Optimize Your Home Heating by Using Ground Insulation for your Heated Floors

Times are a changing and no longer acceptable to ignore “green building” when constructing a new home or building. This means maximizing the efficiency of your heat source. Fortunately, there are many options available today.

Starting with the preparation for the slab, ground insulation is something that is so effective and easy to install that it should never be ignored. It can significantly increase the efficiency of your heating source, especially if that source is a radiant heated floor system. Floor insulation is also an extreme energy saver. When installed under sub-floors it “reflects” the heat, adding tremendously to the efficiency of your heated floor installation.

Electric floor heat is the king of the hill when it comes to efficiency and comfort. These various forms of ground insulation only increase the efficiency of the floor heating system, regardless of your floor type (i.e., tile, hardwood, carpet, etc.).

When your heat source is the floor, you aren’t wasting a lot of energy heating the ceiling area, which is what forced-air systems tend to do. You can maintain lower temperature settings and still be comfortable. Why heat from the ceiling down – especially nowadays when so many new homes have high ceilings? That’s a recipe for nickel and diming you to death. Remember three little words, "heat your feet". That’s the ticket for energy efficiency and added comfort. Gone are the days of inefficient forced air systems that blow dust and allergens all over the house. Check out the options for radiant heated floors today.

With the cold winter months approaching there is nothing better than staying cozy and comfortable in your warm house. Probably the best way to do this is with something you may not think of at first, through the use of a heated floor.

The official start of winter is just days away, and right on cue is a cold front striking the western part of the U.S. This means one thing, cold weather will be sweeping eastward across the country. Heated floors are an ideal way to combat the goose bumps that will invariably follow. Electric radiant floor heat utilizes heat cable installed under the finish surface – usually tile – that not only removes the chill from the floor but also provides the most comfortable heat you can imagine. It makes the most difference to your comfort of any other type of heat I know of.

Radiant heat also comes in hydronic form, where tubing is installed in the floor and heated water is circulated by the use of a pump. Electric radiant heat is more common as it is more economical to install and generally provides heat to the floor much quicker.

Radiant heated floors can also be installed over existing surfaces. If you have considered a bathroom remodel, nothing may be more rewarding than electric radiant floor heating. It’s heat for your feet. Your feet will send it north and you will look back at the radiant heat installation as the best thing you ever did. 

A buddy of mine confided in me yesterday that he’s not looking forward to going to his in-laws’ for their vacation this spring.  Not because he doesn’t enjoy their company, but because he knows that there are some areas of their homes that are practically freezing while other areas are comfortable and warm.  And it’s usually the guest room!  It’s a common problem with traditional heating systems, but is easily solved by installation and use of electric radiant heating systems.

Such electric radiant heating systems can be easily and independently controlled by zone, enabling a homeowner to increase the temperature for defined areas of the home during occupancy and conversely allows a particular zone to remain off during down times.  It might remind you of a programmable thermostat on traditional heating systems.  It is similar to that, but actually far more efficient and controllable.

Use of electric radiant heat systems not only saves the homeowner money, it gives complete control to efficiently warm your most used living spaces without fearing an enormous utility bill at the end of the month.

Electric Radiant Heat Tip:  The radiant consultants and designers at Warmzone have been trained in all of the latest heating systems to properly assess your project and prescribe an electric radiant heat system that will add value to your home inside of your budget.

Even those more-capable-than-most do it your-selfer's might think that electric radiant heat is difficult and time-consuming to install, and has the risk of uneven heating spacing – but times have changed since those early days of the radiant heat technology, and it’s easier than you would imagine. Let’s get you up-to-date on how many improvements have been made to electric radiant heat, contributing to it fast becoming a popular choice for energy-efficient and cost-efficient home heating.

It used to be that electric radiant heat was, once upon a time, supplied as one long continuous length of cable with the consumer having to weave the cable up and down the floor at a pre-determined spacing and making a return loop to complete the circuit.

However, recent and improved designs in electric radiant heat cables have a built-in return meaning that you only have one end to connect instead of having to close the circuit by bringing each end of the cable back to the thermostat. Far from complicated to install, electric radiant heat cable mats have taken the hard work out of the install by having the radiant heating cable already pre-spaced on to a nylon mesh and all you have to do is simply start at your thermostat location and roll it out over the floor until it’s all used up. 

All too often, we hear of people needing to upgrading the heating system for a small space in their older home, yet postponing the project over and over for fear of the cost. Older homes often times don’t have the necessary heating ducts needed to install a traditional forced air system, and installing these ducts is very expensive. However, there is a very cost effective and efficient solution to this problem.

It’s just situations like these that electric radiant heat systems are great, and very cost-effective, solutions for smaller spaces (1-5 rooms). You’ll be surprised to learn how easy to install they are, and also have a very low start-up cost. An electric thermostat is all that is required and costs only about $100-$200.

Another advantage of electric radiant heating over a traditional warm-water heating system is the floor build up or height. Floor build up can be from as little as 2mm. The electric cables are usually installed onto an insulation board or directly onto the subfloor or padding (under carpet or laminate), then the floor covering is placed directly over the heating system or thinset.

Electric Radiant Heat Tip: Warm up times for electric radiant heat systems are generally a lot quicker than “wet” systems because the cables are installed directly below the finished flooring making it a direct acting heat source rather than a storage heater. 

When setting out to do a kitchen or bathroom remodeling, one part of the process homeowners very often seem to really enjoy is picking out new appliances or fixtures. However, the heating system is also crucial to consider. We’d like to suggest that you look into implementing electric radiant heat as part of your remodel.

It’s quite an extraordinarily simple heating concept. Electric radiant heating is a thin electric mat installed in thin-set cement. This electric mat is controlled by a timer-thermostat To install this type of heating is very cost effective, especially when you consider how much money you’ll save on your heating bill. For example, when installed in an average-sized bathroom, it will operate on less than 10 cents a day worth of electricity.

Electric radiant heat systems are incredibly economical. They are made of a heat resistant wire that serpentines over a supporting material. They are safe, relatively easy to install, and extremely energy-efficient.

Finally, there’s another major plus to electric radiant heat: amazing comfort. Having electric radiant heat in the floor increases our comfort by bringing the heat to our feet, which leaves the air at head level cooler. This scenario creates the perfect level of comfort.

Electric Radiant Heat Tip: Whether you are remodeling one or five rooms, electric radiant heat is the perfect solution. It’s inexpensive, and easy enough to install that most any DIY re-modeler could install it.