There have been many challenges facing the radiant market in the Western states, yet there also have been many advances and successes. We turned to two individuals with longtime experience in the radiant industry to answer questions about where radiant has been and where it's headed. 
   Our discussion participants are Paul Pollets of Advanced Radiant Technology in Seattle, Wash.; Bob "Hot Rod" Rohr of Caleffi in Milwaukee, Wis.; Dan Holohan of Heating Help in Bethpage, N.Y.; and John Barba of Taco, Inc.

Reeves Journal: What are some of the recent advances in the radiant area?

Pollets: Modulating condensing boilers are still the predominant heat source for new radiant applications. The range of newer condensing appliances coming to market seem very similar and use similar, if not identical componentry. I'm not sure this is an advance-in fact, the market has too many choices-which is confusing to the homeowner and reduces customer loyalty with HVAC contractors and their wholesalers.

Rohr: Controls are getting more refined and available with online monitoring. Smart pumps are bringing high efficiency and low energy consumption. Also, zone valves are making a comeback with delta P pumps on the market.

Holohan: I think the controls, particularly the web-based controls offered by some manufacturers, are the most interesting advancements. There's not much new with the tubing itself. I do like the way some of the manufacturers are offering their commercial tubing pre-fabbed into huge mats that an installer just has to roll out. That saves lots of time and labor.

Barba: I think for advancements you'd have to look at commercial applications, particularly radiant cooling. There's not a lot new under the sun in the residential market, but radiant cooling applications seem to be gaining momentum.

RJ: What challenges to radiant have had to be overcome and which ones are yet to be hurdled?

Pollets: Radiant is still largely perceived as a luxury item rather than the best choice for comfortable heating. Successful sales marketing (from the manufacturer) to the consumer, rather than the heating contractor, remains virtually non-existent. This is one of the reasons radiant floor heating has a declining market share. The commercial market for RFH, radiant cooling and condensing boiler technology is still largely untapped, and that's where the money is. 
   Training in system design, proper installation practices and procedures and sales training lag way behind European standards. The shortage of qualified technicians, which was predicted years ago, has come to pass. Lack of installation standards or code requirements for system design results in many prematurely failed systems. Lack of a Federal energy policy has eliminated the tax credit for condensing boilers. Without substantial tax credits, the industry will not expand in a recession.

Rohr: Cost of systems. Now radiant is competing with geothermal systems, which are very attractive to homeowners, offering heating, cooling and domestic hot water from one system.

Holohan: It would be nice if we started to build houses again, but I'm not seeing that happening any time soon. The commercial future of radiant could be promising, especially when tied to the Green message with geothermal as a source, but I'm not seeing this developing as a gangbusters business right now. Too much fear is still out there when it comes to building new. Also, I wonder what the effect of having multiple, competing-for-membership, radiant-focused industry groups will have. What is the goal there?

Barba: In the residential market, the biggest hurdles have been initial cost and the question of air conditioning. Obviously, radiant floor heating is a more expensive heat delivery system than baseboard, radiators or forced air. Often times that's a bigger hurdle among contractors, who don't think their customers will pay for it, than with the actual end-user. Sure, cost is an issue, but the value, comfort and economy of operation radiant brings to the table often outweigh that issue. 
   Air conditioning is another hurdle...radiant cooling isn't, in my opinion, a viable residential option in areas where there's high humidity. It can certainly help offset the load, but an aggressive de-humidification system will need to be included. It's important for contractors, designers and end-users alike to understand that radiant heating with separate air conditioning shouldn't be considered "two systems," but rather as two parts of a single "home comfort system," with the best, most comfortable and most efficient heating component combined with the best, most comfortable and most efficient cooling component-two components, one system.

RJ: Can you enumerate some recent successes in radiant installations?

Pollets: Since we only install radiant (or hydronic) systems at Advanced Radiant Technology, each job is a success. We try to hold the standards bar high using quality state-of-the-art Euro products and well-designed systems.

Rohr: Retrofit products. These allow you to easily add a small radiant zone with floors, walls or ceilings. When the new home construction dies off, look to retrofits and remodels.

Holohan: No one has been bragging to me lately.

RJ: Are solar and geothermal becoming a more common part of the mix?

Pollets: Solar and geothermal are present in the Northwest marketplace. Solar domestic hot water systems have the best bang for the buck in the Northwest, but ground source heat pump technology is being used.

Rohr: Yes, but a combined geothermal and radiant becomes costly.

Holohan: I'd say builders are considering it for commercial projects, but only those driven by serious Green motives, and not at all on the residential level.

Barba: I think solar and geothermal are becoming more common out there, but that's not to say that they ARE common. Solar is still mostly for creating DHW, and geothermal is still mostly for forced air type systems.

RJ: How is solar changing the radiant market?

Pollets: Solar domestic hot water systems offer customers the ability to use the sun's energy to recover the domestic hot water tank. In the Southwest, there may be enough BTUs available to supplement the heating load of a radiant system, although a much larger rooftop array is required to harvest the loads. In the Northwest, the sun's angle is too low to provide significant BTUs for heating in the winter months. The 30 percent federal tax credit is still available, but the cost of the systems, combined with the economic downturn, has made these systems harder to sell, despite the payback.

Rohr: It really demands low temperature emitters. I believe radiant/solar is a nice untapped market. 
   There is a slump in the residential solar thermal market, but the interest in commercial is growing, especially at military bases, prisons, water parks and hotels. The big question is the federal rebate incentive. If that goes away, I think the commercial market may suffer.

Holohan: It's part of the conversation, but I don't see too much action. Most of the solar excitement seems to be with photovoltaic right now and not solar thermal.

Barba: The only change I see with solar in the radiant market is that there's an opportunity to consider using solar as a partial heat source for low temperature hydronics. Not sure how much it's actually being done. I know of a few contractors who are doing quite well with it, but there aren't that many.

RJ: What has integration of solar and geothermal done for training requirements?

Pollets: More unique equipment means more training. A refrigeration license is often required for certain applications, and some companies with different specialties will partner with each other on certain projects to do both the radiant side and heat pump installation, to satisfy licensing requirements.

Rohr: There is some work that needs to be done to bring geothermal installers into the radiant way of thinking. Presenting radiant seminars at Comfortech, IGSHPG (International Ground Source Heat Pump Association), ACCA (Air Conditioning Contractors of America) and others is a good start.

Holohan: It makes me wonder whose trade this is. Now we have well drillers, electricians and roofing people involved. HVAC people are going to have to broaden their outlook on life.

Barba: System integration-regardless of what you're trying to integrate-is always a huge part of training. You have people who are very good at forced air but know little about hydronics, while you have others who know hydronics backwards and forwards but who've never touched ductwork or a furnace. Simply bringing those two disciplines together is a challenge-but adding in solar and geothermal? The first challenge is to simply create a scenario that such a thing is a viable business for contractors-then you can get into the specifics of how to do it. It's not hard, but the context for doing it has to be established first. It's very similar to radiant floor heating in [the 1990s]-the biggest challenge then was to establish radiant as a viable business for mainstream contractors.

RJ: What trends do you see developing in radiant installations?

Pollets: "Smart" variable speed circulator pumps are being installed more frequently, despite higher cost, with the consumer liking the reduced electrical loads on the system. Clients are still considering adding a solar DHW component to their system, and taking the available 30 percent federal tax credit.

Holohan: Smarter controls.

Barba: Not many new ones, really-there are only so many ways you can stick tubing into a building. Control strategies, at least residentially, are pretty straightforward. I see less variable speed injection mixing installed due to the increase in condensing boiler installations-injection and low temp boilers don't match up very well-and when mixing is required with a low-temp boiler, I see more folks using motorized three-way valves. Internet-enabled control strategies are showing up in higher-end homes.