Using infrared heating in the workplace
Much of the heat from the sun arrives on our planet in the form of far infrared radiation. Not to be confused with harmful UV, infrared is the reason we feel heat from the sun even though it is 150 million kilometres from earth.
By installing infrared radiant heating in your office, you could drastically reduce your energy bills and CO2 emissions.
The difference between regular convection heating and infrared
Most buildings in the UK are heated via radiators – this is funny because, despite their name, they don’t actually radiate heat at all. Hot water travels through a radiator, which in turn warms up and heats the air above it. This warm air then rises, only to be replaced by colder air below it. As this cycle repeats, convection currents are created which move around the room to make it nice and warm.
Infrared heating is very different. It does not rely on air as a medium to carry the heat: instead, the infrared waves are produced directly by the panel. This infrared travels unimpeded until it hits a solid object which then absorbs it and warms up.
Since the energy is only turned into heat when it comes into contact with solid objects, draughty rooms pose no issue to the warmth felt. You may have come across infrared heating panels under umbrellas in the outside areas of restaurants. The heating panels that we recommend for heating commercial spaces work on the same basis, although they don’t glow red and look much sleeker.
Why opt for infrared heating over conventional heating?
More and more businesses are adopting infrared heating solutions over more traditional heating systems. Why is this?
Infrared heating panels are energy efficient since they take very little time to warm up and also are less impacted by draughts. If a cold draught enters a room with convection heating, the hot air will very quickly be stripped out and the occupants will once again feel cold. This is not an issue with infrared.
If you have sat outside at a bar you may have seen an infrared heater in action: it glows red, and while it is glowing you can really feel the warmth. These are the old infrared heaters though – nowadays you can feel the same warmth from a unit that doesn’t need to get so warm it glows. This means that they are far safer in a work environment than these older heaters.
Infrared heaters also make for a more elegant heating solution. They can be glass, mirrored, or printed with a favourite photo for a canvas effect. You can get panels that are very thin (2cm or less) and can be hung anywhere. All they need is access to power, so no additional piping or lost floor space.
In a workplace, you may not use all of the rooms at once. With infrared heating, you only need to heat the rooms in use. This is because they can be controlled with a smart control system. With Jigsaw infrared their control system has been proven to save 30% on energy bills when using Jigsaw heating panels.
Which Infrared Heating is best for the workplace?
If you need higher-powered infrared heating units over the panels. Jigsaw’s higher-powered infrared heaters range from 1500w to 3200w, so they can provide you with the extra heat needed. They are perfect for bigger spaces like warehouses. These infrared heaters look very similar to the heaters you might see outside in restaurants, but they don’t glow red hot – and are safer because of this.
In warehouses, the infrared heating panels are ideal since they help reduce dampness because the infrared raises the temperature of any surface it hits. This can be very useful if the business is offering perishable goods.
Some panels also offer dual functionality; for example, they act as mirrors, and we have even come across restaurants using them as menu boards. The great thing about infrared heating is that they can be personalised to anything you want. For the best results and a cleaner finish on any RAL colour or a bespoke design, we recommend Jigsaw infrared’s glass heaters because the quality and vibrance of the colours stand out from any other infrared heaters. This is because the heaters aren’t mass-produced as they are made in Britain ensuring premium quality as it goes through a thorough process before being delivered,
In Offices, Schools, hospitals, or any property that has suspended ceilings. Aluminium infrared heaters are designed to slot perfectly into the suspended ceiling. The perfect sizes that Jigsaw infrared would recommend are 400w and 800w which makes the heating look invisible! This is really useful for any business as the walls are free and can be used for desk or storage space. For a case study on an installation in a school click here.
One of the major benefits of infrared heating is that the panels are near enough maintenance-free, basically because they have no moving parts, and often manufacturers will offer 5-year guarantees to provide a piece of mind. However, Jigsaw infrared offers a 10-year warranty as they are confident in the quality and efficiency of the panels.
How much do infrared panels cost?
This is entirely dependent on the size of the panel, for example, a 300w panel may cost as little as £350, while a bigger 1200w panel may cost in the region of £755. However, having a lower wattage heater won’t heat as much room space as a higher wattage heater may. Therefore, you would need twice as many infrared heaters in a room to even reach your required temperature and it would be more efficient to have higher wattages in the long run.
For example, the total energy usage for an 800w Jigsaw infrared panel to heat a space for 8 hours would require around: 1kWh. When the average electricity price from the grid is 30p/kWh. The total cost of running IR heating for this zone: 1kWhx (p/kWh) = 30 pence. Figures are based on a room 8m2 with good levels of insulation holding a temperature of 19º.
This means that the energy savings that will arise from infrared heating panels are substantial, using just 1/3 of the electricity to produce the same level of heating as other methods as it converts 100% of its energy into heat. If your business is considering its heating options, make sure to look at infrared heating. we recommend choosing the right infrared heating company that will maintain the heat best for your property.
Installing infrared heating
Are you thinking about installing infrared heating in your home? We have scoured the country for the best tradespeople so that we can make sure we only recommend those we really trust.
If you would like us to find you a local installer to help install infrared heating in your home, just fill in the form below and we will be in touch shortly!
For a free quote for Jigsaw infrared heating panels book a call today by clicking here!
Hi – I run a warehouse textile studio as a non-profit Community Interest Company and we are looking for an economical heating solution for the few coldest winter months.
Our studio is 2000sq ft but all of our members workspaces are within an area of about 500sq ft (the rest if equipment etc)…what would you recommend and what kinds of prices would we be looking at? Do you ever offer a discount/in-kind sponsorship for non-profit companies? (Pls take a look at our website 🙂
Best wishes,
Emma
Not sure when you wrote this, but did you find a solution? We’re in very similar position and would be grateful to hear what you did and if it works.
Would infrared heating systems be suitable for a church building ? Please note email address all lower case
I am part of small group investigating how our church can achieve net carbon zero by 2030. We currently heat the church and the church hall by separate gas powered wet central heating systems producing about 32 tonnes/pa carbon.Is panel radiant heating an option to consider please?
Hello- I am looking at getting infrared heating in my home in Surrey- can you recommend installers? I have one quote already that costs 1.5 times the cost of the heaters themselves.