Comfortable Radiant floor heating distributes even, quiet warmth. An efficient radiant heat system by Blueprint Plumbing & Heating can provide room-by-room temperature control. Energy usage can be reduced up to 60%. Radiant floor heating produces a healthier home environment by eliminating forced air systems that spread dust, pollen and germs throughout your home. Clean and invisible gives the interior designer complete freedom to design and furnish the space. Whether the floors are of wood, tile or concrete stab -- with or without carpeting -- they can truly comfortable with the Blueprint comfort solutions.

Above: Distribution of heat in a typical room from the ceiling to the floor. The one on the left is from hot-air generated by a furnace and the right-most graph is from the radiant floor heat distribution.

How does Radiant Floor Heating Work?

Hydronic radiant heating systems are installed beneath the floor. Warm water circulates through specifically engineered tubing, turning the floor into an efficient, low temperature radiator that can be operated with any heat source. For the ultimate in comfort, effciency and cleanliness, use Blueprint's Hydronic Radiant Heating systems.

Radiant Floor Heating Systems can be installed in virtually any type of floor construction. Some basic methods are:

• In a concrete slab
• On a suspended wood floor utilizing a gypsum / light weight
  cement poured floor underlayment

Concrete

Perhaps the most common heat transfer medium is conventional concrete. While concrete is an excellent thermal conductor it also presents the greatest thermal mass. Tubing may be embedded in a single pour. In some designs such as high ceiling, garages, and large warehouses where large overhead doors are opened and closed, this application is highly desirable.

Gypsum Underlayment on Wood Subfloor

Tubing can be attached to the subfloor, wood or concrete,and a thin gypsum cement poured over it as an underlayment to the finish floor. Gypsum cement is lighter than concrete and is extremely resistant to shrinking or cracking. It can be poured thinner than concrete and is pumped through a hose making it easy to apply in hard to reach areas. Gypsum cement provides a thin 2-inch thermal mass which does an excellent job of distributing the heat evenly between tubes. Although it can take up to two weeks for the moisture to completely leave the floor before floor coverings can be applied, gypsum cement can be walked on within an hour of the pour. The whole floor area becomes a mass radiator.

Snowmelting

Radiant heat systems can be used to melt snow. They are closed systems with an anti-freeze chemical called glycol mixed inside with the water.

In principle, they work like other radiant floor heating applications. Hot water heats the concrete slab and the slab melts the snow. Tubing placement is similar to tube placement in other concrete slab pours. We employ tekmar microprocessor controls which register slab sensors and outdoor temperatures. Naturally, due to size considerations, each system will vary in design.

Common uses for our large snowmelting systems include:

• Parking lots,garages and car washes
• Airplane hangars and runways
• Soil-warming for agricultural purposes

Home | Heating Cages | Plumbing Cages | Heating Science
Cage Features |Animation | Contact

Produced and designed by Photoenhancements.com © 2003-11
No reproduction of materials without written permission of Photoenhancements.com