How to effectively heat a warehouse in winter

Effective temperature control of your premises can be a challenge at the best of times, but heating warehouses in winter can be especially difficult. There are lots of considerations to take into account, including the sheer size of the space, the comfort of your employees, and the vulnerability of your stock to fluctuating temperatures. There’s no one-size-fits-all configuration for a warehouse, and what works best for yours will be heavily dependent on its layout. You’ll have to consider, for example, how and when the main doors open and close, which can make it hard to keep the temperature under control. You might even opt for heating only in specific areas, so that’s also something to bear in mind. Here, we’ve briefly outlined some of the heating options you may want to consider!

Warm air heating

n our decades of heating, cooling and ventilation experience here at Askews, we’ve found that ‘warm air heating’ is by far one of the most popular ways to heat a warehouse. It’s exactly what it sounds like; it involves strategically-installed warm air heaters drawing air across a heat exchanger to increase its temperature, then distributing it evenly throughout the space using an in-built fan. There are several different types of warm air heaters to choose from; you can install variants which are powered by gas or electricity, or even oil-based variants.

If you’re opting for warm-air heaters, positioning them is key to their effectiveness, as the air has to be able to travel freely across the entire warehouse floor without leaving any cold spots.

Radiant heating

One of your other options for warehouse heating is radiant heating, which is most often provided by suspended radiant tubes (or radiant plaque heaters), suspended or wall-mounted at various locations across the warehouse space. Essentially, they emit infrared radiation that doesn’t warm up the actual air, but instead warms up everything around it – such as various surfaces like floors and walls, as well as your employees!

One of the catches to using radiant heating, however, is that in order to feel the full benefit, your employees do need to be within ‘line of sight’ of these emitters. In other words, this type of heat can be easily blocked by tall structures within warehouses, such as racking and shelving. Partially for this reason, this type of heating is generally placed in areas that lead directly outside, for example warehouse loading bays.

Heat pumps

With decades of experience behind us here at Askews, our solutions right here in-house can equally help you to effectively heat your warehouse space. Our heat pumps act to absorb thermal energy from the outside air or ground, which can then be utilised to heat radiators, or underfloor heating systems and warm air convectors. These heat pumps are eco friendly and highly efficient, making them highly useful to many of our clients here at Askews.

Here at Askews we’ve got over 25 years of experience in heating, cooling and ventilation (HVAC) systems, making us the perfect people to help you minimise disruption, maximise productivity and keep your employees happy throughout the winter season. Click here for a free quote, or just give our experts a call on 01282 863 825.

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