A majority of people consider hydronic heat to be one of the most comfortable ways to heat your home. Central Forced-Air heating systems are most common - but hydronic heat is gaining ground in the U.S.

Forced Air systems (or scorched air as some call it) heat the air in your home which heats you - the occupant - by way of convection, or air movement. The heated air rises, which often results in the room being comfortable at the thermostat level - but cold at the floor.

Radiant heat works by warming the objects in the space, including you. Distributing the heat at the floor level increases your comfort and eliminates the dreaded "cold feet" syndrome.

You can install radiant floor heat in almost any floor area. From concrete, to tile, to linoleum, hardwoods and carpet - you can experience the comfort of hydronic heat all over your home. In many cases, it is possible to retrofit hydronic heat into existing homes as a way to increase comfort while reducing costly energy bills.

There are several reasons you would want hydronic heat. For most, the primary reason is comfort. Radiant floor heat works by heating objects - where forced air systems just heat the air. By heating in this manner, the heat stays lower in the room - by the floor. You feet stay warmer, while the room is slightly cooler at head level. This creates a comfortable climate that very closely matches the way our bodies need heat.

Another reason people choose radiant floor heating is efficiency. With fuel prices rising, efficiency is becoming more and more important. Obviously, there can be exceptions - but in almost all cases - radiant heat costs less without sacrificing comfort.

You can utilize radiant heat in many applications. In my home, we installed radiant floor heat in a crawl space area, in a slab and outside in the driveway and walkway for snow melt. For floor coverings, we used some carpeting with a pad, linoleum and tile.

I've helped many clients who used hydronic heat with hardwoods as the floor covering. In a properly designed hydronic heating system, just about any floor covering choice can be made to work.