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Electric Radiant Wire

Fontana
Fontana Member Posts: 25
in Radiant Heating
I am building a Car Port and it will have metal roofing..Last couple years the wife has been using heating pads out on the deck [yeah after I got her an electric snow thrower!] and they do work well so I would like to use radiant heat wire on underside of the metal [by ideal] roofing to heat for snow melting..I am finding all kinds of heating wire [or cable] in self regulating and different voltages..Any experience or comments on what to use, installation,etc? Thanks, Seb.

Comments

  • hot_rod
    hot_rod Member Posts: 23,398
    There are all sorts of radiant electric products, mesh, strips, woven mats, cable, low and high voltage options.

    Delta-Therm is a brand that offers snow melt cable options. They claim it is used on metal stairways, hanger door rails and other exposed applications.

    To prevent ice dams, not to melt the entire roof I hope, that would take a lot of energy.

    Do you have enough additional power capacity in your breaker box to run resistance heat?
    Bob "hot rod" Rohr
    trainer for Caleffi NA
    Living the hydronic dream
  • Fontana
    Fontana Member Posts: 25
    ""Do you have enough additional power capacity in your breaker box to run resistance heat?""

    I don't know how much would be needed? Roof is 18' x 24'..And yes whole as possible..I will look into Delta-Therm..Thanks..
  • Leonard
    Leonard Member Posts: 903
    edited September 2019
    Sounds like you are looking at different type of heating . But for comparision dad put Ice melting cable laid on top of roof at eaves ( to melt & drain ice dams ) it is 5 watts per foot of cable. Sounds small but by time you go up and down making the V pattern ...... you use a lot of cable in a short distance.

    Before we put a new roof on think we used ~ 400 watts for a SMALL edge section. I was a kid but maybe 9ft x 3 ft section???. I'm in southern NH. The package lists the rough spacing for the V pattern.

    I don't think you'll like the electric bill for a whole roof.
  • Fontana
    Fontana Member Posts: 25
    My wife has those rubber heat mats all over the place so she [we] don't have to shovel snow off setps and a few other areas, like portion of her deck..Only have to be on when its snowing and they do a good job of keeping up..Haven't noticed a real big current draw; at least not near when the pool pump [now gone] and the Hot Tub [now gone] and the AC [still here] ran at the same time!!..

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