On Tue, 19 Nov 2002, at 16:31 [-0600], Stan Wilder (wilden1@JUNO.COM) wrote:

> which won't lose their heat when you open the door.
> -------------------------------------------
> Wouldn't it just be wonderful if that were true .............. you
> radiate heat, the heat is conducted into the air, its the warm air that
> you're shooting for so it'll warm you. Now if you want to lay on the
> floor or lean against the sidewall or where ever you've got your plumbing
> then you can warm those parts of your body that make contact.
> The radiant plumbing thing would work great if you plumbed your
> underwear, but then again the standard thermal underwear is simpler and
> cheaper.
>
> Stan Wilder

Yo Stan --

In fact what Eric says is true.  The human body is very responsive to
radiant heat, so you can be in a room with cool air and feel quite warm
if there's a large radiant body nearby... a wood-stove or masonry stove
or hydronic floor.  Air temperature is not the key to maximizing
comfort, it's the temperature of surrounding surfaces.  That's why if
you have an uninsulated room, you can feel the cold from the wall even
though the heater shut off 2 seconds before and the air temperature
hasn't had time to drop.

So, if you did pour a 3" concrete floor in your van, with good
insulation beneath it, and go it up to 70F or so, you could open the
door on a cold day and feel much more comfortable than you'd expect to,
as long as you're standing near that floor.  The downside is the van is
no longer driveable.  Oh well... details.

'Nuff

        Gary