Testing underfloor heating

[Milleniumaire]

Crossing my fingers is all I can do now. The screed is down and finally the floor is complete.

Given that the screed will set hard, how will I know if the pipe is leaking? Will the water somehow make its way to the surface and show as a damp patch/discoloured patch?

 

[Richardthe3rd]

Has this hairyarsed builder got insulation around the perimeter of the room, has he got pipe sleeves as the pipes leave the concrete at the manifold?? Has he fitted pipe sleeves at any expansion joints? He has left expansion joints??

If Bob the Builder has bought & installed a kit, then with that kit would've come a set of installation instructions. Within these instructions it would say how & when the system should be tested etc. As he has clearly not followed these instructions, you are left with no recourse with the UFH supplier.

Sue the Builder or get a Trusted Warranty from the Builder, equal to the one offered by the UFH supplier.

 

[Milleniumaire]

Yes, as I said earlier there is insulation around the edge of the room. There aren't currently any pipe sleeves, but this may be something the plumber will add later as I can see the pipes run through quite a large hole cut through the breeze block of the garage wall, so there's plenty of accessible space.

I get the impression the builder has been liaising closely with the plumber, so when the plumber is on site connecting up the manifold I'll try to have a chat with him.

 

[Richardthe3rd]

Yes, as I said earlier there is insulation around the edge of the room. There aren't currently any pipe sleeves, but this may be something the plumber will add later as I can see the pipes run through quite a large hole cut through the breeze block of the garage wall, so there's plenty of accessible space.

I get the impression the builder has been liaising closely with the plumber, so when the plumber is on site connecting up the manifold I'll try to have a chat with him.

At any point where the UFH pipe leaves the screed it should be sleeved. If not the edge of the concrete will damage the plastic pipe. The pipe will expand & contract, and the concrete will move.

If he has not pressurised the system & monitored a pressure gauge while pouring concrete, he could have damaged a pipe & already have a leak. I'd strongly advise you to get the system pressure tested without delay.

 

[doitall]

The other interesting NoNo is running the pipe loops under units and appliances.

Pic looks like they have.

 

[MJGas]

The other interesting NoNo is running the pipe loops under units and appliances.

Pic looks like they have.

Why not under units DIA?

 

[doitall]

The other interesting NoNo is running the pipe loops under units and appliances.

Pic looks like they have.

Why not under units DIA?

Think it's a fixing issue, drilling and plugging not being a good plan over UFH.

 

[Richardthe3rd]

The other interesting NoNo is running the pipe loops under units and appliances.

Pic looks like they have.

Why not under units DIA?

Think it's a fixing issue, drilling and plugging not being a good plan over UFH.

And if it's Kitchen units; there's a chance perishable goods will be stored in them, so if you don't want to rot your veg don't put UFH pipes under the units!!

 

[mandm65]

I am sorry I am unable to make contribution to this thread but will follow this thread with great interest as i shall be going through the same set-up.
Milleniumaire, your specified area for the UFH is slightly less than what we will have, how many zones you/your installer has created?
What sort of hardware they are using, pipes, manifold etc?
cheers

 

[Milleniumaire]

I can confirm that the pipes do NOT run under units or the central island.
It's difficult to see this in the photo as the kitchen units will be installed in the far area and because perspective makes the pipes look closer together in the distance, it has the appearance that there aren't areas of no piping.

 

[Milleniumaire]

mandm65, there are three separate loops of pipes going back to the manifold and I believe each loop is around 60m long. Because it is all one area to be maintained at the same temperature, I believe the builder/plumber is installing only one thermostat, so I guess this means we have one zone.

I'm not sure where the best place is for the thermostat, I'm leaving that to the builder/plumber, but my suspicion is it will go on the wall to the right of the photo as the garage is on the other side of this wall, which is where the manifold will be installed. It will therefore be easier for him to fix it to this wall and run the cables to the manifold, rather than fit it on any other wall, although I have concerns that this wall will get sun from the bi folding doors. I think the best wall may have been the outside wall between the two bi-folding doors on the left of the photo, but it would be much more difficult to run a cable to that thermostat now that the plasterboard is in place.

 

[St0rmer66]

Wireless thermostat?

 

[Milleniumaire]

The kit comes with a single wired thermostat and wired thermostat(s) were my preference, especially as this is a new extension so wiring should never be an issue since it has been completely wired for electrics.
I assume wireless thermostats use batteries and I can't be doing with changing batteries every 5 minutes

 

[St0rmer66]

So you'd rather have the thermostat in completely the wrong place, giving false readings and incorrect room temperatures than change batteries once every year or two. OK.

 

[Milleniumaire]

Yes!

You're making a big assumption that the thermostat will be in the wrong place.

As I said earlier I don't know where the best place is for the thermostat and putting it on an outside wall with velux windows above or on a garage wall with bi-folding doors opposite may make no difference.

I will discuss with the plumber when he turns up to connect everything up.