What is a problem is floor shrinkage, which can also happen.Īgain, if a good contractor takes a look at the flooring and heating, they can make sure that your hardwood doesn’t shrink. If you need ideas, we’ve got you covered there too! HardwoodĪs you may have guessed, a hardwood floor poses a slight fire hazard, especially if the heating isn’t installed properly. All extremely viable and recommended options. If you don’t want to wonder about safety and efficiency, then stick with tile, concrete, or stone. They have a nearly endless tolerance to heat too, so there are no fire hazards. They conduct heat, hold temperatures, and distribute heat well. Tile, concrete, and stone are perfect for radiant floor heating. Talk to a contractor if you want peace of mind yet still want to use carpet. However, that still leaves the fact that it doesn’t distribute heat as well as other floors. If you use hydronic or air-heated systems, then installing carpet is safe. On top of that, it is also a strong insulator, so heating isn’t as easy as with other floorings. If you use electrical floor heating, it can be a fire hazard. Many people use carpet with radiant floor heating, but it really isn’t the best option. The flooring is affordable, so you can buy it again, but it’s even more affordable if you can use what you already have. The best part about laminate is that it can be taken up and put back down if you decide to retro-install radiant floor heating. While laminate isn’t as good as tile, it is fire resistant, and there have been few complaints from people about laminate flooring. Laminate is a fairly safe choice, no matter what type of heating you have. If you do anything right, invest in a good contractor. Note that if done by a trained professional, any type of flooring is safe. While you can use any flooring to cover radiant floor heating, certain floorings are more efficient than others. Not to mention there are certain climates where electricity isn’t quite as reliable as we’d wish. If you live off-the-grid, air-heated flooring is one of your only options. However, it doesn’t retain heat, so this is only useful during the day. The only benefit is that it can be paired with solar-powered systems, making it the greenest option. Air-HeatedĪir-Heated radiant flooring is rarely used. Water-powered heating is ideal because of its balance between cost, safety, and eco-friendly values. But if you can install one, it’s definitely worth it. If you don’t have a boiler, you’ll need a safe place for one. Hydronic radiant floor systems pump heated water from a boiler through tubing that is laid underneath your flooring. Our next system is called hydronic radiant floor heating, and it is by far the most popular type of floor heating. If they do, and you have concrete floors, you can heat the floor and turn the heating off. This heating system is ideal if your electric company charges for time of use. ElectricĮlectric radiant floor heating uses electric cables that are built into the floor. Each one comes with its own set of pros and cons, so perhaps another type of radiant floor heating is right for you. While most people use one type of radiant floor heating, that doesn’t mean there aren’t other options. There are many reasons this is better than traditional heating systems, which is what we’ll get into later.īut first, let’s talk about the different types of radiant floor heating and which ones are the most popular. The heat is conducted through the flooring instead of through the air. Radiant heating is what you feel when the sun shines down on you when you’re standing by the window or the heat you feel from a stovetop when hovering above. Today, we use infrared radiation to heat with radiant flooring. How Radiant Floor Heating Works Image from Pinterest. From there, radiant heating slowly evolved into what we have today. But their way was forgotten and radiant flooring ceased to exist until the early 1900s when the first type of radiant heating was invented via radiant panels. They would even leave space for the heat to travel in slots in the walls. Then, a “praefurnium,” or wood-fired furnace, was put below the floor. The Romans had underfloor heating called a “hypocaust.” Their floor was raised with pillars with spaces left between them. We’ve come a long way since then, but the gist is the same. In Ancient Rome, slaves would stoke fires underneath elevated flooring to warm their masters. Radiant floor heating has been around for thousands of years. History Of Radiant Floor Heating Image from Flickr. Find out if it’s right for you today with this guide, including the pros and cons of such a heating system. This type of heating is quickly becoming the hottest way to heat any house. But with those heating systems come an array of issues. Most houses use furnaces, fireplaces, or gas heaters to heat their home. Radiant floor heating is a trending solution to many standard heating problems.
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