What is the best UFH system?

[martinxxxxxx]

I have six cottages to do, up to 3 floor each.

500 sq/m total floor area.

I have looked at several systems and have quotes but there are conditions about not putting furniture on them unless you scread them in.

This ok on the ground floor but not first and second.

Anyway ; what is good? and why please

Martin

 

[skenk]

3 floor cottage?

AFAIK the best underfloor heating is wet, not electric.

Electric UFH as the only source of heat will be expensive to run and IMO a v poor choice if there is gas in the properties.

Wet will mean a bigger rise in floor level.

The tiler I work with always uses Warmup electric mats under tiles, AFAIK they have decent product and good customer service.

Sry no experience of UFH under anything except tiles,

 

[Taylortwocities]

Do you want to heat the room space or just your tooties?

Electric underfloor is not that good at space heating and can work out v. expensive to run if on all day. Just work out your floor area and go on WarmUp's site and work out the size of mats you'll need!

I agree with the above. Wet underfloor is by far the better option.

 

[electronicsuk]

Yes, whatever you do, don't fit electric UFH across the whole house. If you plan to live in one of these places, you will forever regret it when looking at your electricity bills. If you're going to rent them out, you might find a surprising amount of your tenants ditching you during the winter months!

 

[Steve]

There was a block of flats built* in Southport with electric underfloor heating throughout. This was at the time that Sellafield nuclear power station was being built 50 miles up the coast, and they fitted EUFH because they believed electricity would soon be "too cheap to meter".

*It may have, in fact, been an old building being converted to flats.

 

[ltheb]

I have fitted both types. My favourite for electric is Warm UP but I've only used it it up to about 6sqm - has to be laid out carefully to ensure 'hot' tails are in screed or tile cement, not exposed. I have only used Polyplumb for wet system - they have a plastic sheet system to lay the pipes - really quick and easy.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

There was a block of flats built in Southport with electric underfloor heating throughout.

I looked at a flat once which had electric ceiling heating.

 

[Steve]

There was a block of flats built in Southport with electric underfloor heating throughout.

I looked at a flat once which had electric ceiling heating.

But heat rises . . . were the ceilings all at 6ft?

 

[martinxxxxxx]

Are you sure it was not just the next floor up's UFH and you were being conned into a flat with no heating

 

[Stoday]

[quote="ban-all-sheds";p="1494029
But heat rises . . . were the ceilings all at 6ft?

Oh no it doesn't. Hot air rises.

Ceiling heating works by radiation. Nearly all the heat transfer from ceiling to room is by radiation. You get a layer of hot air only near to the ceiling (above your head) so radiation is the only way heat can flow down into the room.

Normal "radiators" heat typically 50% by radiation, 50% convection.

 

[ban-all-sheds]

Are you sure it was not just the next floor up's UFH and you were being conned into a flat with no heating

'twas definitely the other way around - it would have been our flat's heating, and we would have been conned into providing UFH for the one above. And as it was g/f, nobody below us providing us with UFH.

 

[flameport]

Ceiling heating works by radiation.

Saw some oil filled heating panels in a school once. On the ceiling.
Someone had painted them white. They were in a physics lab.

 

[RF Lighting]

The primary school up the road from me has some sort of heaters on the ceiling. Not really sure how they work, but aparrently they are very good.

They are fitted in all the rooms in an extention which was completed about 3 years ago, so presumably it is not some outdated way of doing things?

 

[skenk]

I imagine it was used so the toddlers can't burn themselves on conventional rads/heaters? If so, I guess ceiling heating has it's uses but I can't see how it could be an efficient way to heat a space though.

 

[Steve]

The primary school up the road from me has some sort of heaters on the ceiling. Not really sure how they work, but aparrently they are very good.

Are they fan assisted?

ooh ooh, i know, air con!