132 Cartwright Ave, North York ON
Mon–Sat 8am–7pm · Sun 9am–5pm
Radiant tube heaters · Toronto & GTA
Radiant tube heaters for
rooms with high ceilings
A tube heater warms the floor and the people standing on it instead of the air near the roof. That is why warehouses, workshops, garages and bays across the GTA use them — and why they keep working in rooms where the doors are always open.
TSSA-licensed gas technicians
Warehouses, workshops, bays & garages
Zone layouts designed per site
Schwank, evenTUBE, Reznor & Modine
Why it matters
Layout designed from your roof height and working lines
Mounting heights taken from the manufacturer listing
Zoning specified with the heaters, not added later
TSSA-licensed burner, gas train and venting
1,000+
Clients served
TSSA
Certified team
7 days
A week support
GTA-wide
Service coverage
20+ yrs
Climate experience
What it is
What is a tube heater?
A radiant tube heater is a long steel tube, mounted high, with a gas burner at one end. Combustion gases travel the length of the tube and heat it; a polished reflector above the tube directs that heat downward. The tube becomes a line of warmth aimed at the floor.
Nothing is blown around. The heat travels as infrared — the same way you feel the sun through a cold window — and is absorbed by the first solid things it meets: the floor slab, the machinery, the people. Those surfaces then release warmth back into the room slowly.
That single difference is what makes tube heaters suit tall, draughty rooms. A forced-air heater puts its heat into the air, and in a building with a high roof and doors that keep opening, much of that air ends up either at the ceiling or outside. Radiant heat is already in the floor before the air has a chance to take it away.
What matters most for Tube Heaters in the GTA
Right sizing, licensed gas/refrigeration work, and commissioning beat the cheapest sticker price. We verify airflow, safety devices, condensate paths, and controls so your system does not fail the first extreme week of the season. Ask us about dual-fuel, zoning, and rebate-eligible models during your quote.
Where a tube heater is usually the right call
- Ceilings too high for warm air to reach the people below
- Doors or bays opening repeatedly through the working day
- Buildings that are difficult or expensive to seal properly
- Work that happens in specific bays rather than across the whole floor
- Spaces where blown air would disturb dust, fumes or finishes
- Sites that want to heat only the areas in use, shift by shift
- Rooms where floor-level warmth matters — standing work, vehicle bays
- Buildings with the roof clearance and gas supply to support one
How it works
From burner to warm floor
Five stages, all of them happening continuously while the heater runs.
Gas burner fires
At one end of the tube
Gases travel the tube
Heating the steel along its length
Tube radiates infrared
Reflector aims it downward
Floor & objects absorb it
Not the air in between
Surfaces release warmth
Steady heat at working level
Applications
Where tube heaters are used
The common thread is height, air movement, or both.
Warehouses & distribution
High roofs and loading bays that open all day. Radiant heat reaches the floor where picking and packing happen instead of collecting above the racking.
Workshops & vehicle bays
Doors opening for every vehicle. Radiant warmth in the floor slab keeps working through the door cycle, and warms the vehicle and tools as well as the technician.
Light industrial & production
Zoned along working lines so occupied areas are heated and empty ones are not. Useful where blown air would move dust or affect a finishing process.
Garages, depots & storage
Buildings that are hard to seal and rarely worth heating in full. Tube heaters warm the parts people use without conditioning the entire volume.
Agricultural & large sheds
Tall, ventilated buildings where warm air simply leaves. Radiant heat aimed down does not depend on holding onto the air.
Sports halls & large venues
High ceilings and intermittent occupancy, where heating the full volume in advance is wasteful.
Tube heater or unit heater?
Radiant tube vs. forced-air unit heater
Both are gas-fired and both hang from the roof. What they do with the heat is entirely different.
| Radiant tube heater | Forced-air unit heater | |
|---|---|---|
| Heats | Floor, objects and people directly | The air, which then circulates |
| High ceilings | Well suited — heat is aimed down | Warm air rises away from people |
| Frequent door openings | Recovers quickly; heat is in the floor | Loses heated air each time |
| Air movement & dust | No fan, so nothing is stirred up | Moves air, and what is in it |
| Zoning by bay | Straightforward along a working line | Heats the volume it sits in |
| Warm-up feel | Felt quickly in the beam, slower in the slab | Air warms fast, then stratifies |
| Roof clearance needed | Requires height and clearance for the run | More compact |
What we do
Tube heater services
Assessment, layout, licensed installation and annual servicing.
Site assessment & zone layout
We measure the building, note the roof clearance, door traffic and where work actually happens, then lay out tube runs and zones to suit it.
Supply & installation
Commercial-grade radiant tube heaters supplied and installed, with gas, venting and electrical completed to code by TSSA-licensed technicians.
Venting & combustion air
Correct venting class, termination and combustion air are engineered as part of the install rather than left to the fitter on the day.
Controls & zoning
Zone switching and controls so occupied bays are heated and empty ones are not — the single biggest running-cost lever on a radiant system.
Servicing & safety checks
Annual servicing covering burner, tube integrity, reflectors, venting and clearances.
Repairs & replacement
Repair of existing radiant systems, and replacement where a tube or burner has reached the end of its life.
Five factors
Decide coverage, not one number
How much area a radiant heater covers depends on its output, the height and angle it is installed at, the type of heater, the air movement in the space, and the shape of the space itself. Change any one and the answer changes. We design zones from those five factors — nobody should be quoting you a coverage figure before they have seen the building.
Why Toronto Air Systems
Why specify a tube heater through us
Local crews, licensed workmanship, and recommendations built around how Toronto buildings actually heat and cool — not generic scripts.
Layout designed from the building
Tube runs, mounting height and aim are set from the survey — roof clearance, working lines, door positions — because coverage is a function of all of them.
Manufacturer listings, not rules of thumb
Mounting heights and clearances come from the listing for the specific model being installed. We do not apply a single figure across different equipment.
TSSA-licensed gas work
Burner, gas train and venting installed and commissioned by licensed technicians, with the paperwork to match.
Zoning treated as part of the design
Being able to heat one bay and not the other four is where the running cost is won, so controls are specified with the heaters rather than added later.
How it works
How a tube heater project runs
From first call to commissioned equipment, you always know the next step, the timeline, and what is included.
Consultation
Tell us about your home or building, symptoms, and goals — by phone or online form.
On-site assessment
A licensed technician evaluates your existing building, ductwork, and load requirements.
Written quote
You receive clear options, pricing, timelines, and rebate notes — no vague estimates.
Installation or repair
Our TSSA-licensed team completes the work to code with minimal disruption.
Follow-up support
We walk you through operation, warranty, and ongoing maintenance recommendations.
Brands we work with
Radiant tube heater brands we install
Commercial-grade radiant equipment selected for the building, not for a single manufacturer quota.
Where we work
Tube heater installation across the GTA
Radiant tube heater supply, installation and servicing throughout the Greater Toronto Area.
Toronto
All neighbourhoods & districts
North York
Our home base
Mississauga
West GTA residential & commercial
Brampton
Full HVAC coverage
Vaughan
Including Woodbridge & Concord
Markham
East GTA homes & businesses
Richmond Hill
Residential & mixed-use
Scarborough
East Toronto
Etobicoke
West Toronto
Oakville
Halton Region
Pickering & Ajax
Durham Region
Whitby & Oshawa
East GTA
FAQ
Tube heater FAQ — Toronto & GTA
What is a tube heater, in plain terms?
A long steel tube with a gas burner at one end and a reflector above it, mounted high in the building. The tube gets hot and radiates infrared downward, warming the floor, equipment and people directly rather than heating the air.
How is radiant heat different from a normal heater?
A conventional heater warms air and relies on that air staying in the room. Radiant heat travels to solid surfaces and is absorbed by them, so it still works in tall spaces and in rooms that lose air through open doors.
Are tube heaters efficient to run?
They are efficient in the way that matters for this type of building: you can heat the occupied part of a room and leave the rest, and you are not paying to warm air that leaves through a bay door. How much you save depends on the building and how you zone it, so we would rather show you the layout than quote a figure.
How high does a tube heater need to be mounted?
That comes from the manufacturer listing for the specific model, which gives a defined range along with the clearances to combustibles. It is not a single number that applies to all radiant heaters, and it is set at design stage against your roof height and what is below the run.
How much area does one tube heater cover?
It depends on the output of the unit, the mounting height and angle, the heater type, the air movement in the building and the shape of the space. Those five together decide coverage, which is why we lay out zones after a site visit rather than quoting a radius.
Are they safe to run above a working area?
Yes, when installed to the listing. The safety items that matter are clearance to combustibles and stored stock, correct venting and combustion air, and a burner serviced annually. Those are checked at install and at every service.
Can a tube heater be installed in an existing building?
Usually, provided there is roof clearance for the run, a gas supply that can carry it, and a viable venting route. Those three are exactly what the site assessment checks first.
How much does Tube Heaters cost in Toronto?
Cost depends on equipment capacity, brand, duct or piping complexity, electrical/gas upgrades, and whether you repair or replace. We provide written quotes after a site assessment so you can compare options fairly. Call 647 953-4252 for a visit.
Do you serve my area in the GTA?
Yes. We are based in North York at 132 Cartwright Ave and regularly serve Toronto, Mississauga, Vaughan, Markham, Scarborough, Etobicoke, Brampton, and nearby communities.
Are your technicians licensed?
Yes. Gas and refrigeration work is performed by TSSA-licensed technicians. We follow Ontario code practice for venting, refrigerant handling, electrical disconnects, and condensate management.
Get a tube heater layout for your building
A site assessment tells us the roof clearance, the working lines and the door traffic — and those decide the layout. Written quote follows.