On Monday, 26 October 2020 10:51:58 UTC, Vir Campestris wrote:
It used to be we had open fires. But then hot water radiators came in -
much cleaner, and easier to manage.

Nowadays we seem to be moving towards underfloor heating - where
effectively the entire floor is a radiator. Efficient, but slow to respond.

But there was a time when hot air systems were popular, and I think
still are in the USA.

Does anyone know why they went out of fashion? It can't just be because
they made a great place for spiders to hide!

Andy

Having lived in a house which was built with warm air heating, but at some point replaced with a radiator system, these are my observations:

There was a lot of asbestos involved! The whole boiler cupboard had asbestos dividers.

The remnant ducting was impossible to remove without major works.

There were vents all over the place. Annoying, unattractive. I ended up removing many of the actual vents, stuffing the holes and plastering over. (Not "real" plastering - repair.)

The ducting and things like vents in doors, or gaps under doors, can result in noise getting everywhere. Music in one room can become audible everywhere.

But underfloor heating is not the answer. While I would be happy enough with very mildly warmed floors, those who suffer from burning feet (however caused) would run a million miles - if they could run at all. They are a special form of torture to such sufferers.