![]() Well-insulated houses that have been carefully air-sealed have low heating loads. If the slab were warmed to the point where it felt like your favorite pair of fleece slippers the room would be overheated. If the thermostat is set for 70°, let’s say, the floor temperature will be 75° or so-a lot cooler than the bottom of an unshod foot. In a well insulated house, this is probably not going to happen.Įven on a very cold day the floor will be only a few degrees warmer than the room. Homeowners who think a radiant-floor system will guarantee warm feet all winter long may be in for a surprise. Warmboard makes a structural subfloor panel that incorporates a reflective layer. Joist bays may also get a reflective barrier and a layer of insulation to direct heat upward. Staple-up systems sometimes include aluminum transfer plates that help warm the floor more efficiently. One thing to keep in mind is that when tubing embedded in concrete springs a leak, repairs will be difficult, messy, and expensive. Tubing also can be placed in thin slabs that are installed over wood framing (Radiantec calls these “suspended slab” systems). Radiantec, a company that specializes in radiant heating systems, says a concrete slab installation is the simplest and most efficient option, as long as it is done correctly. ![]() Even in the dead of a New England winter, circulating water might be only about 80☏.Ĭoncrete floors have a lot of mass, so they are slower to warm up and slower to cool down than a wood floor. The water circulating in the tubing is usually at a lower temperature than water that would supply baseboard or wall-mounted radiators. Loops of the tubing are connected to manifolds which are, in turn, fed by a supply line from a boiler or a water heater. Tubing is made from a very tough plastic called PEX, short for cross-linked polyethylene. Alternately, tubing can be placed in special kind of grooved underlayment before it is capped with the finish flooring. Tubing can be placed in the walls or ceiling ( Messana is a company that offers this type of system), but radiant floor heating systems are usually built around tubing that’s either stapled to the under side of the floor sheathing (staple-up systems) or embedded in a layer of concrete or gypcrete. (Much of the technical information cited in this article comes from previously published work by Holladay, Alex Wilson and others, which is referenced in the text or in the “Related Articles” list at the bottom of the page.) Tubing is typically in the floor ![]() Martin Holladay, the former editor at Green Building Advisor, even objects to the term “radiant-floor,” preferring instead the longer but more accurate phrase “in-floor hydronic tubing.”īut let’s start with a look at how these systems are put together, consider the electric radiant alternative, and then turn to the question of whether the same network of tubing that delivers heat in the winter also can cool the living space in summer. Some designers don’t see a place for radiant-floor heating systems in well-insulated, tightly built homes. In short, opinions on these systems are divided. ![]() Research Bolsters Hopes for Radiant Cooling Adding Air Conditioning to Radiant-Floor Heat
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