In a hydronic heating system for heating and cooling a room having a source of hot supply water and a reservoir of cooler return water, a supply water line from said source, a return water line to said reservoir and one or more loops through which water flows from said supply line to said return line for heating or cooling said room, said loop including an element that is a length of tubing that conducts water from said supply line to said return line and a radiation plate mounted in the floor, wall or ceiling of the room for RFH, RFC, RWH, RWC, RCH and, respectively, the method of installing said system including the steps:
- (a) providing modular panels each of a highly thermally conductive radiation plate having an elongated slot on one side thereof and a corresponding elongated protuberance on the other side thereof, providing a radiating surface on the same side thereof as said an elongated slot therein and a plate support of of relatively low thermal conductivity material providing an elongated space in which said elongated protuberance of said plate fits for holding a length of said tubing in said slot adjacent said plate,
- (b) attaching said modular panels to said floor, wall or ceiling of said room with said radiating surfaces and elongated slots thereof facing said room and said slots thereof aligned end to end,
- (c) inserting said tubing into said aligned slots,
- (d) inserting a thermal barrier over said inserted tubing and
- (e) mounting a finished floor, wall or ceiling on said panels over said thermal barrier,
- (f) whereby excessively high floor, wall and ceiling surface temperature immediately adjacent said tubing is avoided during heating and excessively low floor, wall and ceiling surface temperature is avoided during cooling.