How much does it cost to run electric radiant floor heat?
Use our calculator to learn that electric radiant floor heat runs for cents per hour!
Two of the most popular questions a homeowner asks us about our radiant floor heat system is:
"How much does a floor heat system cost?"
How much does it cost to run an electric radiant floor heat system?
While the answer to the first question varies with the size of the space, the second question is more of a calculating answer. You can figure it out on a calculator or use the Gold Heat electricity cost calculator to figure out how much electric floor heat costs to run per hour.
Electricity Cost Calculator: How does the math work?
Step 1
What is the square footage of the area you want to heat?
- Example: 100 sq ft x 0.9 = 90 sq ft
Step 2
A custom Gold Heat Mat uses about 15W per square foot. Take your square footage and multiply it by 15.
- Example: 90 sq ft x 15 watts per sq ft = 1350 watts
Step 3
Now figure out the kilowatts that the floor heat system will use per hour. Kilowatts is how electric companies measure electricity use.
- Example: 1350 watts ÷ 1000 = 1.35 kilowatts
Step 4You can find out how much electricity costs, in your state, per hour here. Take that cents rate (in Oregon, we pay approximately 11 cents per hour and multiply it by how many kilowatts (in step 3)
- Example: 1.35 kilowatts x $0.11 = $0.15 per hour*
* This is how much it would cost if you ran floor heat, on high, for 24 hours. You will never do that. Therefore, running a radiant floor heat system will cost less than .15 cents per hour.
OJ Microline
Is electric floor heat cost-efficient in the long run?
Radiant floor heat is a luxury product that is an investment up front and a cost savings on-the-back end. Better yet, count on a floor heat system saving you money (especially when it isn't cold enough to run the furnace but too chilly not to have heat).
Ultimately, you aren't going to run your floor heat thermostat at 90 degrees all the time (that's the max the floor heat will work at 15W sq/ft). Instead, this is where a Smart thermostat comes into the picture and works in your favor.
The optimal approach to managing your Gold Heat system (either a Gold Heat custom heat mat or Black Gold radiant floor heat film) is to use a programmable thermostat. Easily program the thermostat, from wherever you are, to turn up when you get home (or in the morning before you wake up) or turn down when you leave the house or go to sleep.
A Smart thermostat puts the power of cost efficiency in your hand (or phone, instead). Gold Heat floor heat systems are compatible with today's most popular Smart thermostats.
Sinope
What's a Smart floor heat thermostat?
A furnace thermostat and a floor heat thermostat are two different animals. Radiant floor heat uses a dedicated circuit, floor heat sensor, and thermostat to operate. That being said, a Smart electric radiant floor heat thermostat is an excellent idea for maintaining heat cost per month and when the system is performing.
What a Smart floor heat thermostat can do for you!
- Set a program to heat the floor 24/hours a day.
- Control the temperature wherever you are in the house or away from home.
- Completely manage the heated floor - (example) turn up for the morning, turn down during work hours, turn it on before arriving home, turn it down when you go to bed.
Suppose you will invest in your home by remodeling your floors and installing luxury electric radiant floor heat. In that case, you might as well endow the system with a technologically-advanced thermostat.
Fun Facts about Radiant Floor Heat efficiency
An electric radiant floor heating system uses quite a bit less energy during the day and night than other heating system alternatives - like forced air heat.
Electric radiant floor heat charges your flooring materials, so you don't have to run the system constantly. Unlike a furnace, which heats the room only when the fan is running, underfloor heat stays warm until the floor decreases in temperature.
Think of floor heat as a hot rock in the sun. While the sun's rays are hitting the rock during the day (charging the floor), the rock is still warm to the touch even when the sun goes down (floor heat system turns off).
A furnace uses ducts to deliver the heat. Should one duct be pointing toward one side of the room, that's the side that will get the heat. Radiant floor heat is even heating. Every square inch of that room is delivered beams of light heating the floor and all the objects that the floor can see. Yes, even your couch, your walls, under the tables, under the chairs, and especially your feet.
Remodeling contractors...get on board installing Gold Heat electric radiant floor heat products today! We'll show you how.
