Can RugBuddy be used on top of Carpet?
The RugBuddy™ plug-in area rug heater is perfect for on top of carpeting, under an area rug. I have them on carpet, under area rugs in all of my bedrooms and living room in my own home.
In fact, Speedheat® even offers a reversible non-slip, thermal insulation padding, KlimaGrip™, for use on both carpeting and hard surfaces.
Can CarpetMate be installed under FLOR carpet tiles?
The question:
I wanted to know if your RugBuddy or CarpetMate pads can be used directly over a subfloor covered in hardboard/masonite and under a floor tile called FLOR which has a plastic-based backing?
If so do I need the insulating pad also?
Answer:
We can, absolutely, go under FLOR, but the installation and product is a bit different than the CarpetMate heating panels. We would use strips, similar to the TileWarm installation. After placing the strips, you would need to put a skim of self-leveling underlayment over the top before sticking down the FLOR tiles.
If you would like to fax or email us a copy of your floor plan, including dimensions and desired thermostat location, we will be happy to design our complementary layout and custom designed system for your space.
Set yourself apart with Green Products
According to Rex Nutting, Washington Bureau Chief of MarketWatch, the inventory of previously owned homes up for sale in May 2007 rose to the highest level in relation to sales in 15 years, putting even more houses into an already glutted market.
According to a survey conducted by the National Association of Home Builders and McGraw-Hill Construction, 85% of homeowners said they were more satisfied with their new green homes than with their previous, traditionally built homes. The survey allowed respondents to state more than one reason for buying an environmentally friendly home; showing that nearly 50% of those surveyed said that concern for the environment was a reason to buy a green home, and the same percentage held that their family’s health was a reason. 63% stated lower operating and maintenance costs motivated their purchases.
Additionally, homebuyers were willing to pay a higher price up front to get those benefits. “We found that people buying green homes were willing to pay an $18,500 premium in order to get a green home,” said Harvey Bernstein, vice president of industry analytics, alliances, and strategic initiatives at McGraw-Hill Construction.
To be classified as, “Truly Green”, homes must include three or more products or features addressing the following:
1. Energy-Efficiency
2. Indoor Air Quality
3. Resource Management and/or Use of Recycled Materials
4. Site Management/Location of the Home and its Surroundings
5. Water Efficiency
Who is the Competition?
Their research showed that only 0.3% of existing homes qualified as “Truly Green” whereas, 2% of homes incorporated a green product, such as energy-efficient doors and windows, appliances, or heating.
In Jack Trout’s “Differentiate or Die: Survival in Our Era of Killer Competition”, he warns, “Those who fail to differentiate their product or service, in the mind of the consumer, won’t stand a chance.” This is your chance to differentiate yourself as a renovator, builder, homeowner, real estate agent, or other professional looking to change your business as well as the world.
Who is Buying Green Homes?
The report found that those apt to invest in a green home are women, who are married, affluent, well educated and are likely to be in their mid-40s and from the Southern or Western states. The popularity of green features is not limited to new construction.
The research estimated that about half of U.S. homeowners recently renovated their homes, and about 40% of them used green products. Energy-efficient windows and doors, as well as energy-efficient heating and air-conditioning systems are some of the most popular green upgrades, Bernstein said.
Green Building Products
Water-Efficient Showerhead with H2Okinetic Technology from Delta
Delta Faucet Company showerhead uses just 1.6 gallons of water per minute. Delta worked with Bowles Fluidics Corporation to develop their H2Okinetic Technology™, which produces droplets that are large, resulting in good heat retention and body wetting.
What makes this product green?
• Fixtures and equipment that conserve water
• Equipment that conserves energy
Underwater Standing Timber Salvage by Triton Logging
Triton Logging, Inc. harvests underwater standing trees from forests that were submerged decades ago by reservoirs created by hydroelectric dams. The trees are cut, which ensures that the reservoir floor and sediments are not disturbed in the process. Douglas fir, western white pine, lodgepole pine, hemlock, and other species are recovered year-round. All of the milled wood is certified as SmartWood Rediscovered by the Rainforest Alliance. The company produces a range of lumber products and is launching a line of glulam beams made from underwater-salvaged timber.
What makes this product green?
• Salvaged products
SageGlass Tintable Glazing from Sage Electrochromics
SageGlass® is an electronically tintable exterior glazing that provides glare control on demand while preserving views. The product is available from such partners as Velux®, Architectural Wall Systems, Inc., Harmon, Inc., the Vistawall Group, Wausau Window and Wall Systems, and YKK AP America, Inc. While SageGlass is currently very expensive (increasing the cost of insulated glass six- to seven-fold), Sage Electrochromics expects the cost to eventually become competitive with standard high-performance glazing combined with interior mechanized shades.
What makes this product green?
• Building components that reduce heating and cooling loads
• Improves light quality
WeatherTRAK Smart Irrigation Controls from HydroPoint Data Systems, Inc.
The best option for outdoor landscapes is usually native, climate-appropriate plantings that do not require irrigation, but where irrigation is required, efficiency is essential. HydroPoint® Data Systems, Inc. has revolutionized irrigation management in North America through its WeatherTRAK® irrigation control systems that create watering schedules based on physical landscape features (soil type, slope, and plantings) as well as weather data that is beamed wirelessly to the controllers each day. Both residential and commercial WeatherTRAK systems are fully compatible with most irrigation systems, and they offer an Internet control unit. The company has partnerships with irrigation equipment providers The Toro® Company and Irritrol® Systems.
What makes this product green?
• Fixtures and equipment that conserve water
• Reduces storm water pollution
Electric Radiant Floor Heating Systems by Speedheat® US
Speedheat® electric radiant floor heating systems conserve energy by being installed in touch directly with the floor covering. This allows the systems to perform optimally, using significantly lower amounts of electricity than similar systems and other conventional heating systems. The systems can be installed under any flooring type, including tile, hardwood, vinyl, carpeting, laminate, and portable products under area rugs. The systems use a programmable smart thermostat, used for zone heating. As a result, you only heat the areas you occupy and not the entire home.
What makes this product green?
• Energy savings
• Improves Indoor Air Quality
Coolerado Cooler Advanced, Indirect Evaporative Air Conditioner from Coolerado, LLC
The Coolerado Cooler is a revolutionary air conditioning system that relies on the evaporation of water (latent heat of vaporization) to cool a space, but its similarity to standard evaporative coolers, or swamp coolers, is so remote that the company does not even use the term “evaporative” to describe its product. Water consumption can be significant; it is comparable to or slightly lower than that of direct evaporative coolers—as much as 12 gallons per hour at peak load, but typically averaging about 4 gallons per hour over the cooling season.
What makes this product green?
• Energy savings
• Improves Indoor Air Quality
Product Information:Delta Faucet Company
55 East 111th Street
P.O. Box 40980
Indianapolis, IN 46280
www.deltafaucet.com
Triton Logging, Inc.
6675 Mirah Road
Saanichton, BC V8M1Z4
www.tritonlogging.com
Sage Electrochromics, Inc.
One Sage Way
Faribault, MN 55021
www.sage-ec.comHydroPoint Data Systems, Inc.
1726 Corporate Circle
Petaluma, CA 94954
www.weathertrak.com
Speedheat® US, LLC
120 Arnold Mill Park, Suite 100
Woodstock, GA 30188
www.speedheat.us
Coolerado, LLC
4700 West 60th Ave., Unit 3
Arvada, CO 80003
www.coolerado.com
About the Author:
Ingrid Weir is a member of an elite team of electric radiant floor heating professionals, who concentrate on energy-efficient heating solutions. For more information, contact Speedheat US, LLC at 1-888-WARM FLOOR (1-888-927-6356) or www.speedheat.us. Address is listed above.
Sources:Existing home-sales decline hits builder stocks – Full week for company earnings, housing data opens with a thud – http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/home-builders-busy-week-gets/story.aspx?
guid=%7BA4CD62C3-5CCF-46B1-B673-77F4C33C4182%7D – By John Spence, MarketWatch – Apr 24, 2007 Home sweet green home – Most buyers of resource-efficient homes say they’re more than satisfied – http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/most-buyers-green-homes-satisfied/story.aspx?
guid=%7B1539C4AB%2DF4E7%2D49A4%2D99D1%2D83555EC8E27A%7D – By Amy Hoak, MarketWatch – Mar 26, 2007
“Differentiate or Die: Survival in Our Era of Killer Competition” – Jack Trout
BuildingGreen Announces 2006 Top-10 Green Building Products – http://www.buildinggreen.com/press/topten2006/top-10-list.cfmDelta – Jerelyn Wilson – November 15, 2006
U.S. Green Building Council – LEED for Homes – http://www.usgbc.org/DisplayPage.aspx?CMSPageID=147 – Homes Pilot Version 1.11a released February 1, 2007
Energy Efficient and Renewable Energy Consumer’s Guide – http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/water_heating/index.cfm/mytopic=12760
6 Reasons to Heat your Floors!
Well, yes, when we have people touch our demo unit, you would be amazed at their reactions. We have an unheated (cold) tile on one side and a warmed tile on the other side. I can’t even describe the looks on their faces… I’ve actually had people stand there, with their hand on the demo unit, while talking.Also, we all know that we lose most of our heat through our feet, so it makes sense to keep the floors warm. Between the location of the heating being at your feet and the way that radiant heating heats you in a similar way to the sun’s rays, research has shown that most people are comfortable at temperatures that are between 6-10 degrees lower than with forced air.
2. Under what kinds of flooring can we put heating?
You name it… carpeting, tile, hardwood (floating and laminate), vinyl, stone, area rugs, shower floors… you name it, it can be heated.
For under wall-to-wall flooring, you would use a GFCI-protected, programmable smart thermostat that controls both the ambient and floor temperatures, so you have complete control over your individual comfort level. If you already have your flooring installed or just want spot heating, there is the portable, under rug heater, RugBuddy™ that you simply plug in and turn on and off or use an appliance timer for your convenience.
3. What about operating costs?
This, of course, depends on your utility company as far as the actual cost to operate, but I can tell you that you may be surprised at how little electricity they use. I know that my heating bills have gone down considerably, since I started using radiant floor heating in my home, years ago.
4. Is floor heating energy-efficient?
Between the low electrical use, the fact that you are warmer at lower temperatures, and the fact that you are only heating the areas that you are using, electric radiant floor heating is extremely energy-efficient.
5. What’s in it for me?
- As already stated, there is the comfort factor, energy savings.
- You can also dust your house less because you don’t have to worry about central heating blowing air around in your house and circulating mold, dust, viruses and bacteria, and other allergens and environmental contaminants around your home or office.
- If you have sore joints, as I do, it helps to increase circulation.
- There is no maintenance.
- No EMF (electromagnetic field) or carbon monoxide!
- It’s silent, so you won’t have the noise pollution from other heating systems.
- These systems are also completely safe and GFCI-protected, so there is no risk of electric shock or fire!
6. I live in the South… we don’t need heated floors here, right?
This one has been common, particularly among builders… but think about it… we all have some sort of heating systems in our homes, and we know we are using them, based on our utilities going up so much in the winter, right? I know that here, in Georgia, I couldn’t possibly go without heating, and my floors were always the coldest part of the room before I used Speedheat.
A little personal story for your amusement…
I remember when I was younger, my mother used to always lay down on the floor for a couple of minutes, to make sure that the kids were warm down there.
“We can’t tell how cold they are down there since we are so high off of the ground”, my mom used to say.
When I interviewed for Speedheat, that was the first thing that came to my mind.”Oh, my gosh!”, I exclaimed. “Now I won’t have to worry about choosing between roasting in my house and freezing the kids!”
Author Bio:
Ingrid Weir is a member of an elite international team of experts, who invented electric radiant floor heating in South Africa in 1985.
Products include electric radiant floor heating, suitable for all flooring, including:
- Carpet – CarpetMate™ Area Rugs – RugBuddy™
Tile - TileWarm™
Laminate – WoodBeWarmer™
Hardwoods – WoodBeWarmer™
Stone – TileWarm™
Vinyl – TileWarm™
Showers! – Yes, shower floors, seats, you name it – TileWarm™
…and more.
About Speedheat Electric Radiant Floor Heating
Since inception, Speedheat has spread like wildfire throughout Australia, Europe, the UK, the Netherlands, South Africa, Canada, and now in the United States.
For more information:
Call Toll-free: 1 888 WARM FLOOR
Please feel free to add any opinions as to why you would or would not want to use electric radiant floor heating!
Speedheat Launches RugBuddyStore.com
We are excited to launch RugBuddyStore.com to work in conjunction with Speedheat.us and our other sites. RugBuddyStore.com offers many options not previously available on Speedheat.us, which is mainly an informational site to inform users on electric radiant floor heating products.
By separating the two, we believe it will enhance the user’s experience on both ends of the spectrum.
RugBuddyStore.com offers ordering of all RugBuddy under area rug space heaters and warmers along with controls and accessories. Options include adding KlimaGrip non-slip thermal insulation padding, expedited shipping, and many more, including discounted rates for multiple product ordering in one shipment!
Additionally, we plan to use this blog as a way of organizing the many frequently asked questions about our products and keep everyone up to date on the comings and goings of Speedheat US.
KlimaGrip Non-slip Insulation Padding Now Available from Speedheat
Speedheat, KlimaGrip, and RugBuddy are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Speedheat in the United States and/or other countries. No contact information within may be used for solicitation purposes.
For more information on Speedheat products:
What is the difference between CarpetMate and RugBuddy?
The only difference is the application.
CarpetMate™ goes under wall-to-wall carpeting and is generally hard-wired into our SmartStat, programmable thermostat.
RugBuddy™ goes under an area rug and is plugged into the wall through our GFCI protected plug.
