Radiant Heat
Radiant Heat: How It Works & Common Mistakes People Make
Radiant heating is the most popular choice for homes in Grand County. It offers a comfortable, energy-efficient way to heat a space, but like any system, there are common mistakes people make. To fully enjoy the benefits of radiant heat, it’s important to understand how it works and what to avoid.
What Is Radiant Heat?
Radiant heating heats a space through infrared radiation, which directly warms objects, rather than warming the air like traditional convection-based systems (e.g., forced air or baseboard heaters). Unlike conventional heating systems that circulate air to distribute heat, radiant heat doesn’t create drafts, hot spots, or cold zones. It’s also more energy-efficient because it doesn’t require heating the air in the room, which often leads to heat loss through windows or ventilation systems. There are two main types of radiant heating systems:
Radiant Floor Heating: This is the most common and widely used form of radiant heat. In this system, warm water or electric cables run beneath the floor. The heat radiates upward from the floor to warm the entire room evenly.
Radiant Wall and Ceiling Heating: This type of system is less common but works similarly to floor heating, using water pipes or electric cables in the walls or ceilings to radiate heat.
Common Mistakes When Using Radiant Heat
There are two common mistakes people make when using radiant heat:
1. Over-adjusting the thermostat(s)
Radiant heating systems take longer to warm up compared to forced air or baseboard heaters. A general rule of thumb is that radiant heat rises and falls by 1 degree per hour. A common mistake is to adjust the thermostat far beyond the desired temperature with the intent of heating the room faster. In reality, setting the temperature higher than you’d like will not heat the space any faster. However, it will cause the space to overheat and bringing the temperature of the room back down takes equally as long since the objects themselves need to cool.
The best way to use radiant heat is to set each room at a reasonable temperature and leave them set that way. You can always make small adjustments as needed, but refrain from making drastic swings in temperature. If you’re someone who often visits on weekends and your home sits empty most of the week, you might find it more cost effective to leave your thermostats set at a constant temperature vs lowering them significantly while you’re away. This is due to the energy required to bring the home back up to temp with each visit compared to the cost of simply maintaining an even temperature. Of course if you’re gone for long periods of time, it likely makes sense to adjust your thermostats lower between occupancy.
2. Setting the same temperature on all thermostats
Most of the time you’ll find that the temperature settings on the thermostats in your home need to vary slightly from each other in order to maintain a comfortable temperature in each space. It’s often the case that lower levels (especially if they’re below grade) need to be set higher than the upper levels. Take for example a three story home: you might find that the lower level remains comfortable with the thermostat(s) set at 70 while the main level is comfortable set at 68, and the upper level might be best set at 65. This varies from home to home and is typically due to the heat rising and indirectly heating the upper levels. Every home is different and you’ll learn how your home functions best over time. If you rent your home to others, consider installing thermostats that can be programmed with limited temperature ranges. Most visitors to our area are unfamiliar with radiant heat and incorrect adjustments are commonplace. When a room overheats from incorrect settings, the first course of action is often to open a window to cool things off. That in turn leads to one of the most common maintenance issues of all: casement windows.
In summary, radiant heat is a comfortable and energy-efficient heating solution, but it’s important to use it correctly to avoid frustration and unnecessary energy costs.