Advantages of Underfloor Heating

Only following the war do we start to see the first ufh systems which used hot water inside pipes embedded in the floor ; unfortunately the poor insulation in the buildings, the high floor temperatures and the lack of adequate control systems caused this type of system to lose popularity for quite some time. The energy crisis of the seventies, however and the issuing of European Laws on thermal insulation made it possible to return to this type of heating. Floor heating is today certainly the most tecnically valid solution offered by the heating market in the residential, commercial and industrial sector. The various solutions available allow maximum flexibility and adaptability to all types of building and construction requirements.Furthermore, the use of heating fluid at low temperatures and the particular stratification of the heat in the room means important energy saving.

• Thermal well-being
When the temperature has a particular distribution to height, a certain comfort is created in the room. Such a temperature distribution is defined the ideal curve of thermal well-being.In order to create a condition of thermal well-being there must be slighter warmer areas near the floor and slightly colder areas near the ceiling. For every heating system it is possible to trace a distribution curve of the temperatures. In underfloor heating systems, the particular arrangement of the radiant panels and the heat transfer by radiation generates a stratification of the temperatures, which is closest to the ideal curve.

• Energy Saving
Systems with radiant panels, as compared to traditional heating systems, allow an average energy saving of 10% to 15% at equal environmental temperatures. The reasons for this marked saving are due to the fact that the large surface of the floor allows the water to circulate at low temperatures. For this reason, it is convenient to use heat sources whose performance increases when run at low temperatures (heat pumps, condensing boilers, solar panels, heat recovery systems, zoned heating systems). The thermal gradient that is generated with floor heating is such that less heat loss than in a traditional heating system. Unlike traditional systems, floor heating offers the possibility of recovereing heat that is usually wasted due to the stratification effect of the air, which reaches higher temperatures near the ceiling ; the higher the ceiling the greater the heat recovery.With a floor heating system the condition of well being achieved at an average room temperature, which is generally 1 degree below the temperature achieved with traditional systems and therefore at equal comfort, energy saving is possible.

• Hygienic conditions
Floor heating naturally rules out the formation of humid areas on the floor, conditions favouring dust mites and bacteria are therefore not generated and there will be also no formation of mildew.Unlike traditional systems, there is no combustion of motes, which provoke a dry and irrated throat and there are no convective currents, which favour the transport of dust in the room.

• Aesthetic advantages
There are no limits of the architectural nature linked to the presence of heating units; therefore, there is total freedom in interior decorating. By eliminating the problem of condensation and mildew, there will be no deterioration of wooden floors or windows and frames. Traditinal heating systems limit the space in arranging furniture whereas floor heating systems allow total use of all available space ; its is also an advantage in buildings of architectural and artistic importance.

Heating Solutions Ltd
Solar Panels – Underfloor Heating – Heat Pumps
29 Suil na Habhann, Mill Rd, Limerick, Ireland
Tel: 086 3823062;
Fax: 061 346011
Email: info@heating-solutions-ireland.com
http://www.heating-solutions-ireland.com/