Radiant floor heating has been around since the ancient Chinese and Roman civilizations. While the system they used using hot air from fires was certainly better than single fireplaces, or even no heat all, it was incredibly inefficient due to the fact that air does not hold heat for very long. The Romans did manage to invent the first hydronic radiant floor heating system but the technology died out when the empire collapsed.
Today radiant floor heating systems are in use all over the world. And though the majority of these systems work on the same principle of providing centralized heat by using the floor as a thermal heat storage device, how you heat your floors is rife with options. You can do so with electricity, gas or oil fired burners, the natural heating of the earth, or the new kid on the block, solar energy. Of all of the methods, solar radiant floor heating is among the fastest-growing.
For the most part, solar radiant floor heating systems utilize the principle of pumping heated water or antifreeze through a closed system, as opposed to some electrical systems that use coils passing under the floorboards to provide the heat. An electric heating method isn't as efficient in a solar application, because it is much easier to utilize the sun's rays to heat water than to generate electricity. For the most part, the only major decision when using a solar heating system is whether to pump the water directly into the tubing or first go through a storage tank.
The direct pumping method is probably the most utilized because it is the least expensive and the easiest to build. In this type of application water is held in a tank and heated through the use of solar voltaic panels. The system's pump forces the water into the plastic tubing, through the system, and back out the other end. Although extremely simple in terms of mechanics, the biggest drawback to this model is underestimating or overestimating the area-to-storage ratio. If you underestimate this ratio a room can get too warm, if you overestimate it the room could be too cold. And if you don't get it right, fixing it can be costly and inconvenient.
With the indirect pumping method water goes from the collection tank into a storage tank before being pumped into the plastic tubing. When pumping begins the water goes through a heat exchanger which accomplishes the task of making water temperature consistent throughout the system. This type of method is a little more complicated, and a bit more expensive to build, but it results in a much more consistent and dependable system overall. And with an indirect system there's a lot more room for error without affecting the overall end product.
The benefits of utilizing this type of heating system are numerous. Beginning with benefits that are common to all radiant floor heating options, a solar-based system is going to be more efficient, cost effective, and comfortable than other systems. With radiant floor heating your temperature remains consistent rather than going through the heating and cooling cycles of forced air. It also resolves many of the humidity issues that plague homes in the cold weather environments. With high quality finishing materials, you can even end up with a floor that maintains and dissipates heat for incredibly long periods of time.
What sets the solar-based system apart from other radiant floor heating solutions is the fact that you're not using an outside source to heat the water. For those who are concerned about the environment, or just don't want to spend the money on gas, oil, or electricity, using solar voltaic panels to heat the water is the best way to go. The panels themselves aren't cheap, but once properly installed you could potentially have a heating system that doesn't cost you another dime.
If you don't trust a solar-based system because of a lack of sunshine in your area, there still might be room for this as a backup system. Many new customers of radiant floor heating systems are in fact installing solar panels in backup storage tanks to be used in case electricity goes out. With a simple opening of a valve and a solar powered pump, you could potentially still have heat for an endless amount of time regardless of how long you're without utility service.