In preparing the estimate, I spoke to George Rusher, a long-time heating contractor and expert in radiant heating. Rusher said the price would include either copper piping or some type of plastic hose distribution system and an exterior boiler with an outside heat anticipator. The radiant system is more than double that cost. Radiant heat is more energy-efficient. Radiant heat is quieter.
Radiant heat is cleaner.
Air temperature in the room is uniform, with little variance between ceiling and floor temperatures, so for the sickly, radiant heat is healthier. Radiant heat is more comfortable because of this uniformity. A warm surface emits heat to the space by infrared radiation. Infrared radiation is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength beyond visible light. In 1800, William Herschel found that sunlight passed through a prism showed the greatest heating effect beyond the visible part of the spectrum, above the red color.