History of Radiant Heat

Radiant Heat's history
Radiant heat technology has existed since Roman times. Romans invented the Hypocaust system, which is a form of central heating. Hypocaust means "heat from below", and it comes from the Greek words hypo and kaiein. Hypo means below or underneath and Kaiein means to burn or light a fire. Sergius Orata is thought to be the inventor of the Hypocaust system which was originally designed for bathhouses and private houses.

Radiant heat's introduction in the U.S. and Europe
The history of modern heating techniques began in the 1950's and 60's. Unfortunately, the first American installations were plagued with problems. Early installations used copper, which would react with the cement in the floors and corrode. Then the copper expanded and contracted in the cement. The cement cracked and copper broke within the cracks.

The switch to PEX piping
In the 80's American designers began to copy European radiant heat methods and began using PEX piping instead of copper piping. PEX stands for Cross Linked Polythylene. Cross-linked polyethylene (PEX) is a high-temperature, flexible plastic (polymer) pipe. The cross-linking raises the thermal stability of the material under load. Thus, the resistance to environmental stress cracking, creep, and slow crack growth were greatly improved over copper or standard polyethylene.

The advantages of PEX systems
Even builders and plumbers accustomed to working with traditional piping materials are finding it easy to transition to PEX piping. Some additional training may be needed for installers to learn the layout, pipe support spacing, and connection methods with the new system.

Specialized tools widely available to cut the tubing, install connections, and check the tightness of crimped connections. Designers can layout PEX in a traditional tree and branch arrangement. Most are extremely satisfied with the results, as it doesn't corrode or develop pinhole leaks, is chlorine resistant, scale resistant and has fewer fittings, connections and elbows. PEX doesn't react or deteriorate like copper. These new systems can last over 200 years.

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