Electric Heating Systems

Note: I haven't called this "How do infrared heaters" work. Today's post is a discussion about physics. We'll leave the technical "how do the heaters themselves work?" discussion to a later post.

Infrared heating is probably the most original, natural form of heating you can experience. It is how we experience the heat from the sun, even though it is 92 million miles away across the cold depths of space.

Infrared heat does not require a medium (like air or water) through which to travel - and does not require that medium itself to get heated up (unlike heat emitted from fan heaters, gas heaters, convection radiators etc). (This is partly why it is so energy-efficient).

Infrared waves lie outside the visible spectrum of light in the long wavelength low frequency side of the electromagnetic spectrum. The long wavelength of Red light is why sunsets and sunrises are red, as all other colours wavelengths get slowed and dissipated by the relatively "thick" slice of atmosphere being pierced by the early morning or late evening sun.

Incidentally, you'll see plenty of websites touting "far infrared" as a description of IR heating because it has incorrectly become a popular search term - which is why people use it in their sites. But this phrase is a complete mis-nomer for the thermal infrared used in heaters (ultra long wavelength IR is more commonly used in lasers!). However, it is generally true that IR of any wavelength will heat up the surface it touches. But be careful who you listen to.

Infrared waves produce a sensation of heat by vibrating molecules of the surface they strike. This vibration consequently creates heat and a sensation of heat AND IS ENTIRELY INDEPENDENT OF THE TEMPERATURE OF THE SURROUNDING AIR. This is key. It is an entirely natural sensation of heat, like feeling the first rays of the sun on a cool morning. It is efficient, both because the creation of the waves in the first place is energy-efficient and because energy is not lost "in transit" through the medium between you and the heat source (i.e. air). It is perceived directly on your skin (or an item you touch).

This, in brief, is how infrared heating works and why it is energy efficient. In later posts we'll look in much more detail at energy savings, health benefits and installation benefits of infrared heating and even how the heaters themselves work.