Radiant ceiling heat?

Or a laser thermometer.

Probably half of my condo inspections have radiant ceiling heating.

Sorry Russel, the laser has nothing to do with measuring the temperature. it is only the targeting device of a laser equipped infrared thermometer.

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That is what I use. I take an initial reading, then crank up the heat and come back an check in an hour, or so. They are so slow to respond, but the thermometer can identify wether they are working or not, …better than touching the ceiling to see if it is warm …:smiley:

Radiant heating is one of the first things I look for as I’m doing the layout of the house. If I find one, I get out my trusty laser thermometer (which I’ve had since day one), check the temperature of the ceiling with several sweeps, turn it on, and then check it again as one of the final items I do before leaving (turning off lights and locking doors and windows are the other items).

Those that are still working seem to work fine. However, a great supermajority of people disconnected theirs during the pseudo-power crisis manufactured by Enron and others in 2000-2001.

Long before I had my first infrared measuring device .
We used a spray bottle with water.
Heat dried shortly, stayed wet broken wire .
Did one the other day 40 years +or- and they all worked great.
They can be slow to heat the home if you have been away for some time .

Roy Cooke

I’m an owner of a 12-unit apartment building that uses radiant ceiling heat as it’s only source of heat for the winter, so I decided to hop online to find some information about it because I’m having a problem with one of the units on the top floor. I like the system and would like to keep it, and you guys obviously know alot more about then I do.

I have changed all the thermostats ( with the help of the utility company and their contractor electrician ) and all has been fine except for this one top unit that appears to be drawing excess electricity in both the living room and the bedroom, or at least more so than is indicated on the thermostat. ( zero to five waves appear on the display to indicate amount of wattage being drawn? ) My question is: When I have visited the apartment the thermostats are set at 70 degrees, yet the ambient temperature is 76 and no waves appear on the thermostat. So could the thermostats for just that one apartment be bad, or is there a short in one of the panels? Or am I completely off base and it’s possible something else?

Don’t know if you have a better quality thermostat or not but I have seen a cheap thermostat controlling electric heat baseboards that was off its original calibration by 8-9 degrees F.

Is it possible that the thermostat is being influenced by some cooling source such as drafts, etc?

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Spam!

My ceiling fell in and not only do I need to replace it, but also my ceiling heat. My radiant heat was stapled to the 4’ wide wall board and then the plaster was layed over top. House was built in 1968. I am looking for a roll of the actual element wire. It looks like regular insulated wire but it only has one strand, about 22 gauge. Can you help me?

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IR_9565.jpg

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Radiant systems produce an entirely agreeable type of warmth, like being warmed by the sun on a cool day. For whatever length of time that the brilliant warmth source can “see” an article in the dissertation proposal example room… inhabitants, the furnishings, the floor and dividers, it will exchange warmth to it. Brilliant warming frameworks, regardless of whether they are in the roof, a board on the divider or in the floor, will warm the items in the room.



Hi
We purchased this house without any knowledge of the radiant heating system. The house inspection report just said it had it, no explanation. One of the reasons I chose to become a house inspector.
My experience.
When I brought my infrared parameter from work it showed my one bathroom was cooking, a thermostat had malfunctioned.
I went into the attic and found the radiant foil had melted the vapor barrier in a few areas. I later found there was a disconnection order for certain types of radiant heating system in our province ( Canada ) due to fire risk . There had been rodents burrowing in the insulation so I was concerned they could have expose these pads. Eventually I had them disconnected and removed the thermostats. Got rid of rodent problem. Installed heat pumps, so now have heat and air conditioning. I spoke to 3 different electricians and they suggested to disconnect the system, this was before I found the disconnection order.

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Welcome Philip! Interesting and thanks for sharing. I have yet to come across radiant heating in a ceiling, but it’s good knowledge to be aware of.

Heating up attic air in Canada, makes A LOT of sense! :sunglasses:

I had it in the first house I ever bought (1967 build). It worked fine but damn was it expensive. I learned that I really like pellet stoves. In Oregon I’ll usually run across it 1-2X a year. Some rooms have often been replaced with a Cadet or baseboard (presumably due to the ceiling heat failing).

Here’s my boilerplate comment when I find it:

The heat throughout most rooms of the house is an electric ceiling radiant type. This is likely original to the house making these heaters past their typical service life. Once these fail it is typically not cost effective to repair them. Changing to some other electric heat source (in-wall, baseboard, etc.) is usually advised.

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Welcome to our forum, Philip!..enjoy participating. :smiley:

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My home was built in 1970 and we really enjoy our radiant ceiling heat. The system installed is a wire that runs in the gyprock sheets. As I was renewing my insurance contract, they asked me the model or brand of my system… does anyone knows where I could find this info ? Is it written on the wire directly ?

The thermostats for those systems seem to be pretty unique and have some name on them that I can’t remember. Something like “radi-heat”. Not sure if that’s the brand of the system or just the thermostat. Other than a marking on a thermostat I can’t imagine how anyone could expect you to come with the brand name of a system where the components are 100% concealed.

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