Go Comfortable with Radiant Flooring
2009-09-14

There are three types of radiant floor heat: radiant air floors (air is the heat-carrying medium); electric radiant floors; and hot water (hydronic) radiant floors.All three types can be further subdivided by the type of installation: those that make use of the large thermal mass of a concrete slab floor or lightweight concrete over a wooden subfloor (these are called "wet installations"); and those in which the installer "sandwiches" the radiant floor tubing between two layers of plywood or attaches the tubing under the finished floor or subfloor ("dry installations").

The Difference Between a Dry vs. "Wet" Radiant Floor Heat System is the last important factor that every homeowner interested in radiant heat needs to know about. "Wet" systems are the kind mentioned above: a radiant heating system installed in a slab of concrete. This is ideal from an efficiency standpoint, and is the only way to go if you're planning a heating system for a new home. If you're working with a pre-existing structure, however, pouring new slabs of concrete might not be a viable option. That's where dry systems come in. Dry systems, both electric and hydronic, can be installed anywhere, under any flooring surface, without having to encase the heating tubes or coils in a concrete slab. This makes them a great alternative for homeowners who want the benefits of radiant heat without the hassles that are part and parcel to working with concrete.

Floor Coverings

Ceramic tile is the most common and effective floor covering for radiant floor heating, as it conducts heat well from the floor and adds thermal storage because of its high heat capacity. Common floor coverings like vinyl and linoleum sheet goods, carpeting, or wood can also be used, but any covering that helps to insulate the floor from the room will decrease the efficiency of the system.

If you want carpeting, use a thin carpet with dense padding and install as little carpeting as possible. If some rooms, but not all, will have a floor covering, then those rooms should have a separate tubing loop to make the system heat these spaces more efficiently. This is because the water flowing under the covered floor will need to be hotter to compensate for the floor covering. Wood flooring should be laminated wood flooring instead of solid wood. This reduces the possibility of the wood shrinking and cracking from the drying effects of the heat.