Elec Radiant floor heat and EMF
OK, I built up the sub-floor per previous Breaktime advice and got ready to order a cable radiant floor heat system (very irregular shaped bath layout)…and the various products touting low or ‘no’ EMF emissions got me (and especially my wife) concerned. Is EMF really a non-issue that some suppliers are trying to use( heath concerns or possible radio interferrence) as a selling tool…or is it a real concern? Thermosoft claims no emissions (I could believe negligible but not zero) due to a ‘dual conductor’ technology; another lists a scale that shows relatively low emissions, but it doesn’t translate to real world effects; yet another touts a superior ‘coatings.’
I think I want to use the ‘single’ wire that doesn’t have to be looped back to the themostat. As I look at the various systems, it looks (and appearances can be deceiving) they probably use the same wire supplier anyway. Archieved discussions seem that most contractors are satisfied with the system they installed (especially NuHeat), but has anyone actually encountered an EMF concern/radio interference with a system?
Replies
The low/no EMF cables employ a cable with two wires in it, one coming and one going, so that there's no need to return the far end to the junction point.
Other cables contain only a single wire and must be wired in a loop. These wires will radiate significant "EMF" (ie, a 60 Hz electromagnetic field). (Note that this "EMF" is not the same as "RFI" -- radio frequency interference. Yes, the power lines do contain some RFI and it would be radiated more readily by the loop-type heating cable, but, absent a malfunctioning thermostat, it will not "produce" RFI.)
Is EMF bad? Maybe, but clearly it's not life-threatening to most people or "civilization" as we know it would not exist.
If you were building a head warming helmet with these cables, then yes EMF might be a concern due to the proximity with your brain.
Since it is by your feet, you don't have that worry. If you spend enough time on the can to warrent concern about an EMF caused tumor in your foot, I think you need to start taking fiber pills.
"EMF" is right up there with
"EMF" is right up there with rabid dragons and manic unicorns on the risk list.
You've obviously never seen a manic unicorn -- they can be pretty nasty. (If not, how come my head hurts so much the next day?)