infrared heating panels efficiency

[matz]

there are infrared heating panels being produced nowadays that promise to stop damp and mould inside the house caused by condensation due to drying clothes on rads etc.

I don't need one but am party to a discussion about their effectiveness.

My experience of infrared heating is the minute you move away from it, its cold! ie it only heats the object its pointing to. So if you had a room with damp walls you would need a heater pointing at each wall.

Has infrared heating progressed hugely in the last 20 yrs?

Any views?

 

[just pumps]

My experience is the same as yours.

 

[SFK]

A 1kW electric oil radiator heater, a 1kw fan heater and a 1kw IR heater (if 100% on) will all heat if the same efficiency. But they will all have different Effectiveness at heating the people in a space.

From my experience in a large warehouse 'one' IR heater is more effective (when pointed just at me) at keeping 'me' warm than having 'many' fan heaters trying to heat the whole space. But if there are a lot of people in the warehouse then 'one' IR heater is not effective and 'many' fan heaters (ie our single massive gas space heater) becomes more effective.

So infrared heating has not progressed (in improving efficiency above 100%), it has simply come more usable for specific applications.

However, IR might (happy to be argued wrong) reduce damp on walls because:
- the air temp of room will remain low (as it does not heat the air only the solid objects it hits) and
- so air temp will stay low, and
- so water carrying ability of air is reduced, and
- so less difference between air temp and wall temp,
all of which reduce ability for damp to form from air onto wall.
But this i snot a good method as it does mean air and wall temp is relatively cold (just as it is in my warehouse). [And so better reduce damp by ventilating room better or reducing source of damp in air.]

SFK

 

[Doggit]

The IR will in fact just heat the clothes, and not the air that holds moisture, but at the end of it, the moisture then has to escape the room, so it comes back to a ventilation issue, not the best method of heating things.

 

[John D v2.0]

I think no matter what heating you have, doggit is right, you need ventilation (or a dehumidifier) and insulation.
Heat gets the water out of the clothes, ventilation takes it outside

 

[matz]

A 1kW electric oil radiator heater, a 1kw fan heater and a 1kw IR heater (if 100% on) will all heat if the same efficiency. But they will all have different Effectiveness at heating the people in a space.

From my experience in a large warehouse 'one' IR heater is more effective (when pointed just at me) at keeping 'me' warm than having 'many' fan heaters trying to heat the whole space. But if there are a lot of people in the warehouse then 'one' IR heater is not effective and 'many' fan heaters (ie our single massive gas space heater) becomes more effective.

So infrared heating has not progressed (in improving efficiency above 100%), it has simply come more usable for specific applications.

However, IR might (happy to be argued wrong) reduce damp on walls because:
- the air temp of room will remain low (as it does not heat the air only the solid objects it hits) and
- so air temp will stay low, and
- so water carrying ability of air is reduced, and
- so less difference between air temp and wall temp,
all of which reduce ability for damp to form from air onto wall.
But this does mean air and wall temp is relatively cold (just as it is in my warehouse.)

SFK

on the basis that IR heats objects eg walls, wouldnt they only be effective for controlling damp/ mould caused by condensation on walls if theres was one heater pointing at each wall. I mean to say if you have one heater somewhere it cannot heat all four walls at once. ....maybe I'm missing something

my previous experience of these things seems to mirror yours. 30odd yrs ago we had a big industrial unit and had these long radiant tubes hanging down from the roof. I hated the "heat" these things produce as they dont actually heat the area as you say. Being in a cold house whereby when you move the heat disappears must be pretty unsettling really..

 

[SFK]

Matz,
I think my sake of argument comment may have given the wrong impression.
To be clear, I do not believe that IR heating will remove/reduce condensation unless in very special conditions that you would not get in a normal house (eg the method I suggested and the method you described).
And although I do use IR heaters in industrial applications, I would not use them in my house.

The solution to damp is as others have said - keeping walls near to air temp (warm) with no cold spots, and keeping damp out of air (lids on cooking pans, no wet clothing on radiators,good ventilation).
SFK

 

[matz]

its a bit of sticking plaster isnt it and not a good one at that it seems to me. I mention this subject as theres a campaign going on about condition of rental properties and damp and mould appear to be the main issues.