Electric Tent Heating - Intelligens Fűtőfólia at the Zamat Festival

As an experiment, we heated an event tent at the Zamat Festival with heating film. In the severe cold, in an uninsulated tent with the side walls open the whole time, the heating still performed well, because it did not heat the air but, with radiant heat, directly the people and objects. The article was published in January 2018; the experience is still a useful guide for short-term heating of event tents.

Why did we try heating film in a festival tent?

There is a growing demand for quick, economical heating of poorly insulated structures - a tent is one of these. Infrared heating can help investors here too, so in a real situation, at the Zamat Festival, we tested in a tent how a tent can be heated with intelligent heating film. (At the time of the experiment we worked with 3rd-generation heating film; today we install 4th-generation heating film.)

The conditions were as bad as they could be: severe cold, zero insulation and side walls open all the time. There is no chance of heating the air in a tent like this - the warm air flows out immediately.

Why does radiant heat work in an open tent?

Infrared heating does not heat the air; it warms the people and objects inside directly, by radiation. That is why, even with the side walls open, it gives noticeable warmth where the people are. In a festival tent that is exactly what is needed: the guests need to be warm, not the air space of the tent.

Electric tent heating that can be set up quickly

Electric heating in a tent can be done quickly and with a low investment cost: no boiler, flue gas removal or fuel storage is needed, only an electrical supply. Radiant heat warms effectively even in spaces that are used for a short time and cannot be closed up well.

Photos from the festival tent

Wall heating layer build-up

If the heating film goes not into a temporary tent but onto a wall surface, the layers, going from the room towards the wall, are:

Layer (from the room side)	Diagram
Plasterboard
Heating film
Reflective foil
Side wall

What are the limits of the experiment?

At the festival, the aim was for guests to get comfortable warmth for the duration of the event in an open tent. If a tent has to be heated permanently, through the winter - as a warehouse, workshop or for keeping animals - radiant heating needs to be combined with insulation and precise power sizing. Our article on heating insulated tents with heating film covers this in detail, with a sizing example.

More of our reports

• Tent heating with heating film - how does infrared heating get into a polytunnel?!
• Terrace heating with heating film at the Nonna Rosa restaurant in Debrecen
• Experience with infrared underfloor heating at a 10-metre ceiling height
• Boat heating built into the floor with infrared technology

Thinking about heating an event or industrial tent? Request a quote and we will design the solution that suits your tent (installation is available in Hungary).