How Does Radiant Heat Work?

When choosing which type of heater is best for your facility, it is important to know the different types of heat sources available and how they can fit your needs. Radiant heaters are one option available to customers but many wonder how does radiant heating work? In this article we are going to take a closer look at what radiant heat is, where it falls on the electromagnetic spectrum, and the benefits it has.

WHAT IS RADIANT HEAT?

Radiant heat is transmitted through electromagnetic waves. When these waves are intercepted and absorbed they are converted into heat. The radiant energy is absorbed by objects in the room and warms the space similar to your clothes absorbing the light from the sun. Like the sun, radiant heaters can heat without direct contact with the heat source (you don’t actually touch the sun to feel its warmth). For an industrial application this type of heat is beneficial when you want to avoid physical contact with what you are heating or want to avoid contaminating the product being heated.

RADIANT VS INFRARED HEAT

Many people wonder what the difference between radiant and infrared heat is, but both heating sources are from an infrared radiant energy source. The principles of radiant and infrared are similar but the difference really lies in the temperature. The shorter the electromagnetic wave length the higher the heat source. Therefore the longer radiant wavelength has lower temperatures in the 150?F range compared to the shorter infrared wavelength with temperatures in the 1000?F+ range.

Radiant heating is used for comfort heating in offices, by windows, and in areas where heat is needed but conventional heating methods like forced air or baseboards are not easily used due to space restraints (furniture or storage is blocking the way). Infrared heat is typically used outdoors or for spot heating in unheated areas, like a workbench in a warehouse, a loading dock, or melting snow on sidewalks. Both infrared and radiant heaters are mounted towards the ceiling out of the way.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

A main advantage radiant heaters have over convection systems are the ability to heat materials faster. Radiant heaters are more efficient because their electromagnetic waves are intercepted and absorbed by the person or object where they are converted into heat. Compare this to convection systems that have to heat all of the air in a space the problem with this is as we all know warm air rises and when a forced air heater tries to heat all of the air in a room a lot of that warm air is wasted and needs to be pushed back down. A radiant heater also has higher efficiency since it doesn’t take very long to heat up to operating temperature. One more energy saving trait radiant heaters have is reducing energy loss by being focused or reflected in the same way as light which will increase adaptability in different configurations.

If you are looking for an industrial radiant heater that are quick to reach operating temperatures and maintain comfort please consider Indeeco radiant heating and Radiant Cooling equipment.

In a Comfort Heating situation, Conduction (physical transfer of heat from source to target by direct contact) is not an option