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 Central
heaters are suitable for heating very large areas or a whole house.
'Zoned' systems enable different zones within the house, such as living
and sleeping areas, to be heated to different temperatures. Some systems
have timer mechanisms and some models can be combined with ducted
air-conditioners.
Electric
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Ducted
reverse cycle air-conditioners can be used as central
heaters. These systems distribute warm air to each room via
ducts in the ceiling space. The ducts should be well insulated
to minimise heat loss. |
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Electric
floor heaters have heating wires set into the floor
slab during construction or, if retrofitted, laid on top. Some
types can also be fitted between the underlay and carpet. The
heat is distributed by both radiation and convection methods
and provides a very high degree of comfort. Heat banks work
in a similar way to electric floor heaters except they use a
large block of concrete or bricks to store the heat. When heat
is needed from heat banks, air is blown through the block and
ducted through the house.
Both floor and heat bank types can take a long time to heat
up - as much as 6 to 8 hours - allowing you to take advantage
of off-peak electricity tariffs during the night. In the morning,
the heat is slowly released to keep the house warm. However,
if run at other times of the day when the tariff is higher,
these types of heaters can be expensive. If insulation is not
installed under the slab, they can also lose a lot of heat into
the ground below. |
Gas
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Central
gas heaters pipe warm air through ceiling ducts to rooms
in your home like reverse cycle air conditioners. Zoned systems
allow heating of only the rooms in use and can help reduce energy
consumption. |
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