Installing a heated stretch ceiling, 100% radiant

What one hundred per cent radiant means

Every warm body exchanges heat by radiation and by convection. What sets emitters apart is the share of each. An electric skirting heater works mainly through air movement, a heated stretch ceiling works almost entirely by radiation.

Why a large warm surface changes the split

Convection arises from a strong temperature difference between an emitter and the air touching it. A wide, moderately warm surface creates a small difference, therefore little air movement, and passes on most of its energy by radiation.

And the position at ceiling level

Air warmed against a ceiling is already at the top of the room and has nowhere to rise. The convective mechanism is therefore thwarted by geometry, which reinforces the radiant share further still.

What the occupant perceives

Heat arriving directly on the skin and on objects, with no draught and no stratification. The air temperature can stay one or two degrees lower for identical comfort.

The practical consequences

No dust moved about, no black marks on the walls, no drying out from circulation. Those three points are not sales arguments, they are direct consequences of the absence of forced convection.

What that assumes above

An emitter radiates in every direction, upwards included. Without reflective insulation behind it, part of the energy heats the original substrate, which is why the plenum is closed before anything is switched on.

The economic principle is developed on the passive heating page, and the installer on the Ouest Plafond page.