Tasked by ASHRAE, Kansas State University will test various radiant floor structures to develop a procedure for predicting radiant performance. Test results were culled from sensors embedded in floors, walls, and ceilings, which were built specifically for the project, which is nearing completion.

The test data used the following configurations:

Tube suspended in the joist space;

Tube stapled to the subfloor with insulation pushed up tight;

Tube stapled to the subfloor with insulation held 2” below the tube; and

All of the same configurations utilizing aluminum plates.

The data will also serve another purpose besides how to compare heat transfer rates. According to Larry Drake of the Radiant Panel Association (RPA), “It will certainly reduce the many sources of controversy about the operational efficiency of these [radiant] applications.”

Publication date: 10/01/2001