DIY: How to Install a Radiant Heating System

Radiant heat when it is coming from the floor of your home can be a very efficient source of heating. The efficiency is because the source of heat is direct from the floor; there is no loss of heat as in forced air heating because of the ducting. For individuals with allergies the lack of moving air is also a benefit.

There are three different sources radiant heat, radiant air heat, hot water also known as hydronic radiant heat and electric radiant heat each of these have a application for the home owner. A good source of information on types of radiant heating system would be the web site Energysavers.gov the site also gives examples of what type of radiant heat to use for the owner's project.

The installation of a radiant heat is simplified when it is part of the original building of the house; the owner has chosen which one of the three types of radiant heat he wants and will pick a contractor who specializes in this type of work to have the work done. If the radiant heat is an upgrade or a remodeling job the owner should consider the difficulty of the job against his ability. Hydronic floor heating would be the logical choice when upgrading a home from old fashion freestanding radiant heaters to a more efficient floor heating system. The Radiant Panel Association's web site RPA-info.com is for the professional installer but it will give the homeowner some excellent information on radiant floor heating, from their home page click on the links for specific topics. The web site This Old House.com has some excellent 'how to' articles on radiant floor installation, the articles are presented in both video and text instructions, after you enter the web site click on the 'how to' link and search for installing radiant floor heating. In the article they talk about the aluminum heat transfer plate that must go between each joist, drilling holes through the joist for the heat tubing, the heat transfer plate have slots to hold the tubing in place so care must be taken when tapping the tubing into place, they recommend using a rubber mallet. Insulate the area between the joists to preserve as much of the heat as possible then connect everything to hot water source. The This Old House web site warns that you should not use your floor heating water for person use; it is best to have a separate hot source for family use. The electrical work for the thermostat, relay switch and water pump should be done by a licensed electrical contractor.

For the do it yourselfer looking for suppliers of radiant floor heating products is no farther away than either your telephone book or the internet, knowing a plumber who can give recommendations about suppliers would be better because you would trust the source of information. The hePex tubing is becoming the installer's choice over copper tubing finding a supplier that carries hePEX products, instillation tools as well as how to books and videos well help the weekend do it yourselfer get the job done right the first time.

What will this cost the homeowner; there are calculators that will help in designing your radiant heating system, the size of the project, how cold will it be, will the job a full contract or will the home owner be doing some of the work. The federal and state governments will help with rebates.