On Tue, 08 Apr 2003 12:46:24 GMT, Nell wrote:

Speaking of heating pads, does anyone know of a product that can be used
to provide radiant heat to an area such as a bay window? We checked out
a product last night that can be set in mortar for heating floors, etc.
but it comes in a mininum of 4' width. Way too wide for a window shelf.

We plan to tile our bay window shelf and use it for plants, but would
like to inset some radiant heat for those really cold Canadian nights.

Thanks in advance
Norma

Back in the '70s, radiant ceiling heat cable was available for
embedding in the ceiling of a home. When energized, it would reach a
temperature below 90 degrees C, IIRC, thus warming the solid objects
below bathed in irs IR radiation. As the cost of electricity rose, it
has all but disappeared in the marketplace, but can easily be
fabricated from readily obtainable material. It's just a matter of
Ohm's law. PTFE insulated wire (with a 300 degree C rating) in 28 AWG
is cheap on eBay.

Or, you can search Yahoo for "radiant heat" cable. There are still a
lot of suppliers of today's more sophisticated, constant current,
heating elements for home heating, pipe heating, and other uses.
http://search.yahoo.com/search/options?