Radiant panel choices

EA

I'm a homeowner getting ready to hire out installation of a hydronic radiant floor heating system.  We will be ripping out the existing wood finished floor, laying radiant subfloor panels with pex runs atop existing subfloor, and then finishing again with new wood finish flooring.



It looks like there are a number of choices on radiant subfloor panels.  Warmboard appears to be out of the running due to thickness...will cause door problems in our retrofit.



But what about quik-trak versus ecowarm versus Rau-Panel versus others... Some are thicker than others, have varying track spacings, and varying Pex diameters.

I note that Ecowarm and Rau-Panel put the aluminum on top.  This seems intuitively sensible to me.  How can Quik-Trak be as efficient with it's aluminum on the bottom?  Ecowarm seems to be positioning itself as the warmboard for retrofits, since it has similar spacing and pex diameter as Warmboard; just a thinner panel.



If I'm going to drop a lot of money to do radiant, it seems I should not nickel and dime on the panel choice.  I'd want to recoup my investment over the long haul in heating efficiency, so it seems like I should pick the panel that keeps the house warm using the lowest water temperatures.  Which one is that?  Are most installers equally comfortable installing any of these panels or am I likely to find that people swear by only one product and will only install it?  Thanks in advance for your help. 

NRT_Rob

well

most people are familiar with one or two product choices but not a wide variety.



Ecowarm is basically just thermalboard with slightly thicker aluminum, wider tubing on center... still no real aluminum in the tubing groove. I'm not convinced it's any better than thermalboard/quik trak.



Raupanel is much better than either quik trak or ecowarm but it's a lot more expensive too, last time I checked.



If you are looking for payback though, you're probably barking up the wrong tree here. the real question is, will it heat your spaces adequately, will it reduce complexity in your overall system, will it allow you the heat source options you want now and down the road?



better panels can help with those questions.

hot_rod

Roth

is the "above floor" product that I like. The foam does provide some r-value, it is a nice feel to walk ove. the aluminum on top, and choice of tube spacing is nice. Very easy to install, and less $$ to ship than wood.

scott markle_2

roth

One thing about the roth board, is that hardwood flooring cleats won't penetrate through it and into the sub floor adequately, so you really need to rip the pannels into 12'' strips and put down nailers. Would be great for floating floors.



It sure looks cool, all that aluminum, but it's also a bit fragile, and it's painful to watch electricians and other subs bang it up.