Radiant heat works by heating up a surface such as the floors of your house, then transferring the heat into the air. You’ll often hear it referred to as “underfloor” heating.
Good for Allergy Sufferers
This type of heating can be a good choice for people with allergies because air is not distributed throughout the home, so allergens are not spread around. However, as the warmth from the floor rises, there is some limited air movement.
There are lots of different radiant heat systems for floors, but recent technical developments mean that “dry floors” are popular – with these, the cables or tubing are run into the underfloor space.
Choose the Right Flooring
Obviously it’s important that the flooring is suitable for the heating system. Flooring that insulates the room from the heat source is not suitable. For example, thick underlay with a thick carpet on top is not a good idea.
This is why you will most often see underfloor heating with engineered wood flooring. The engineered wood looks great – in fact it can look exactly like a solid wood floor – but because it is thinner than solid wood, it conducts heat into the room more efficiently. In addition, a solid wood floor may shrink or crack when exposed to the heat source, whereas engineered wood is unlikely to suffer from these problems.
If there are children in the house, the even heat of an underfloor heating system can eliminate cold spots and provide a more relaxing and welcoming environment.
Radiant heating systems can be “hydronic” – that is, liquid-based. These systems use very little electricity to heat the water. They are also ideal for eco-houses because they can be powered by solar water heaters or by wood burners, as well as the more traditional oil- or gas-fired boilers. These boilers need to be regulalry maintained in order to keep them functioning fully and a Gloucester Boiler Repair company such as http://www.hprservicesltd.com/gloucester-boilers/boiler-repair-gloucester/ can help with any problems that you may have. An engineered wood floor can be an ideal choice with this type of underfloor heating because it can be “pre-finished” so that it is moisture resistant.
The great thing about a radiant heat source such as underfloor heating is that it eliminates the need for conventional radiators. This can often transform the design of a room.
With radiant heat and an engineered wood floor throughout the living area, it’s bye-bye slippers!