If you are considering alternatives for heating your home, radiant heating is one that gives you two options. You can opt for radiant flooring or radiant ceilings. Consider weighing your choices before you make your final decision. Here is a more detailed look at both options to help you choose.
Radiant Flooring: A Great Way to Keep Your Toes Toasty
Radiant flooring was actually developed by the Ancient Romans. Those brilliant thinkers found a way to direct hot air beneath the floor. The end result: warm floors that also produced a more comfortable temperature in the home. This approach is commonly used in European countries and is catching on here in America. One of the benefits of radiant heating is there are no vents or radiators like those used in other forms of heating. No dust released through heating vents or hot air that can dry out your home and present health problems.
Radiant heating involves the installation of electric heating coils or tubing heated by water beneath the flooring. By adding radiant barrier, a form of insulation, you will have even better results. Radiant barrier controls issues with vapor and enhances the function of the radiant heating system. In the end, you’ll have warm floors beneath your feet. Imagine, no more cold tiles when you step out of the shower and toasty toes in winter when you first get out of bed. This method of heating effectively warms the entire room—as the floors heat up, the warm air rises and a pleasant ambient temperature is maintained.
Radiant Ceilings: Taking a Top-Down Approach to Heating
If you opt for radiant ceilings, your heating system will be installed in the ceiling and can be improved through the installation of radiant barrier insulation as well. You won’t run into the problem of generating less heat when floor coverings are installed on radiant floors. Radiant ceilings are less expensive than radiant flooring, and they work well in homes where climate control is already in place, allowing you to choose which rooms need to be heated.
Whichever method you choose, you will be guaranteed a cozy home, whether it is being warmed from the floor up or the top down.