Research shows 50% more output for skirting heating than radiators
Discrete Heat’s Thermaskirt heated skirting board for wet heating systems has 50% greater heat output per unit area than conventional radiators, according to research by the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. The extensive experiment evaluated the capacity of radiant baseboards to work with heat pumps in buildings.
The heat output of the Thermaskirt system tested was 12.3 W/m2 K compared to 8.4 W/m2 K for conventional panel radiators.
The research also shows the compatibility of heated skirting boards and heat pumps to be more effective than using traditional radiators in a heat-pump system.
The low fitted position of heated skirting boards leads to a high level of convective heat flux from the skirting board to the room air. Also, because this form of heating is at the base of the walls, it is exposed to cooler room air along its entire length, increasing its ability to transfer heat to the room.
Other findings were that heat output increases by 2.1% per cm of height and that doubling the water flow increases heat output by only 4.5%. The paper concludes that heated skirting board should be used at the maximum possible height and with the current guideline value of 100 Pa/m for waterside pressure loss.
