Radiant (infra-red) heat is produced by anything hot, a familiar infra-red heat source being the sun. In electric radiant heaters an electric current is used heat an element so that it radiates heat. These devices are quite similar in operation to the electric light bulb, although they are designed to produce as much infra-red heat as possible at the expense of other forms or energy such as convected heat and visible light.
Infrared quartz halogen heater lamps are powerful heat sources comprising a finely coiled tungsten filament inside a high-purity tubular quartz glass and a halogen gas atmosphere. The halogen gas ensures a constant infrared efficiency throughout the lifetime of the product by preventing the quartz glass tube from being blackened due to metal deposition from the filament.
Because they transfer heat directly by radiation they are ideally suited to heating exposed areas where convection heating would be ineffective and expensive. A typical situation is an industrial unit loading bay, where large doors are often necessarily left open for significant periods of time. Any attempt to heat the air through convection would be futile as the rate of loss of heat due to the lack of insulation and protection from the wind would exceed any sensible heating power. In contrast a quartz infra-red heater would provide comfort heating for personnel without raising the air temperature. Air absorbs virtually no infra-red radiation.
Quartz heaters are also an attractive option for heating large, infrequently used buildings such as churches and village halls where the pattern of intermittent usage cannot justify the expense of other forms of heating. With infra-red the heat is instantaneous, and can be switched off equally quickly.
Weatherproof versions are also available which are suitably IP rated so that they can be used outdoors, for example, to provide comfort heating in smoking shelters or for patio heating.
Please note that products must be installed and operated in accordance with the manufacturer's specific requirements and installation must be carried out by competent personnel.
Close Installation Guide
These heaters use high temperature tungsten filament heating elements and operate at high temperatures. The element is encapsulated in a quartz tube and coated with a special material designed to maximise the output of infrared heat. The offer very high radiant efficiencies and have short heat-up and cool-down time -- typically one second to achieve 90% output. Quartz tubes are more fragile than ceramic elements, and have an operating lifetime of typically 5,000 hours. The high temperature of quartz heaters elements means that they produce visible light which, in some circumstances, can be considered obstrusive. The most common quartz lamps produce a ruby glow. Lamps are also available that produce a golden rather than ruby glow; these are often specified in situations where aesthetics are important, for example in places of worship.
