As one of the biggest spaces within your typical schools, leisure centres and universities, sports halls are notoriously difficult to heat, due to their large volume of air. Although these spaces are often kept to a slightly lower temperature to avoid overheating users during activity, they still need to be kept to a comfortable temperature, especially for spectators. These are often multi-use rooms; in which case a warm temperature is definitely needed to allow users to enjoy themselves. Sports halls are used intermittently and at irregular time intervals, meaning that efficient energy usage becomes difficult. With this in mind, these spaces require a flexible and sufficient heating system that does not waste energy or produce condensation (we don’t want any slippery floors).

With traditional heating, it is often found that energy (and therefore money) is wasted, due to the high ceilings of the room, which air reaches, but most people don’t (unless you’re André the Giant, maybe). With infrared heating, however, it is not the air that is heated, but objects and people. Infrared heaters that are placed at an appropriate height will heat the area of the space that is actually used. This is also beneficial for the avoidance of condensation; with infrared heat, the relative humidity in the air remains low, meaning condensation does not occur when the air meets warm surfaces. There’ll be no athletes slipping on our watch! There are many more benefits of infrared heating:

Benefits of infrared heating in sports halls

• Easy to install and maintain
• Infrared heating panels can cut down heating bills by up to 80%.
• Can be installed in strategic places in order to keep certain areas of the space warm, such as spectator seating.
• Underfloor heating can be installed to produce comfortable heat from the ground up.
• Heaters can be turned off and on as needed, meaning unused areas of the space are not wasting energy and money.
• Infrared heating is much more energy efficient and eco-friendly than traditional heating methods.
• Unlike traditional heating that create stuffy and unpleasant conditions, infrared heaters produce a fresh, comfortable atmosphere.
• Mimics natural sunlight, creating the feeling of playing sports in the summer heat.
• Instant heat, so no waiting around in the chill!
• Compact and attractive for non-disruptive appearance