Radiant Heat For A Concrete Floor

For radiant heat for a concrete floor in a home you have a variety of choices. It is best to decide you want radiant heat in the floor before the concrete is poured. At this point the choices are better and more numerous.

The first choice for an unpoured concrete slab would be a hydronic radiant system. Once the forms are up, the PEX tubing can be laid out, connections made and other arrangements made. Then the concrete floor is poured with the tubing in place. There are many hydronic radiant companies offering this type of system.

A second choice at this point is electric heating cables installed before the flooring is poured. A number of companies have this type of product available, and there are many different systems.

If the slab is already poured, or if you have an existing home with a concrete floor, there are still systems availble which can allow you to have radiant heat. One system employs a bronze screening material which comes on a roll. This is rolled out, connected to a controller which converts 110 VAC or 220 VAC to a low voltage electricity which in turn is converted into heat by the bronze screen. Just about any type of flooring, including vinyl or carpet, can be laid on top of the screen.

Another type of radiant heat for a basement or other application is simply to lay out heated floor mats. This would not be suitable to supply primary heat to a home, but would be a great supplemental heating system for unheated or poorly heated areas which are occupied only during certain times. These mats just roll out, plug into a wall outlet, and are available in a variety of sizes.