rule the world……………

Throughout the course of history, radiant heat has played center stage at times and was in the coris line other times. In England, 1907 iron pipe systems were used. In 1940, radiant heat made it big in the United States, using copper or steel tubing. Although some of these systems are still operating today, many failed due to metal fatigue or chemical incompatibilities with concrete and leaks were often impossible to find and repair. Understandably interest declined. In 1960, the PEX tubing was developed and revolutionized radiant heating and it was back on center stage. Today, it is recognized as a major contender to the Heating industry and about as different from the Roman bath design as compact disks are from phonograph records (although, some of us actually remember listening to those phonograph records) Also, high-tech piping materials and state-of-the art controls now make it possible to install and design systems that can last for decades, often longer than the buildings they are part of.

The principals of radiant heating is not as simple as you might think and do-it-yourselves have made some disastrous mistakes. Not that we have anything against do-it-yourselves, but unless you are very educated and experienced on the matter, you can cause yourself a world of hurt. A system was installed once without insulation and as a result all the heat radiated into the ground. The problem was discovered after the house was built and the homeowner started receiving outrages energy bills, although the flowers around his home grew really great. Another example is a system was installed and in the summer the homeowner thought he would create a cool floor by filling the tubing with cold water. Radiant floors are not meant to work as air condition and the cold water will created condensation. Lets just say his floors were completely ruined. So, it is highly encouraged that you have a knowledgeable and experience contractor create your system.

So what is radiant heating? Well, radiant heating is a process by which energy leaves the surface of an object and travels to the surface of another (cooler) object in the form of electromagnetic waves. Or in laymen terms, all radiation travels from (warmer) surfaces that emit it, to (cooler) surfaces that absorb it. Most people think that heat rises which isn’t true, warm AIR rises because of its lower density. With radiation, it only becomes heat when it is absorbed by a cooler material, which is why radiant heat systems placed in ceiling and walls are just as effective as floor radiant. Although, most people prefer the system in the floors because people like the feel of warm floors on their feet.

1. Radiant heating improves comfort by increasing a room’s surface temperature. Remember that a large portion of our body’s heat loss is by radiation to cooler surfaces surrounding us. The cooler these surfaces are, the faster they “pull’ heat from us and the more uncomfortable we feel. By warming our surroundings, ceilings, floors, walls, ect. , we reduce the heat loss for our bodies.
2. Many radiant heating systems are installed internal to the building and are totally out of sight. Therefore there are usually less constraints imposed on architectural designs and aesthetics or rooms can be preserved without compromising thermal comfort.
3. Radiant heating systems are easily zoned. Many radiant heating systems, are designed for room-by-room zoning. Not only does this offer the cotangential for energy savings by reducing temperature in unoccupied rooms, it also allows different occupants to adjust rooms to their own desired comfort level. In addition, room by room zoning helps prevent localized overheating due to solar or other types of internal heat gain.
4. Heated floors dry quickly and provide better working conditions. It’s a tremendous benefit for facilities such as auto garages or health gyms were people are routinely working on the floor. In addition, Fire stations or Ski resorts can get a safety advantage by having the floors and walkways dry.
5. Radiant heating are resistant to physical damage. Because the system is encased in the building, damage to the system through normal usage is unlikely.
6. Radiant heating can operate with virtually no noise. Properly designed and installed systems have virtually no expansion or velocity noises because they are installed internal to the building.
7. Radiant heating works in conjunction with other heat sources. Low-temperature heat from solar collectors, geothermal heat pumps or waste heat recovery systems can often be utilized for radiant heat systems. Such heat is only marginally suitable for other types of delivery systems.
8. Radiant heating reduces energy consumption and therefore cost less to run. *Since comfort is maintained at lower air temperatures the heating load associated with air exchange is reduced. The greater the heating load due to air exchange, whether by natural leakage or forced ventilation, the greater the energy savings.
• Easy room-by-room zoning control allows unoccupied spaces to be reduced in temperature, thus reducing total heating load.
• Low water temperatures in some types of hydronic radiant systems improve boiler efficiency and reduce heat loss from distribution piping.
• High thermal mass systems have the potential to make good use of low cost “off- peak” electrical utility rates where available.
• The electrical energy consumption of small circulators used in hydronic radiant system use is lower than the consumption of other systems.
• When used in conjunction with Geo-exchange systems the by-product water can be re-used for energy savings.