underfloor heating

[stevewilliams]

Hi Experts

Any opinions on makes of electric underfloor heating mats? They all seem to claim the thickest wire etc so are they all much the same or are there some to steer clear of and some to be recommended?

I'm planning to warm a small tiled area in the bathroom.

Your advice very much appreciated.

Cheers

SW

 

[RF Lighting]

We tend to fit warmup UFH mats and controls. They seem pretty good.

 

[dingodeano]

I am a time guard man myself.

 

[ericmark]

Went in to a house with it fitted in bathroom seemed great so fitted to my mothers wet room it was a flop.

Idea was to dry floor but takes 1/2 hour to dry and clear of room well before it dries.

It will not heat the room enough on it's own without the towel rail being on room is too cold but any hotter and you could not walk on the floor.

Thermostat was in a pocket but on trying to renew it would not come out so now works only on room temp the floor temp sensor no longer in use.

Hardly ever used.

In hind sight we use a sculptured tile to give more grip on floor this was not a good idea to get them to dry. Smooth would have been better. Should have installed a spare pocket for sensor.

In a non wet room would have worked better but the shower water cooled the floor and tiles are that thick that it takes quite a time for them to heat up enough to dry the floor.

In the house I had seen it the shower was used by 10 people being a guest house so heating left on 24/7 and the shower was not spraying on the floor. With just 2 people in the house just not worth it.

 

[bernardgreen]

I concur with Ericmark,

Useless as room heating and drying the floor. ( drying with heat leaves all the lime scale and other dissolved matter as powder on the floor ).

The only advantage I can see is having a warm floor to walk on.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Steve - just do some basic research into the physics of it - work out how much heat you need to put into the room, and therefore what temperature you need the floor to be at.

 

[Taylortwocities]

Agreed with the above. Ok if you want warm toes, but no good as a space heater.

If you are going to do it for small bathroom I would use the WarmUp Loose Wire solution. Much better for those small corner areas.


NOTE:

Mixing dampness/water, electricity and human beings is hazardous.

Installing underfloor heating is notifiable.

Any electrical works in a bathroom is notifiable.

Special requirements are in place for electric underfloor heating and there's a lot to comply with as detailed in BS7671.

 

[chapeau]

Your advice very much appreciated.

They provide additional space heating over what you might already have. The room is definitely colder when it is not on.

They add a level of comfort when you walk in and it would other wise be cold.

The rate at which water evaporates on a floor is temperature dependent. Therefore the floor will dry faster if there is underfloor heating and this is turned on.

The amount of solid matter in solution in your water is not affected by underfloor heating. If there is 'limescale' in your water, that water is on your floor, and that water evaporates, it will come out of solution and leave a mark on your floor. This is true whether you have underfloor heating or not.

They are very expensive to run, relatively. For the few minutes a day you use it I think it extravagant, just my opinion.

I always turn it off when the mrs is away on business and it doesn't bother me one jot. However the room is definitely colder, so I wear a robe and a pair of slippers.

The mrs always turns it back on when she gets home as not having it bothers her immensely.

I don't make an issue of it.

If it's an upstairs bathroom with tiles on timber or ply I believe they say you should limit the heat output to 100w / m2. You should probably use tilebacker board or something similar in any event and you can increase the heat ouput per m2 if you do.

So, in my opinion, nice to have but an expensive luxury. If you don't have it you will need a larger radiator.

From what I can tell, it's the control mechanism which you need to look at, the cables are much the same. To get a larger heat ouput per square metre you put them closer together.

If you have sufficient output per square meter and sufficient insulation then it will be all the heating you require to keep the room warm. This is how underfloor heating works in the rest of your house, your bathroom is not an exception. It will be expensive.

 

[stevewilliams]

Thanks for all the advice - plenty to chew on.

Cheers

SW