Radiant Heat vs Forced Air Heating Systems

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About Radiant Heat
Heated Driveway
Radiant Floor Heating
Radiant Heat Information
Radiant Roof Heating

Authors:

Amy Morby
Benson Ricks
Jen Hallam
Warmzone

What are the Pros and Cons of Radiant Heat and Forced Air Heating Systems?

A room with radiant floor heating will have a very uniform temperature from the ceiling to the floor. Heating a basement floor is an ideal application for a radiant heat system. If you've lived in a house with forced air, you know that you can crank the heat up, but the basement floors will remain chilled. Installing a radiant floor warming system will add comfort and warmth to your lifestyle.


Forced Air Heating	Radiant Floor Heating

Say Goodbye to Annual Heater Maintenance with Heated Floors

You dread it every year; the dreaded heater maintenance. It's been sitting there all summer long, and it's dusty, it's old, and you just don't want to deal with it. Luckily for you, there is a way to put an end to your annual heater maintenance once and for all: radiant floor heating.

Electric radiant floor heating systems are virtually maintenance free. That's right, with absolutely no effort from you, heated floors bring you unparalleled comfort at an affordable price.

Traditional home heating methods require a daunting list of tasks you should perform yearly to keep them running properly. With electric radiant floor heat, however, all of these annual tasks can be eliminated from your schedule.

Comparing some performance features and maintenance tasks of forced air heating and radiant heat systems:

Conventional Heating Systems	Radiant Floor Heating Systems
Make sure the pilot light is lit.	No pilot lights here.
Clean or replace your furnace filter regularly. If you don't do this, your heater has to use more energy and work harder, sending your bill through the roof.	No messy filters required. Just a silent radiant heating system that efficiently warms up the house.
To Heat Only the Areas that you want to Warm Close the ducts to the rooms where you don’t want heat. Unfortunately, most ducts are not air tight, and heat escapes into areas where you don't want/need it.	Radiant heating systems can be controlled in zones, with each zone/room controlled by its own thermostat. Radiant floor heating thermostats are also fully programmable, so you can program the floors to warm just before you get up each morning, or activate and shutoff according to your schedule.
Call a professional to clean and inspect your furnace every year. Brush and vacuum the exchanger surfaces and blower blades.	Save your money. Electric radiant floor heating systems are maintenance free.
Also, make sure your gas furnace is inspected to make sure no harmful Carbon Monoxide fumes are escaping. A furnace that is not running at peak performance can be deadly. Virtually every gas furnace produces Carbon Monoxide, which is usually carried away from your home through the furnace’s venting	No such issues with radiant heat systems.

The bottom line is this: You don't have to limit your decision to one heating system. Many homeowners have installed radiant heat simply to supplement their traditional heating systems in an effort to manage their heating costs. Radiant heat can be used to efficiently warm the areas in your house where you spend most of your time, and dramatically reduce the demands of your furnace and blower.

With all the extra costs you rack up with conventional heating system maintenance, perhaps it’s time to consider installing radiant heat. Install floor heating in your home today and see the difference it makes for your wallet and your home.

Category: Radiant Heat Information