Cayveman, I finally checked back on this thread. It's about thermodynamics and the conservation of energy, so in easy to understand terms when you have energy input (like the voltage and amps going to the heater) and what comes out has to be the same because the energy can't magically increase or be destroyed. It's simpler with electric resistance heaters because inefficiencies that we normally see in motors, pumps, etc. manifest themselves as heat which in this case we want. So the energy (kwh) can be directly converted to Btu's (Btu = Btu/hr average x number of hrs on). The reason I say Btu/hr average is that the heaters thermostat turns the heating element on and off. As for the heat lamp vs a std lamp, if they both draw 100 watts of power, they have the same heat output in Btus to a space. The std lamp would have a higher lumens (measurement of light) per watt but even the light after being absorbed and reflected by surfaces converts to heat. So there is ultimately no difference in the heat added to a room. Other items in your home such as TV's, dishwashers, etc. are not 100% efficient at doing the intended task, but all the input power in them as well converts into heat. So a dishwasher or refrigerator running helps heat your house as well as a portable heater in the winter but adds to the air conditioning load in the summer. Calculating the heat output is easy because all of the inefficiency of the motors and circuits in your appliances result in heat. That is not the case with your electric water heater because much of the heat is dumped down the drain with your bathwater and only a part of the heat stays in your home. Lastly concerning heating of air or water, the equation is the same for sensible heating or cooling (w/o removing moisture like an Air Cond. in the summer). What I think everyone is interested in is heating the space so a thermostat will show a higher temperature in the room. There is radiant heating used in non heated spaces where people have to stand in a line of site of the heater to feel the heat but that is like standing in front of a fireplace to keep warm. The equation for heating air or water is: Btu = mass x heat capacity x Temperature difference The difference is that water has a spec. wt. of about 62.4 pounds per cubic ft (Varies with temperature and can be found on the web.) Air is only about 0.075 pounds per cubic foot. (Varies with temperature and can be found on the web.) Also the heat capacity of water is 1.0 Btu/pound - deg F while that for air is 0.24 Btu/pound - deg F. Example: Small bathroom 5 ft x 9 ft with 8 ft ceilings at 40 degrees F. We want to heat to 80 deg F using a portable electric heater having an input of 1500 watts ( 5,119.5 Btu/hr input = output). Volume = 6 x 9 x 8 = 432 cubic ft Mass = 432 cubic ft x 0.075 pounds/cubic ft = 32.4 pounds Specific Heat of air = .24 Btu required = 32.4 pounds x 0.24 Btu/pound - deg F x (80 - 40) deg F = 311 Btu kWh= 311 Btu x 1 kWh / 3413 Btu = 0.091 kwh Time required to heat the room = 311 Btu x 1 hr / 5119.5 Btu = 0.0608 hr = 3.64 minutes You would actually take more than 3.64 minutes because you would be heating all the fixtures, walls, and if not insulated well other adjacent rooms. I asked my mailman if I could borrow one of his edenpure heaters for a test just to compare what Im describing above, the heating of a small bathroom with two types of heaters just for fun. I have the equipment to measure input energy and the air temperatures would have to be measured in several areas in the room every 30 seconds or so and recorded. There wont be a difference because its impossible but it might be interesting to post the test results. Could be done in the summer but you would have to heat the room to 100 deg F to get good results and preferably before the sun comes up (to eliminate another factor) and at about the same outdoor air temperature. What goes in has to be what comes out. It cant disappear or get larger. Not talking about heat pumps or air conditioners right now as that is a more complex subject and those units have COPs and EERs associated with them where the heat addition to a space is higher than the compressor energy used. They still dont violate the laws of thermodynamics about the creation or destruction of energy. Again this isnt saying everything is 100% efficient. Its just electrical appliances, heaters which wont have 100% efficient motors but the inefficiencies manifest themselves as heat. I used to sell pumps as a sales engineer and our pump curves would show the pump efficiencies which would vary depending on rpm, flow rate, and pressure. What this meant was that the motor and pump when combined might only be 75% efficient and was determined by tests performed by the pump and motor manufacturers that were shown on graphs that engineers used. The efficiency the manufacturer stated was based on the actual power required to pump a given flow and pressure compared to the theoretical power required (based on another engineering formula). All the electric power (watts) into the motor ends up as heat while moving the water. Pumping the water even heats it up slightly. Hope this clarifies things and I havent been too long winded. Even if its stored by being absorbed by a piece of copper it eventually is released into the air. It has to be the same as what's input. The same is true of a 100 watt light bulb no matter what type it is, although a heat lamp having larger diameter wire inside its bulb outputs a smaller percentage of light and more heat

To all: I am with Protect Plus Surfaces. We are partnered with Daltile to assist and underwrite the warranty with this program, as well as the exclusive DuPont Licensee for sealed stone products. The kit includes 3 items: a 1/2 gal of exclusive sealer and 2 current DuPont StoneTech products that are very successful in the marketplace, and for good reason - they work very well. The sealer is water based and does include Microban - but not Triclosan. Microban has several different antimicrobials available to them based on the product they are going to protect. Due to public concerns with triclosan, this product was not used. The antimicrobial in the sealer is 100% natural. It is actually the same form of antimicrobial used in DuPont Water Filtration products. These have undergone rigorous tests following NSF guidelines by the Water Quality Association (WQA) to prove that water is safe to drink after passing through the filtration device. That is how safe the Microban in the sealer is. The other 2 products are the DuPont StoneTech Revitalizer Cleaner and Protector and the DuPont StoneTech Polish. We are the warranty underwriter of the program and handle the customer service for all warranty claims. Rest assured, this is the strongest warranty available in the market today. There are not loopholes and exclusions in the warranty that are commonplace in the market today. This program was put together to truly protect your important purchase for the full 15 years. Here are a few differentiating items about the program: 1) The warranty includes all granite and marble - yes it covers marble. But it does not cover etching on the marble. This is nearly impossible to do with a penetrating sealer that doesn't alter the look or feel of the marble. Many consumers are now choosing a finish other than polished, which makes etching much more difficult to see. 2) The warranty needs to be applied only 1 time - and the warranty lasts for 15 years 3) There are no specific care guidelines that must be followed to make sure the warranty is in effect 4) The warranty is fully transferable for the full 15 years - your home could sell 15 times and it will still be valid 5) The warranty covers the full cost of replacement product if a stain cannot be removed 6) If a replacement is required, we cover the costs of the labor as well - no other warranty in the industry covers this! 7) All chemicals are from DuPont - the most effective and safest natural stone sealers on that market today 8) Microban antimicrobial technology truly does work for the entire length of the warranty - and we chose a natural ingredient for your safety. Imagine raw chicken on your countertop - microbes double every 20 minutes and you don't want to see that spot under a microscopre after 24 hours. Microban inhibits this growth and after 24 hours you can hardly tell it was there. Here is more information about it. http://www.microban.com/partnersites/proadvanced 9) Daltile does have this program on their website at www.daltilestone.com/proadvanced This program has been rolled out specifically to Daltile's Stone Centers located all over the country. The program has just been announced to the entire Daltile sales team and is gaining momentum all over the country now. If you have more questions, feel free to contact me directly at andyfay@protectplus.com

The backing is cork so I am not surprised by a vapor barrier requirement. We are having it put down throughout our new home and will be glad to be 100% tile and grout free for the first time in our lives :) I have some old samples that I've tried to damage. It is very difficult to scratch or gouge, the only way I was able to pit it was to take a decent swing at it with a sharp tool that had some weight to it. Makes me wonder if we'll even want or need to fuss around with felt pads under everything (they seem to be magnets for dirt, hair, fur, or whatever floats around before you have a chance to sweep it up.)

I have bought and installed $3000.00 worth of smartcore pro 1 year ago in my unheated cabin since it said good for extreme temperatures down to 25 degrees below zero and Lowes said it was the best and only flooring that will work for me. The floor started to seperate in December 2020 at 19 degrees. Lowes said they can not help me and to file a claim with Shaw. Shaw sent an independent inspector to see flooring in March 2021. The so called independant inspector came and pretty much told me that his job is to find things to void the warranty so no claims get paid. He crawled on my floor throughout all rooms with a 6 foot level and found one high spot on my l floor that tilted his level uneven. I told him every house built has a joyce that is a little high or a little low. He agreed and said that he goes through million dollar brand new homes and always finds the same. He measured the space at edges an said some spots were too close to wall. I told him nothing expanded or contracted and its the locking that has failed. He also said the floor molding was touching the floor and that will also void a warranty. I told him there are no houses where the wall molding is not touching the floor and that no one keeps a gap below the molding. He agreed but said even if my floor did have more spacing and wall molding had a gap under it that Shaw would still void my claim since he found a joyce high spot. He left and I never had a returned call since March. I even offered to lift my floor and pay the $1.49 per square foot and to have it reinstalled by anyone of thier choice to prove it was not an installation problem and it is a locking failure problem with the flooring. I am a tipical hard working person that saved for two years to buy the best flooring made for my conditions. Shaw or Lowes have not even called me to offer me a solution or any compensation towards my $3000.00 invested. I do not know if my floor will continue to worsen but I do know it will not get better. I told the inspector that if Shaw really wanted to improve thier product that this was the perfect chance. An unheated cabin that temperatures go down to a couple of degrees below zero in the coldest part of the year. I have 8 rental proerties, a house and 2-cabins that I wanted to do all over with this flooring and now I can not trust Shaw flooring or Shaw customer service to correct the failure. My cousin is a contrator that build homes and works with hundreds of other contracors and said that he will no longer use Shaw flooring after he sees what happened to me. SHAME ON YOU SHAW FOR NOT FIXING YOUR FAILED FLOOR LOCKING PROBLEM. I or my cousin will never buy another Shaw product unless this is fixed by compensation or what I prefer which is to lift and reinstall new flooring by anyone of Shaws choice. The cabin next to me installed a cheap laminate flooring from Pergo at 1/2 the price and it has not failed under the same temperatures. I am out $3000 but you are out hundreds of thousands of dollars when contractors will not trust your products since you chose not to do the right thing.***SHAME ON YOU SHAW FOR NOT FIXING YOUR FAILED FLOOR LOCKING PROBLEM. Tim Sommers Mongomery, Pa. 17752 (570-220-8070)