There are so many ways to heat our houses from using radiators, fireplaces, and heat pumps. Which one is best usually depends on your unique set of circumstances. One method that does usually beat them all is radiant floor heating. This is a system in which the heat comes from underneath the floor and not from radiators or vents.
It is a system that isn’t usually on a lot of people’s radars and that should change. There are many benefits that come from having a radiant floor heating system. There are very few circumstances when it doesn’t make sense. In this article, we will go over some of the benefits that you’ll get from having a radiant floor heating system installed.
1 – Easy installation
It may seem like a big and complex project to build a heating system underneath the floor, but the reality is that it is easier than it seems. In many cases, it can be done over the existing floor so you don’t have much to do to renovate. If you are moving into a new house then you can always do this first so it is done before you are moving in.
There is also the possibility of many different types of flooring. If you have your heart set on a particular floor material that you saw at the Edmonton flooring store then it is highly likely that you will be able to use it as the covering for the heating tubes.
Some materials will work better than others but there are very few that won’t work at all. For instance, a poured cement floor is the ideal material as it diffuses the heat quickly, but wood flooring works too albeit more slowly than concrete.
You’re also not limited to a particular heating system. Radiant floor heating works just as well with an electric heating element as it does a hydronic one.
2 – Very even heating
One of the biggest problems with radiators and forced hot air vents is the fact that you end up with hot and cold spots. This is because if there is a single point where the air is heated, it takes time to spread out over a space. The way it dissipates means that it also cools as it moves so there are cold spots in a room even when the heater is going into overdrive.
This problem is eliminated when you have the entire floor being heated. As the heat rises from every centimeter of space, there are no cold or hot spots. Every area of the room is the same temperature.
As the heat rises there is a very comfortable temperature that doesn’t dissipate or cool down as it moves. You’ll feel the hot air all around you. It also feels great on the feet and you can walk barefoot all year round without getting cold feet if you run to the bathroom in the middle of the night.
3 – Safety
Just about every adult has a memory of when they were a kid and burned themselves on a hot radiator. Some have covers and modern ones are safer, yet at the same time they are not nearly as safe as a radiant floor system.
The biggest reason for that is that there is no single point of heat so there isn’t a concentration on one spot. A radiator has to get very hot to spread heat around the room. The floor is a bigger area and it doesn’t need to get quite as hot in one spot.
It also requires less heat to work. It is a much more gentle heat that is not going to get hot enough to cause an injury.
4 – They save money
It takes far less gas or electricity to heat a room when the entire floor is the heat source. This means that you’ll end up saving money and in the long run the system will pay for itself.
When you have an entire floor that heats up, it fills the air with heat much more efficiently and effectively. Then when the heat is shut off, it keeps providing heat since it’s going to stay warm and dissipate the residual heat over time. It also heats the room much faster.
With the rising cost of energy it is a great way to keep the costs down without sacrificing comfort. You’ll be much warmer and have a lower bill as a nice bonus.
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