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Advantages and disadvantages of infrared heating
What can a terrace, a beer garden, a bathroom, a living room, an office and a production hall have in common? It's a simple puzzle: the possibility of cheap and ecological heating with infrared rays! How does an infrared heater work? is it safe? Advantages and disadvantages of infrared heating. We invite you to read!
Heating season - cold feet, hot head
Despite the noticeable warming of the climate, the heating period at our latitude sometimes lasts from October to April. Combined heat and power plants start transferring heat energy to apartments, and stoves and fireplaces are switched on collectively in private houses.
Each of us is well aware of the unpleasant effects of the season for warm radiators: dry air collecting under the ceiling, difficulty sleeping, cold feet and a time of increased upper respiratory tract infections. Not to mention media costs.
We got used to negative feelings related to the heating season and treated them as a necessary evil. However, it doesn't have to be that way.
However, before we move on to an effective alternative, let's focus on the main cause of discomfort associated with traditional heating.
What is convection and why we don't like it?
Convection is nothing but the constant movement of air to heat a given room. The classic radiator and heater work by convection.
Hot air escaping from a heated radiator transfers its temperature to the surrounding air. A wave of heat, together with a cloud of dust caused by the operation of the heater, rises towards the ceiling. Warm air is lighter than cold, moist air.
Heat accumulates under the ceiling and slowly moves towards the opposite wall, pushed by successive waves of heat from the radiator. There, it flows down the cooled mass towards the floor and completely cold circles towards the radiator. The air circulation completes a circle and starts again. This is how we explained why in a radiator-heated room we complain about cold feet and unnecessarily accumulated heat above our heads.
These are not all the disadvantages of convection heating.
As we have already mentioned, the warm air above the radiator combines with dust particles.
Dust with mites and allergens swirls in the air, irritating dry mucous membranes of the nose and throat. This is why we suffer from recurrent respiratory infections.
During the heating season, we often put a wet towel on the radiator or hang humidifiers on the radiators. All this to equalize the hygroscopic balance in the environment.
Air heating - pure waste of money!
This is where we come to financial costs. Convection heating consists in heating the air and this is the reason why substantial heat losses occur. Why? And can it be done differently?
Let's take an example from real life.
Remember the gastronomic garden with tables on a cold autumn or even winter evening. The ban on smoking in the premises of the restaurant results in a natural increase in the popularity of tables located outside. Customers willingly sit by the radiators and comfortably spend time in the cold air. However, the radiators do not heat the air around people, because it would be a real waste, and directly human bodies.
How does an infrared heater work?
Infrared radiation, like sunlight, affects the water molecules that make up the human body and heats them up. It is only from a heated object, in this case a person, that the surrounding air heats up.
In rooms with installed infrared heating, walls, furniture and living organisms are heated. The heat goes to the receivers directly, without unnecessary losses, causing a pleasant feeling of thermal comfort and at the same time leaving cooler and moister air to breathe.
Infrared heating does not force air movement, so it does not arouse dust particles and allergens. It prevents damp walls behind furniture, and dry walls are an excellent insulator against cold from the outside.
What are the costs of heating with electricity?
There is a widespread opinion about the high cost of heating with electricity. Common and untrue.
In the case of infrared panels, the costs for utilities related to heating with infrared rays significantly decrease. The prerequisite is the correctly calculated heating power of the radiant heaters. Not without significance for the user's pocket is also the low cost of installation and the simplicity of assembly. All you need is a spirit level, a drill and a few dowels.
Green, clean energy
The last but no less important argument in favor of infrared heating is the low degree of environmental pollution.
Infrared heaters are energy efficient, do not require a furnace, chimney and do not cause smog.
This is a very important voice in the discussion on the protection of clean air.