Don’t get left in the cold

Okay, so it may not be time to pop the heating on yet and you can still get away with leaving your coat at home, but believe it or not, now is the time to start prepping your property for the winter!

In the next couple of month the weather will be turning dramatically colder, (depressing, we know). We are currently installing Trace heating and pipe protection for a variety of uses throughout the UK including preventing burst pipes. The majority of failing pipes in this country are caused by pipes bursting when frozen. We have a range of easy to install pipe protection for small domestic applications or larger commercial purposes!

We know it may not be at the top of your list of priorities at the moment, but now is the time to sort out these issues!

Here at cross we have pipe protection is for a number of applications including –

• Boiler condensate pipes

• Outdoor water supplies

• Water and waste pipes

• Irrigation systems

• Sprinkler systems

• Farm and animal water supplies

For larger domestic or commercial pipe protection requirements we supply the very best in trace heating. Trace heating cables provide focused and controllable heat to prevent pipes and gutters from freezing. Trace heating cables 'self regulate' their temperature so they cannot overheat. What’s more is that they can also be cut to length during installation to ensure the perfect fit!

There are many benefits of trace heating, which you can find in our blog post here. Here at Cross Electrical Ltd we design, manufacture, install and supply a complete range of heating cables suitable for every Trace heating application. Give us a call on – to find out more about how you can start preparing your home or commercial property for the cold months now! 

What is Trace Heating?

With this month’s blog we are going back to basics, explaining exactly what Trace Heating is and what it is used for. As we are specialists in Trace Heating systems, we automatically assume that everyone knows exactly what it is and how is works, which is obviously not the case. So what is Trace Heating? Read on to find out...

What is Trace Heating?

Trace heating, known as Electric heat tracing, heat tape or surface heating, is a system used to maintain or raise the temperature of pipes and vessels. Trace heating takes the form of an electrical heating element run in physical contact along the length of a pipe. The pipe must then be covered with thermal insulation to retain heat losses from the pipe. Heat generated by the element then maintains the temperature of the pipe. Trace heating is used for many applications from protecting pipes from freezing, to maintaining a constant flow temperature in hot water systems, or to maintain process temperatures for piping that must transport substances that solidify at ambient temperatures.

When did Trace Heating come about?

Electric trace heating began in the 1930s but to begin with no dedicated equipment was available. Mineral insulated cables were run at high current densities to produce heat, and control equipment was adapted from other applications. Mineral-insulated resistance heating cables were introduced in the 1950s, and then parallel-type heating cables that could be cut to length in the field became available. Self-limiting thermoplastic cables were marketed in 1971.

So what is Trace Heating used for?

The most widespread pipe trace heating applications include:

Temperature maintenance

Road & Ramp Outdoor Surface Heating

Anti-condensation

Gulley and roof snow / ice protection

Frost protection and freeze prevention

Door / frame interface ice protection

Window de-misting

Pond freeze protection

Soil warming

Anti-cavitation purpose

Here at Cross Electrical, we’ve been controlling the temperature for industries for over 40 years, so why compromise? Call us today on -01159722050

Benefits of Underfloor heating

Underfloor heating is where heating cables are applied within floor structures or beneath flooring systems to provide both primary and comfort heating. Here at Cross Electrical we have a wonderful range of unique, quality underfloor heating solutions for homeowners and the contracting industry alike. Installed in hours without the need for specialist tools or skills, our special underfloor heating products are low profile and won't raise floor levels.

But why would you install underfloor heating in your home? Here’s just a few reasons...

Space Saver -

Under floor heating allows you the freedom to design your room layout without having compromise around conventional heat sources. It can be irritating working your furniture and around heat sources like radiators. Underfloor heating gives you the flexibility to put your furniture where it best suits your lifestyle needs and room shape.

Minimum Maintenance –

There is little that can go wrong or that needs to be maintained in an underfloor heating system.  If correctly installed and tested, any potential leaks or problems can be identified at an early stage and dealt with before the laying of the floor. Thus there are no regular maintenance costs to incur which can sometimes be the case with traditional convection heating.

Fabulously Flexible -

Unlike traditional convection heating systems, controlled by a single thermostat, an underfloor heating system provides the flexibility to control individual room temperatures via thermostats. This means you can control the temperature of every area of your home instead of wasting energy and money heating areas of the property which are used less.

Crazy Comfortable -

One of the worst things about getting out of bed can be stepping out onto a cold laminate or stone flooring! Whether it’s in your bedroom, kitchen or bathroom, cold floors on warm feet can be really horrible! Thus, one of the key advantages to underfloor heating is that it banishes this problem, heating the whole floor area of your home. Furthermore, compared to conventional radiators, an underfloor heating system generates more radiant heat as opposed to convective heat, leaving you with a generally cosier environment.

Super Safe

Installing and using a floor heating system means there are no radiators, and so there is no longer a risk to small children and other vulnerable groups to get burnt.

Health improvements

Floor heating is good for asthma sufferers and people with allergies as it produces a lot less airborne dust than radiators.

With a range of under floor heating systems for safely heating under tile floors, under wood floors, under laminate floors, under carpet floors and more, we’re confident that we can supply a heating system for your project. We have the products and support to make your project run smoothly and we offer a free quotation service and practical advice. This simple method of heating has been available from Cross for many years, providing a cost effective and energy efficient system for any application.