The principle of operation of the infrared heater

The climate in our country is quite severe and this leads to high costs for maintaining comfortable living conditions. Therefore, the issue of obtaining relatively cheap thermal energy, which will be used to heat residential and industrial premises, is considered to be of particular relevance to us. There is probably no heating method that is not used in our country, and one of them is the use of infrared heating. Since the appearance on the market of HVAC equipment, infrared heating devices have gradually gained steady popularity. They are also purchased for heating residential premises, as well as industrial workshops, warehouses, retail and office centers.

It is quite natural that the design and principles of operation of such equipment are of interest to potential consumers. Let's try to figure this out.

How does an infrared heater work

Sometimes devices of this type are called the home sun. In fact, everyone walked on the street on a frosty and sunny day, and for sure, everyone felt the rays penetrate the body and flow through it with pleasant warmth. And immediately it becomes not so cold, although snow is everywhere.

The sun gives warmth to everyone, without exception. Because of its rays, snow melts, trees warm up, but only the air is not heated and therefore it will be cold outside even on a bright sunny day. This is exactly the principle of operation of an infrared heater. The device generates rays invisible to the eye, warming up both the person and the objects around him. The surrounding air, in turn, receives thermal energy from heated things.

Instrument design

There are many other equipment on the market designed to heat rooms, from traditional heat guns to oil radiators and similar equipment. All of the above devices generate heat according to the following scheme:

1. Heating the coolant inside the devices. In the role of a coolant can act - water, hot air, oil and many others.
2. The heated coolant transfers thermal energy to the air and only after that the heat reaches the person.

This approach does not differ in efficiency, but differs in high cost. Even in the school physics course, it was proved that heated air is lighter than chilled. As it warms up, it moves upward and accumulates under the ceiling. Due to the action of the infrared heater, temperature differences between the upper and lower levels of the room are reduced. This result is ensured due to the fact that all objects in the room are heated by infrared radiation.

This approach not only creates a favorable microclimate in the room, but also significantly reduces the cost of heat generation, since there is no direct heating of the air in the room. One more. When using infrared heaters, there is no such thing as air overheating. Due to the use of traditional means of heating the rooms, the elevated air temperature cannot be established, this negatively affects the human body.

REFERENCE. The principles laid down in the operation of the IR heater, it is permissible to maintain the temperature at a level below normal. And the room will be quite comfortable even with relative coolness in the room.

Another advantage of this type of heaters is instantaneous operation. That is, the generation of infrared radiation begins immediately after switching on. Equipment of this class can be used for heating large rooms without spending any time or additional energy for heating the entire room.

Traditional air heaters are not able to provide optimal heat balance in the room. Infrared models do not heat the air in the room, which means that the temperature difference between the lower and upper levels will be kept to a minimum. This allows you to leave doors between rooms wide open and heat loss will be restored soon.

Many buildings, regardless of their purpose, are equipped with ventilation systems that collect air from the floor to the ceiling. In this case, the best solution would be to install infrared heaters on the ceiling. During their operation, the problem of heat loss by the floor and other surfaces disappears. Based on this principle, heating systems are built that allow heating large-volume rooms and at the same time they do not have a very high cost.

The ceiling heater is not only efficient, but also economical. As practice shows, lowering the temperature in the room by one degree can save up to 5% energy.

The equipment works instantly, and there is no need to wait for it to heat at the required temperature. IR heating devices are equipped with thermostats, controllers and other equipment, which allows to increase the efficiency of operation of heaters of this type. All installed valves are easy to control and this allows to provide favorable microclimatic conditions rather quickly. The key principle of operation of a heater of this class is that with its help, the entire room is heated as a whole and evenly. In this case, excessively heated or cooling parts will not remain. That is, the principle is the same as that of sunlight, that is, heat will flood the entire area of ​​the room uniformly. It remains only to calculate the necessary power and select the necessary equipment.

The calculation of power implies the following characteristics:

• volume of room, warehouse, workshop;
• height from floor to ceiling;
• type of room in which the equipment will be installed;
• total size of power consumption.

Infrared equipment can be used in any type of premises:

• urban housing;
• private houses;
• Offices
• production shops;
• outlets and many others.

Developed devices that are installed in conservatories and greenhouses. With a ceiling height of 2.4 meters, installations of increased power acquire.

The main advantage of heating systems of this class is ease of installation. They are mounted on the ceiling, for this you can use the fittings of lighting systems. But, other installation methods are often used, for example, heaters can be fixed on horizontally mounted cables, sometimes a pendulum-type suspension is used.

Infrared heat sources have an unusual property. They are able to form a favorable microclimate in a room at a temperature level lower than a traditional one, that is, a traditional heater guarantees 22 degrees Celsius, while an infrared one provides 20 degrees. The reason for this is that people receive thermal energy directly, bypassing the stage of air preparation.

The user gets the opportunity to configure local heating in a separate area. This option is good for heating large rooms, that is, it is possible to obtain optimal temperature conditions at low costs for electric energy.

Heaters of this class are able to work effectively together with the ventilation system. A great effect is shown by such systems, if air supply is arranged through the floor. Loss of thermal energy will be compensated through the vertical and horizontal surfaces available in the room. Such a solution allows to ensure optimal heating of the room with relatively small investments.

REFERENCE. In some heaters of this class, the heating element is enclosed in a glass flask into which inert gas is pumped. This slightly reduces the efficiency, but at the same time, gas mixtures can be combined so that the radiation transfer becomes even faster.

Advantages and disadvantages

This class of thermal equipment is distinguished by the following advantages:

1. Easy installation and connection.
2. The rapid creation of a favorable microclimate both indoors as a whole and when using heaters for local heating.
3. The user gets the opportunity to create local heating zones.
4. No need for periodic or continuous maintenance.
5. Loss of humidity in the room is minimized.

Meanwhile, the devices have certain disadvantages:

1. High cost in comparison with similar equipment of other classes.
2. The practical lack of mobility, as a rule, they are installed permanently.
3. A large time warming up rooms with a large area.
4. Inability to use in rooms and rooms with ceiling heights of less than 2.5 m.
5. Restriction on use in the immediate vicinity of furniture, interior items, household appliances.
6. The possibility of deteriorating the health of people who are constantly in the area of ​​infrared radiation.
7. High probability of getting thermal burns, eye damage, etc.

As a rule, consumers, having become acquainted with heaters of this class and knowing their advantages and disadvantages, as a rule, stop paying attention to heaters of a different type. But at the same time, the use of devices of this class must be approached with particular care.PWhen buying such units, you need to make sure that they have all the necessary certificates.