Electric Heating Systems

There are many benefits for buildings by converting to Infrared Heating and the ease of conversion is an added bonus (if you can hang a picture, you can install an Infrared heater).

The main differences also help you understand how infrared heating works and why it is so different from convection-based heating (see former post on this subject).

Convection-based heating warms the air: warm air is damp air and settles on walls and other cold surfaces. Infrared heating only heats objects (such as walls and furniture) - so these objects and masonry now remain dry. No more musty sofas and damp walls. No more unsightly masonry, salt-damp, or expensive re-paint or repair jobs.

Many other types of heater require insulation behind the heat source to protect the wall and to prevent cold walls from chilling the room. No additional insulation is necessary for infrared heating which works by heating the walls (and other objects) which then reflect the heat into the room. (This doesn't discount the need for insulation to eliminate draughts and avoid unneccessary wasted heat. But my point is you don't need additional insulation to actually allow the heater to work in the first place).

Damp masonry also conducts more heat away from the heat source than dry masonry which tends to reflect heat back towards the heat source (thereby heating the room and its occupants better.

Convection heating creates heat layering within a room and this causes discomfort and draughts. There is no such heat layering or draughts with IR.

Traditional heating is typically (and increasingly) expensive to buy and because of the many moving parts implies interim service costs and makes the product life uncertain. The requirement to store fuel implies storage and delivery costs (quite apart from the rising energy costs which will be subject to a later post). Many traditional heaters also require a chimney or flue to evacuate waste gasses. None of the above applies to Infrared Heating!

Traditional heaters typically require an expert to install. As I say, if you have a powerpoint and can hang a picture, you can install your own IR heaters.