Lake Zurich, Ill.—Radiant heating sales hit growth levels in the first quarter that haven’t been seen in over a decade, according to the “Q1 2021 Industry Report” by WarmlyYours—a manufacturer specializing in electric floor heating. The quarterly report analyzes the sales of radiant heating products within the context of the national housing and remodeling markets.
One of the primary conclusions drawn in the report was that floor heating sales were up 31.1% compared to the prior year period. The primary floor heating products driving the Q1 2021 increase were Environ Flex Rolls (up 113.3%), TempZone Easy Mats (up 105%), TempZone Cables (up 31.2%) and TempZone Flex Rolls (up 13.5%).
Julia Billen, owner and president of WarmlyYours, said she believes one of the core factors for floor heating growth has been increased optimism concerning the worldwide pandemic. “I think a lot of people are starting to see light at the end of the tunnel as case levels continue to drop,” she said. “That positive energy has to go somewhere and for a lot of homeowners that has turned into a renewed focus on home improvement projects. And with increased consumer awareness of radiant floor heating, we’ve seen a lot of those home improvement projects incorporating floor warming systems for the first time.”
Another finding in the report focused on shifts in floor coverings being paired with floor heating. While tile (up 11.7%) is likely to always make up the lion’s share of floor heating projects (typically around 88% of projects) it only made up 80.7% of projects in the first quarter. Vinyl floor coverings, particularly luxury vinyl tile and plank, have been growing in popularity for the last couple of years and these coverings made up 5.5% of all floor heating projects in the first quarter, according to the report.
Billen said she thinks the shift in floor coverings may represent a permanent change. “Tile will always be king in terms of total sales but other flooring materials like LVT and engineered wood are going to play a crucial role moving forward,” she said. “Particularly as floor heating is applied to more and more rooms outside of the bathroom and kitchen. Our ultimate goal is to help make electric floor heating a whole-home luxury.”