Everything You Need to Know about Radiant Floor Heating

Radiant Heating

With winter quickly approaching, thoughts quickly turn to those cold mornings when you must get out of those warm covers and get ready to tackle whatever the day has in store for you. This is not always easy to do, particularly when your feet are forced to encounter a less than inviting hard floor environment. If you do not have carpet, winter mornings can be rather rough on wood or tile. They can be even tougher on your bare feet, seeing as how cold it can get. What you need is some heat greeting you in the morning from the moment that you first lay your feet on the floor.

What Are We Talking About?

We are talking about radiant heat here. This is similar to what you get from the sun on a cold day outside. It is still cold, but the mere fact that the sun is shining gives you some warmth to take comfort in. This is what you get with radiant floor heating. It is a way to warm the area underneath your floor, without making it so hot that it burns. It is a pleasant type of heat that takes place beneath the surface and makes it a more comfortable environment to walk on. It has the added benefit of adding to the overall heating system that you have in your home, meaning you can kiss the space heaters you have been relying on all this time goodbye.

The Three Types of Radiant Floor Heating Available Today

If you are starting to get interested in the concept of radiant floor heating, it is important to know about the three main types available on the market today. To begin, you have hydronic radiant floor heating. A hydronic system is so appealing because it effectively creates heat thanks to a series of hot water tubes that are actually installed to run underneath the floor of your home. Electrica heat, which is another type of radiant floor heating, uses electric wires to generate that warm feeling that you crave during the winter months. To be fair, each of these systems has some pros and cons. An electric system is the more affordable of the two and it is quite simple to install in most homes. At the same time, operational costs increase with electric radiant floor heating. If you live in an area that has high energy costs, that is certainly something that you will want to consider. If you want to reduce the operational costs, you will just use electric systems in various small areas of your home. This would include the bathroom or under thick material that you would then only use during off peak hours. The theory here is that that the heat would remain in much material long after you actually turned it off.

By contrast, you will find the hydronic systems come with noticeably higher installation costs. This is because they are more difficult to put in. At the same time, they are the most energy efficient type of radiant floor heating. This means your average electric bill will be much lower as a result. This is because the system makes use of water that is heated in a boiler. That water is then pumped through a series of flexible tubing that resides underneath the floor. The third type of radiant floor heating is hot air based. However, this is not commonly used today because it is not at all energy efficient.

Radiant Floor Heating is Efficient

If you are looking for a way to stay warm without breaking the family budget, radiant floor heating is an option that you will really want to consider. It is much more energy efficient than other forms of home heating. This is because the heat comes from below, which is the way it was meant to be. You do not lose heat the way that you do with central heating units, so your monthly bill will be lower as a result as well.

Allergy Sufferers Rejoice

If you one of the many who suffers from allergies, much of the blame might be from traditional central heating or baseboard heating units. The dust and dry air that results is simply not good for allergy sufferers. You want to keep that from happening to you on an annual basis, so radiant floor heating is a viable option that you will want to consider. It is hypoallergenic and you will not have to do any cleaning to keep the area dust free. This is a perfect situation for allergy sufferers and you will be able to stay nice and warm at the same time.

Heat Is More Evenly Distributed

Many heaters are simply not that effective unless you are standing right in front of it. Think back to the days when the entire family needed to huddle in front of the space heater just to stay warm. This is because the hot air that comes out of those units quickly makes contact with the cold air surrounding it.. Unless you are standing right in front of it, you will simply not benefit from the warmth. With radiant floor heating, this is no longer a concern. The heat will be evenly distributed across the entire space. You will not encounter near as many cold areas as a result.

Conclusion

Radiant floor heating is a way to reduce costs and keep you warm at the same time. You will want to look into this option for your home, particularly if you are frustrated rising energy costs and the reality that you still are not staying very warm in exchange for all of that money spent. While you will encounter some initial startup costs, the benefits certainly make it all worthwhile in the end. You will be able to finally wake up in the morning and step onto a floor that is nice and warm. This is definitely the way that you want to go when it is all said and done.

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