Underfloor heating

As Autumn is upon us it will soon be time to turn on the heating so now is  a great time to think about underfloor heating if you are planning a tiling project.

Underfloor heating is not a new thing yet many people still don’t realise the benefits of using underfloor heating with a tiled floor. This post is going to explore the differences between a conventional heating system and underfloor heating.

Heat Distribution

Underfloor heating produces a radiant heat which makes you feel warm and as it has heat sources across the whole room you will feel this effect throughout.

Radiators on the other hand work by heating the air surrounding by using convection, creating a flow of hot and cold air. Inevitably this leads to hot and cold spots within a room as areas nearer to the radiator will be warmer than elsewhere in the room.

As discussed the the illustration represents the differing heat distribution. A radiant floor heating system provides a consistent pattern, compared to the uneven distribution from a radiator system. As areas take longer to heat with radiators, some areas will become overheated and reduce comfort levels.

Efficiency & Comfort

The differing heat distribution will affect both the efficiency and comfort of the heating system. Radiant heat produced by underfloor heating maintains the natural humidity in the room whereas convection reduces humidity and can make the area feel stuffy. Rising air temperature through conventional heating can cause discomfort and overheating, which in turn can reduce oxygen levels and cause breathing problems. Radiant floor heating provides heat where needed and reduces the risk of overheating.

Overheating is inefficient and expensive

The way radiators produce heat creates hot and cold spots which means in order for the room to feel warm further away from the radiator then the temperature will need to be turned up. The cold spots will be reduced as the temperature rises but the area near to the radiator will become excessively and usually lead to a window needing to be opened. Of course this means the heat then escapes and creates an inefficient heating system as both energy and money are wasted. Overheating by 1% can increase costs by up to 8%.

As overheating doesn’t occur with underfloor radiant heating then the need to open the window will not arise therefore saving both energy and money whilst being in a comfortable environment.

Decorating your home

As underfloor heating does not take up any floor space it frees up the whole room which is great from a design perspective. Radiator systems are bulky and need to be inside the room which means wall space is lost to this.Underfloor heating does not restrict the placement of furniture and gives full design freedom.

Individual temperature control in each room – zoning

Using heating zone by zone will increase efficiency as usually the whole house doesn’t need to be heated at the same time. With state of the art thermostat and a mobile app, Warmup underfloor heating is able to be controlled precisely room by room. This means energy is saved as only the required rooms are heated.

Conventional systems tend to heat the whole house at once based on a central thermostat, once again causing over or under heating depending on the thermostat location.

View our underfloor heating range online and get prepared for autumn and winter.