Underfloor Heating Design Tips
We recently completed another underfloor heating project in Orpington, so we compiled some underfloor heating design tips for you.
Looks nice and simple, doesn’t it? Just run some loops of pipe across the floor equally spaced apart and fill with water Wrong!
There’s a bit more to it than that, which is why this job has prompted me to write this post and share my 5 tips for designing underfloor heating. All of these factors need to be taken into consideration when designing in screed UFH systems.
Five underfloor heating design tips
- Depth of screed above the underfloor heating affects the heat transfer time through the floor, therefore using the correct depth of insulation below the pipe runs is crucial
- The distance between the pipe loops has a bearing on the overall heat output of the floor. Closer together means more pipe and ultimately more output. Doing a heat loss calculation of the room will determine how much heat output you need…we will do this for you
- The flow temperature running through the pipe also has a considerable effect on overall heat output. If you are planning to heat the floor with an ASHP these run more efficiently at cooler temperatures. Closer together loops will be preferable to ensure the room reaches temperature in the depths of winter
- Underfloor heating thermal conductivity is affected by the finished floor surface. Stone and tiled floors are favourable for UFH, they soak up the heat and stay warm for very long periods of time. Carpet is a very bad conductor of heat, wood is somewhere in the middle. My advice to customers is to work backwards from the finished floor surface and discuss whether their chosen finished floor is actually suitable rather than leaving this as an afterthought.
- We talk to customers about how they want to control their underfloor heating and how the zones are split up. VERY IMPORTANT. We use a lot of smart systems as they can also control the radiators within the same AP. You cannot just connect your UFH into your radiator circuit as we have seen lots of builders do on many occasions.
So there we go, 5 considerations to think about. If you get us into design and Install your UFH we will obviously do all this for you meaning you don’t have to worry about any of the above issues. I hope this was helpful, but please do not hesitate to call us if you need any further advice.
– Dean Dawe, Cloverleaf
