Heated floors for home comfort date back to ancient Rome, where hot coals were kept burning in a small space beneath the stone flooring of villas. Today, warming your home from the floor up still makes sense for both comfort and efficiency. Radiant heating systems exemplify the green approach Sage Builders LLC brings to renovations and additions in west suburban Boston.
The modern variant of radiant heating, originated in iconic homes designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, utilizes hydronics as the heat source. Embedded in a layer of cement atop the foundation or installed under subflooring or ceramic tile in a room, a radiant heating system incorporates a grid of tubes circulating hot water. This effectively converts the entire floor into a low-temperature heat radiator. Gentle heat conducts up through the flooring, warming objects and people in the room without the drawbacks associated with forced-air heating.
Some of the advantages of including heated floors in your remodeling plans are outlined below:
- More warmth remains at human level near the floor, not accumulated at the ceiling as with heat from forced-air ducts.
- There’s flexibility for zoning. Temperatures can be customized for individual rooms versus a single, whole-house setting.
- Radiant heating doesn’t evaporate indoor humidity, avoiding an uncomfortably dry indoor winter environment.
- Negative or positive pressure imbalances created by forced-air systems draw cold outdoor air into the home or push heated air out. Radiant heating sustains neutral pressure balance in rooms for optimum comfort and energy efficiency.
- Installation of heated floors in a renovation or addition is less disruptive than the major construction required to extend or install ductwork for forced-air heating.
Sage Builders LLC integrates the best of proven concepts with the latest technology to maximize comfort and energy conservation. Ask us about including heated floors in the design for your next addition or renovation.