When choosing heating, it's not just about the price of the energy source, but about a long-term investment in your living comfort. Ekosen IR heating brings a completely different approach: instead of complex systems that require regular servicing and expensive installations, you get a simple, yet technologically advanced solution.
Below, we reveal concrete reasons – supported by numbers and calculations – why IR heating proves to be the most advantageous choice over 20 years compared to heat pumps, gas, or underfloor heating. Without embellishment: learn the facts that will help you make a smart decision.
The advantages of IR heating are: low initial investment, a lifespan of up to 40 years without maintenance, even heat without air circulation and thus a positive impact on health, quick installation without major construction work, and space saving, as no boiler room is needed. Compared to conventional heating systems, total costs over 20 years are up to 54% lower.
Lowest initial investment
Up to 70% more affordable heating system than a turnkey heat pump.
Lowest total costs over 20 years
More affordable than gas, heat pumps, pellets, and firewood – when you include installation, consumption, and maintenance.
Lifespan of up to 40 years
A system without servicing, without component replacements, without surprises.
15-year warranty
Longest IR panel warranty in the EU – with the possibility of extension to 20 years.
Even heat
No overheating or cold zones and no need for underfloor heating – floor/ceiling difference of only 1–2 °C.
Air quality
Less dust is created without air circulation, heating is therefore ideal for allergy and asthma sufferers.
Easy installation
Only one working day is needed for installation, as the system is without a boiler room and pipes.
More space in the home
Without radiators that limit furniture placement, and without the need for a boiler room.
With IR heating, savings begin with a low investment, but that's only the first part of the story. To see the real financial picture, we must look beyond the purchase itself. The true measure is the total costs over 20 years – in addition to affordable installation and consumption, the key role here is played by the fact that with an IR system, you have no costs for servicing, maintenance, or expensive part replacements, which are unavoidable with conventional systems.
For illustration: a complete Ekosen IR system turnkey for a house (130–160 m²) costs approximately 6,500€, while a quality heat pump with installation will cost you between 14,000€ and 18,000€, and a gas furnace between 8,000€ and 12,000€.
Even more telling is the fact that the installation of underfloor heating alone (without a heat source!) costs between 6,000€ and 10,000€, which is more than a complete, functional Ekosen system.
| System | Investment | Energy / year* | Servicing / year | Total 20 years (index) |
| Ekosen IR heating | ~6,500 € | ~605 € | 0 € | 100% – reference |
| Heat pump (air/water) | ~16,000 € | ~480 € | ~300 € | +136% |
| Natural gas | ~10,000 € | ~900 € | ~150 € | +149% |
| Pellets | ~12,000 € | ~750 € | ~200 € | +154% |
| Wood (central) | ~8,000 € | ~600 € | ~100 € | +126% |
*The calculation is based on average consumption for a 130–160 m² building. It includes the costs of purchase, installation, energy sources, and maintenance over a 20-year period.
As shown in the table, a heat pump consumes less energy than IR heating, but it requires a higher investment and regular maintenance (compressor replacement after 10–15 years costs 2,000–4,000€). In the overall calculation, IR heating is a more favorable choice.
With IR heating, forget about annual services, mandatory inspections, chimney cleaning, or filter replacement. Since the panels have no moving parts, there is nothing to break. The only thing left for you to do is occasionally wipe the surface of the IR panel with a damp cloth.
»In 15 years and with 25,000 installed systems, we often find that customers simply forget they even have heating. And that is exactly the carefree experience we want to achieve.«
~ Ekosen, specialist for IR heating
Warm floors - without underfloor heating
One of the most common observations from customers after the first year with IR heating: »The floors are warm – nobody believes we don't have underfloor heating.« IR radiation directly reaches floor surfaces for a reason and heats them 3-4 °C above the values achieved by radiator heating. No pipes under tiles, no construction work, no additional costs.
Even temperature from floor to ceiling
With radiator heating, the temperature difference between the floor and the ceiling is 5–7 °C. You sit at a table and have cold feet, while the air near the ceiling overheats. With IR heating, this difference is only 1–2 °C. The temperature is even throughout the entire cross-section of the room – which is both physically more pleasant and energetically more efficient.
Silence
An IR panel has no fan, pump, or compressor. When it operates, you don't hear it. With heat pumps, the outdoor unit causes noise that neighbors often notice. With gas furnaces, you hear the burner start-up. With IR heating, you hear nothing.
Targeted zone heating
Each room has its own thermostat and its own temperature. Bedroom at night 18 °C, living room during the day 22 °C, bathroom in the morning hours 24 °C. You heat only where you are, only when you are. With central systems, zone control is possible but requires expensive additional infrastructure.
The way we heat a room significantly affects the air we breathe. IR heating has a great advantage over classic radiators because it does not spread heat by air circulation, but by heating surfaces.
Convection systems heat air by circulation, thereby raising dust, mites, and bacteria. This is not the case with IR heating. Since the air is heated only indirectly, through surfaces, air circulation is not intense, and dust remains in place. For allergy sufferers and asthmatics, this provides incomparably better living conditions and easier breathing.
IR panels directly heat the walls. A warm, dry wall does not condense moisture – and without condensation, there is no mold. Customers who had problems with moisture and mold on north-facing walls found that installing IR heating (with proper ventilation) helped eliminate this problem. Damp walls are also poor thermal insulators – when they dry, the energy efficiency of the building improves.
With radiator heating at high radiator temperatures, the air often dries out, causing dry mucous membranes, throat irritation, and general discomfort. IR heating, however, does not dry out the air. Since the air does not circulate and is not heated directly, relative humidity remains balanced.
IR heating is powered by electricity, which can be obtained from renewable sources. This is a fundamental advantage compared to fossil fuels, which have a carbon footprint regardless of how efficient the heating system itself is.
An IR panel does not burn fuel, does not produce CO₂, and does not require a chimney. Emissions in your home are zero. The total carbon footprint depends solely on the source of electricity in the grid, which in Slovenia is becoming increasingly green.
Almost all electrical energy in an IR panel is converted into heat (efficiency up to 98%). For comparison: with a classic gas boiler, the efficiency is lower, with a condensing boiler it is higher, but no calculation takes into account losses that occur in the pipes leading to radiators. With IR heating, there are no losses in the distribution lines – every watt of energy is converted directly into heat in the room.
IR heating and a solar power plant are an ideal pair. A solar power plant produces electricity during the day, while a battery storage system or the grid provides for nighttime hours. Customers with their own power plant often heat their homes practically for free - without fossil fuels and without emissions.
IR panels do not contain problematic refrigerants (such as freons in heat pumps) and do not require large amounts of copper for pipework. Since they have a lifespan of up to 40 years, in the event of replacement, there is incomparably less waste material than with a heat pump or gas furnace.
Every system has limitations. We tell you about them transparently.
| Advantages of IR heating | Limitations of IR heating |
| Lowest initial investment among modern heating systems | Higher annual electricity consumption than with a heat pump (but lower total costs) |
| Lifespan of up to 40 years – zero maintenance required | Not financially viable for poorly insulated buildings |
| Even heat from ceiling to floor with no cold zones | Does not perform well in buildings with constant moisture in the walls |
| Less dust, ideal for allergy and asthma sufferers | Rooms with ceilings higher than 4 m require a more complex setup |
| No breaking of walls or time-consuming pipe laying | – |
| Space-saving – the system operates without a boiler room | – |
| Silent operation – no humming from outdoor units | – |
| Quick and clean installation – completed in a single day | – |
We believe in a fair approach: with a free calculation, we check the suitability of your building. If the IR system is not optimal for you, we would rather advise you on another solution.
They are proven by decades of use. The first panels from our manufacturer from 1989 still work flawlessly today, confirming that a lifespan of 40 years is a realistic expectation. Since the system has no moving parts, motors, or liquids, there is nothing to wear out. Safety and suitability for health are officially confirmed by the Slovenian INIS and international ICNIRP.
Customers most appreciate 5 main advantages: a significantly lower initial investment compared to a heat pump, and supreme comfort with heat that is as natural as the sun and evenly distributed throughout the room. The system lasts not just up to 20 years, but has a lifespan of up to 40 years; installation is quick and doesn't involve breaking up the house, and operation requires no servicing or maintenance. Furthermore, dust circulation is minimal, which is of exceptional importance for allergy and asthma sufferers.
Yes, and we say it openly. A heat pump theoretically consumes less electricity, but in practice, this difference is greatly reduced by advanced smart regulation (IR Sun), which prevents overheating and optimizes consumption. The long-term calculation is key: in well-insulated buildings, the total costs over 20 years favor IR heating, because a heat pump requires a higher investment and regular servicing. And when you will likely be buying a heat pump for the second time after 15-20 years due to wear and tear, your IR system will still be operating without maintenance costs.
IR panels achieve the same effect of warm floors and stable temperatures, but without expensive pipe laying, breaking up screeds, and the risk of water leakage. In addition to an incomparably lower investment, the IR system reduces the amount of dust and microorganisms in the air compared to classic underfloor heating, which noticeably reduces the problems of allergy and asthma sufferers.
Are you wondering if an IR system would perform as efficiently for you as the numbers promise? Our experts will check the suitability for your property based on an energy calculation and advise you if this is the best investment for you.