01 February 2011
The recent extremely snap has focused many people’s thoughts on their heating systems and of comfort levels in their homes generally…
- Our own home is heated by underfloor heating and fuelled by a gas condensing boiler.
- While retro-fitting underfloor heating is not a viable option in existing homes, it is certainly an option to be considered by those building an extension or a new home.
- The advantages of underfloor heating include…
- Balanced, even air temperature.
- Lack of hot/cold spots and of draughts at low level.
- Absence of radiators.
- Potential for use of a wider variety of floor materials including tiles and – as in our case – terrazzo.
- Lower moisture content of the air with reduced potential for dust mites to thrive.
- The main disadvantages cited is that of a slower response time to extreme temperature fluctuations externally.
- This has not been an issue in our own house where the system operates with a combination of thermostatic controls and of time clocks.
- My personal advice to those contemplating the installation of underfloor heating includes…
- Plan the zoning of the system carefully in advance to optimise potential efficiency in use.
- Exploit the fact that the manifolds create substantial heat to create the equivalent of Hot Press and Laundry areas/cupboards.
- Insist on well located, intelligible controls – our original control panel was miniscule (operated by a cake tester!) and came with an instruction booklet written entirely in German.
- Be patient while you seek to achieve optimal air temperature levels, especially in a large, open plan area. We used a combination of intuition and of a variety of strategically placed thermometers to establish ours as opposed to relying on the thermometer on the centrally located control panel.
- I hope those of you contemplating the use of underfloor heating find this and other aspects of home design featured on the site useful.
- Contact me at 087 2940805 to arrange your own 2 hour consultation in the Dublin area to evaluate the potential of your own home!
