From hypocaust to radiant floor heating
Electric floor heating technology is widely considered as a contemporary engineering marvel; whereas the fact is, that its history can be traced back to the Roman era. The Roman floor heating system was based on hypocaust, which comprised of a furnace and empty spaces below the floor. The furnace would be lit and the smoke would pass through the empty spaces below the floor, thereby effectively heating it.
Although this concept went into the background after the Roman era ended, it emerged, a few decades back, in the form of electric floor heating. Due to the high utility and various advantages offered by this technology, it has evolved into a basic household necessity. The increasing popularity of electric floor heating systems is due the shift, from carpet flooring to aesthetic hardwood, ceramic and tile flooring. Although these innovative flooring options are visually appealing, they can get significantly cold during the winters, thereby increasing the demand for an effective floor heating solution.
Modern day radiant floor heating systems are flexible and can be ideally used to heat any room in the house. The radiant heat emitted by these floor heating systems creates an environment similar to that of a warm summer day. The radiant floor heating system enables you to set the thermostat to heat the floor an hour before you wake up. There can be nothing more satisfying than feeling the natural warmth of the sun under your feet on a cold winter morning.
Radiant floor systems can be considered as a part of the green technology since they result in significant saving on electricity. The radiant heat emitted by these systems effectively transfers to your feet and body; allowing you to turn down your main heating thermostat by a few degrees.
Since radiant floor heating systems produce heat electrically, one of the major concerns people have is that of the increasing exposure to Electromagnetic fields (EMF). Although we are exposed to about 1 unit of Electromagnetic fields in our daily lives, the use of an electronic floor heater can significantly raise this exposure. Thankfully, a few reputed products, such as SunTouch, have been devised in a way to reduce this exposure to Electromagnetic fields. This reduction of EMF has been made possible due to the unique wire construction of these radiant floor heating systems. Since EMF interferes with telephones, pacemakers and radio, you would be able to negate this ill-effect by selecting a reputed radiant floor heating system.
It can be rightly said that floor heating technology has come a long way, from the roman hypocaust, to the modern day radiant floor heating systems. These floor heating systems are highly sophisticated in their design and do not even require much effort for installation. The compact nature of these systems ensures that there is no significant raise in your floor level. Therefore, it makes complete sense to go in for a radiant floor heating solution for your house and enjoy the warmth beneath your feet irrespective of the weather outside.
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