Conversion From Gas To Infrared Heating On 4 Bed House
This is a large property situated in the East Midlands, UK. It’s a former Methodist manse and extends to just under 3000 sq ft, including a large conservatory to rear. It had a conventional gas boiler and radiators, with a standard electric heater in a conservatory.
Walls are with a cavity, but not insulated and room height is 9ft downstairs and 8ft 6″ upstairs. Windows are aging aluminum framed double glazed.
As the heating system was old and boiler needs replacing, the owners looked at an alternative form of heating – one that could cope with high ceilings, large rooms, and poor insulation. They found the capital cost of Warm4less far infrared panels and installation cost to be much less than expected. They decided to remove all metal radiators from the house and only leave the gas boiler to provide hot water.
When the old heavy radiators were removed, an oily like sludge poured out. You can imagine how inefficient it had been for the system to pump this sludge around the house!
The property had been rented out for a number of years prior to the owners taking it back. There were quantities of underwear and socks behind some of the radiators – that had dropped down the back whilst drying! Nice!
There were patches of mould in corners of some of the bedrooms and far infrared is the one form of heating that eliminates this.
With the old radiators removed and copper piping capped off, it was time to fit the Warm4less far infrared panels. The owners choose mostly 600 x 600 whites, with some 600 x 1000, all fitted to ceilings. The house was split into zones: each room one zone and hallways and bathrooms other zones, with control in each area by fitted in wall thermostat timers.
A total of 19 x 600 x 600 white panels, and 2 x 500 x 900, 2 x 600 x 1000, and 1 wall glass panel in ceiling. In the conservatory is fitted a 1.8 kW heating bar, which the owners say is phenomenally effective.
Total wattage in the house is 10,760 – far less than the 30kw gas boiler that a 4 bedroom house (ex-conservatory) would need. In fact about 3 times less. And, very importantly, far infrared provides far better-targeted heat that is on only when you need it.
No waiting for radiators to slowly heat a room. Press a button and within minutes you are warm. This is the key to far infrared home heating, along with the fact it heats you and objects and not the air (which constantly exits a property).
The owners are delighted with the system. When it gets chilly in the evening or morning, they can get warm almost instantly, for minimal cost. They also remark that the warmth is just more relaxing that stuffy dry old-fashioned convection heating. And the mould has gone, and condensation in bathrooms minimised.
In fact, when talking to the owners, they laugh at the idea of going back to old-fashioned wet system central heating. They consider it totally out of date and wish they\’d known about carbon crystal far infrared earlier.
