Allan Wilson asked:


In every kitchen there is a problem if the room temperature or the water temperature is below comfort level. Kitchen heating is thus essential to every home. Kitchen heating focuses on how best to make your kitchen a more comfortable and warm place to cook food, wash dishes, etc.

Kitchen heating can be controlled via central heating or can be heated by a localized heating appliance. It is recommended that a central heating system be used for kitchen heating as it eliminates the need of separate radiators, boilers, etc which leaves your kitchen space for kitchen use and does not constrain it. The under floor heating can be connected via feed pipes and so can vents in the ceiling regulate the warmth.

However it is not possible always to have a central heating system. In such cases localized kitchen heating systems are required. This could be done via the use of the following kitchen heating products.

Kitchen radiators

Kitchen radiators are the most common form of kitchen heating appliances. These can be electric radiators or oil radiators. Radiators are popular as they are good for heat dissipation in a room but they take up precious kitchen space. They work on convectional heating. They heat the air around them and thus transmit heat.

Fan heaters

Fan heaters can be used too. These are mounted on walls and hence do not take up floor space. Further they are multidirectional and hence transmit heated air in all directions. Variable velocity fan heaters are recommended.

Skirting heaters

Skirting heaters and tubular heaters are also used as they take up less space as compared to oil filled radiators but their heating capacity is not much as compared to the radiators. Panel heaters are an alternative solution to kitchen heating while halogen heaters add to the pleasing illumination of the kitchen apart from doing the primary job of heating.

Plinth heaters

Plinth heaters are also useful as they are made to fit to the plinth of the kitchen unit in the run underneath the cupboard doors. These have visible grilles attached but the grilles can be painted over to blend into the kitchen ambience. Plinth heaters can be used in combination with heated towel rails to ensure dry towels remain dry. Together the two units take up less space by fitting into a compact unit at the end of a cupboard run or on any small wall space.

Kitchen heating is essential for every home as it can provide a heightened level of comfort in the cold months. It is important to note that each kitchen is unique and each kitchen heating must be chosen precisely to suit individual needs. If this is not followed, kitchen heating can become space consuming, cost consuming and also devalue your property rates. There is a need to be practical and aesthetic.



Jared

Ivor Bates asked:


If you are looking for ways to save money, especially during the Christmas period to help stretch your budget a bit further, whatever you do, don’t take risks when it comes to your home heating system.

According to insurance giant esure, 30% of their calls this winter have been related to customers’ central heating systems.

And the unfortunate thing is many of the emergencies could have been prevented. Belt tightening can go a bit too far at Christmas, especially when crucial things like boiler servicing or replacement are overlooked. It may be tempting to save a few pounds by putting the annual heating system service off until after the Christmas credit card bills have been paid, but what happens when the boiler breaks down in the midst of the season of goodwill, and engineers are few and far between?

Another common initiative that people undertake in an attempt to save money is to leave their heating off during the day whilst they are at work, or even whilst they go off on holiday over the Christmas period. However, this could prove a seriously false economy because frozen pipes could result, and the problems associated with this are serious – and very expensive to deal with.

Saving money is part and parcel of life during an economic downturn, however, there are better, more sensible courses of action that can be taken. Don’t risk your festive warmth this year! If your boiler is due a service, get it serviced. If you notice that your central heating system is not functioning as well as it should, for example it is noisy or needs bleeding more often than usual, then call an engineer sooner rather than later. Leave your heating on for short periods during the day or ask a neighbour to switch it on for you if you are going on holiday in order to avoid frozen pipes.

A handful of preventative measures may cost you a little more, but they will save you money in the long run!



April

Milafel Hope Awe asked:


The HVAC system uses three closely related functions, namely, heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning. These functions are uniquely set up so that they can regulate temperature and humidity in residential homes, public offices, and other building facilities with respect to the overall design of the structures.

Heating

Most modern structures in colder regions in the world and in countries with temperate climate such as the United Kingdom usually install a heating system. This mechanism is used to regulate temperature in residential homes, public offices, and other dwellings.

The heating system can either be central or local. The most commonly used setup is the central heating system where the heating is concentrated in one area—central—and is then circulated for various heating processes and applications. Heat values of fuels are based on BTU to cubic foot measurement for HVAC.

In the central heating system, there are three common components used. A furnace is an enclosure used for heating and can be found at the basement or at the attic. Different cultures have various interpretations of “furnace.” For the Americans, it is similar to kiln while for the British, it is equivalent to industrial furnaces. Whatever it may be, it still uses the same principle for heat distribution—that is, it transfers heat using an intermediary distribution system. A boiler, meanwhile, is a type of furnace—in fact, a closed vessel—that distributes heat through steam.

Thermodynamic principles are the bases for a heat pump. This device causes the temperature to rise through heat transfer. A heat pump is very effective especially for very cold air since it has the ability to heat it at the shortest period. An efficient heat pump uses lesser energy and thus power.

A radiator is a heating device that circulates steam or hot water through pipes found inside an upright metal structure. This term is also commonly applied to some types of heat exchangers. It is a common perception among people that heat is transferred from a heat exchanger through radiation when, in fact, it is not. It transfers heat by convection, which uses currents.

Please note, though, that the central heating system is completely different from your hot water supply. For instance, the water used in the former is not the same as your tap water.

Ways of Central Heating

There are a number of methods for central heating. In electric heating, an electrical heater is used. It is a device that transforms electrical energy into heat. Every electric heater contains an electric resistor, which acts as its heating element. Right now, there are many variations of electrical heaters that deliver different amounts of heat, but all of them use the same principle: Joule heating. An electric current that converts electricity to heat is allowed to pass through the resistor. In hydronic heating, heat produced is commonly transferred to fins found along pipes in baseboard HVAC registers. You can also use coal, propane or natural gas, pressurized oil, or earth, which is used as a heat pump.

Air-conditioning

Over the years, air-conditioning has changed home lifestyle. A lot of London homes right now take advantage of wall-mounted air-conditioning systems. They are often placed in the living room, bedroom, kitchen—in almost all over the house. Most buildings and offices also have hidden condensing units. Cooled places become refuge to those who are tired with the rising temperature outside.

There are various air-conditioning systems in the market, but they all function just the same. They control temperature, ventilation, and humidity in an enclosed environment. Hilsch air-conditioning uses a vortex tube called Ranque-Hilsch vortex tube for cheap spot cooling when you there is compressed air. However, it is not as efficient as usual air-conditioning equipment.

It is advisable that homes, buildings, and other offices have sealed windows to maintain the quality of air produced by the system. Furthermore, it is better to check the dwelling first to make sure that air conditioners can really be installed since they often use large ducts. But you really don’t have to worry too much if it isn’t. You can still take advantage of remote coils or use the split system. Yet it is always preferable to maintain the cleanliness of the ducts to prevent the growth of pathogens that can definitely cause illness. Sometimes chemical monitoring of HVAC systems is needed to always ensure indoor air quality.



Dennis

Tal Potishman asked:


While “traditional” heating sources like radiators, wall units and other types of forced air are still very popular among residents in the United Kingdom, Underfloor heating is quickly gaining quite a following as well.  Underfloor heating is a type of central heating that uses radiant heat as well as heat conduction mechanisms for the distribution of heat instead of a convection heating system like the forced air units that most are used to dealing with.  With underfloor heating, the heat can be conducted throughout a home or building via cables, film heaters, mesh or even water!

Underfloor heating might seem like a recent invention but the truth is that it was developed by the Romans two thousand years ago.  The Romans’ version of underfloor heating was comprised of a furnace room. Typically the furnace had its own subterranean room.  Someone would light the furnace and let the heat from the furnace fill the room.  The heat would naturally circulate upward and warm up the rest of the rooms of the Roman house.  If the furnace room was not subterranean but on the first floor of a house, a series of pipes connected to the furnace itself and transferred the furnace’s heat throughout the rest of the home via the pipe system. 

“Modern” underfloor heating came about in the 1960s when electric resistance cables were put into concrete and then heated via an electrical current during the night.  This method did not work well because the temperature could not be controlled, but it did serve as the precursor to the methods for distributing underfloor heat that are used today.

The biggest benefit of underfloor heating is the amount of money it saves on a home’s utility bill.  Underfloor heating regulates a room’s temperature.  Forced air systems are not able to do this efficiently as the heated air quickly dissipates leaving the room cold. 

Underfloor heating also saves space, unlike the radiators and wall units which can take up quite a bit of space in a room.  Radiators and wall units are also known for stirring up dust which can be detrimental to people with allergies.

Installing underfloor heating is best left to a professional heating expert because the installation process involves working with your house’s plumbing, foundation and insulation systems.  There are some companies who have put together do-it-yourself underfloor heating installation packages.  These are good for home owners familiar with construction and wiring.  If you are inexperienced in these areas, it is better to hire a professional to install the system for you.  This way you will make sure that the system is installed correctly and you will not have to worry about mistakes threatening the structural integrity of your home.



Herbert

Keith George asked:


Indoor climate control in cold regions is very important. As per ergonomics the floor temperature should range between 19 to 29 degrees C and the air temperature should range between 20 to 24 degrees C for maximum efficiency.

There are two types of indoor climate control namely convection type and radiant type. Convection type heats the air then air is moved around the interiors. Convection type uses systems like radiators, blowers and fireplaces. Radiant heating systems heat the floor using air, liquid or electricity.

A radiant system is a modern and superior system to a convection type system. The convection system heats the air and does not heat the floor whereas the ideal system should heat the floor more than the air. In a convection system the air tends to escape as it becomes lighter and moves towards the ceiling. Further convection systems can be harmful to people suffering from allergies or asthma as air is circulated. A convection system is not aesthetically good to look at, whereas the radiant systems go underneath the floor and are invisible.

Air Type Floor Heating System

In this system the air is heated in a central radiator and passed through pipes underneath the floor. However air heating systems are not popular because they are unable to retain heat over time. Hence they are used only where little heat is required such as mildly cold regions.

Water or Liquid Type Floor Heating System

In this type warm water is circulated in pipes laid under the floor. Usually 5/8-inch tubes are used. The water is heated in a boiler and circulated by means of thermo siphon. Thermo siphon is a natural system to flow water in tubes. A small pump is used to purge air bubbles trapped in the tubes. There are cutoff valves in case you want to heat a particular room and not other rooms. The tubes usually have a life of 100 years and require very little maintenance. The same system can be used to circulate chilled water if the weather becomes hot. This system is the most common and electricity savings of 40 to 15% are common.

Electricity Type Floor Heating

In this type of system electric coils are laid underneath the floor. The main advantage of this system is the floor build up. It can be as low as 3 millimeters. The coils are installed on an insulation board like marmox and then the flooring is tiled over using tile adhesives. This system has faster warm up times compared to other systems. Floor heating systems can be installed on almost any type of floor such as concrete, tile, vinyl, linoleum, ceramic tiles, hardwood etc. Ceramics are most commonly used as they have higher thermal mass and good aesthetics.



Dana