All About Electric Panels

Heating goes high tech

Electric panel technology provides a means of producing heat for household uses in an inexpensive and ecologically sound manner. Tankless water heaters, radiant floor heating, and wall-mounted electric panel heaters, all examples of this technology, take over many of the functions for which we depend upon outdated appliances.

Tankless water heaters

Tankless units, common in Japan and Europe, first appeared in the United States in the 1970s. Unlike conventional water heaters, tankless models heat water only as it is used. The unit consists of an electrically powered heating element and dispersal apparatus that activates when a hot water valve is opened. Once activated, the heater delivers a constant supply of hot water, warming the liquid at roughly the same speed it exits the tap.

Tankless heaters conserve energy by heating just the amount of water that is needed. Further, since this type of model doesn’t need to keep a quantity of water heated at all times, energy consumption goes down. Water heaters that use tanks also lose heat through conduction to the walls of the tank and pipes, resulting in even greater inefficiency as compared to tankless heaters.

Tankless water heaters can function at optimum efficiency when combined with a pump system. This eliminates any need to let the tap run before the water coming out reaches its peak temperature.

Electric panel heater

Composed of non-combustible, synthetic materials and a nickel-plated heating element, electric panel heaters offer a great deal of heat in relation to their compact size and modest energy consumption. Unlike a central heating system or portable space heaters, which use forced convection powered by a motor or fan assembly, electric panel units create natural circulation of warm air within a room.

The unit attaches flush to a wall with a small gap between the surface of the wall and the heater. Cold air is then inducted into the gap between the heater and the wall and warmed by the unit. The heated air rises out of the gap, drawing in a new volume of cold air to be heated. Since they don’t require a fan to operate and capitalizes on the natural patterns of airflow, these heaters work quickly and efficiently to provide even heat.

Radiant Floor Heating

Three varieties of radiant floor heat exist: radiant air floors (using air as the heat carrying medium); electric radiant floors; and hot water (hydronic) radiant floors. Radiant floors can also be classified according to how the heating element relates to the layers of the floor.

Popular in Europe for some time, hydronic (liquid) systems are the most popular and cost-effective systems. Hydronic radiant floor systems pump heated water from a boiler through tubing laid in a pattern underneath the floor. The flow of hot water through each loop in the tube regulates temperature in the room. Zoning valves and pumps in each room exercise exacting control over the amount of heated water flowing through the floor to create an ideal climate in every room.

More information on electric panels