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28th January 2021
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Homeowners are warming to underfloor heating
The popularity of underfloor heating is on the rise. Discerning homeowners are showing an increased desire for efficiency and comfort and underfloor heating ticks all the boxes.
The warmer, drier weather provides the perfect opportunity to get cracking with extensions and DIY projects and so now is the time to consider underfloor heating as an option for installation with new flooring as part of a room make-over, ready for next winter.
The concept is not a new one. Developed by the Romans over 2000 years ago, the first underfloor heating system - or 'hypercaust', which literally translates as 'fire beneath' - used actual flames to warm the stone floors and walls of public baths and private villas.
Modern underfloor heating - without the use of fire, has been around since the 1960's. With advances in technology and constant development over the last few decades, today's underfloor heating is proven for safety as well as reliability and more homeowners than ever before are convinced by the benefits.
There are plenty of reasons why electric underfloor heating is now a favoured choice for rooms around the home. Aside of quick and easy installation as well as low running costs, many are persuaded by the aesthetical and practical advantages of having radiator-free walls while others simply love to feel the warmth under their feet.
Underfloor heating actually produces a more comfortable room heat. The heat from conventional central heating systems rises from the wall-mounted radiators creating cold spots while making the ceiling the warmest part of the room, but the even radiant distribution of heat from underfloor heating provides a near perfect temperature profile, with the warm air cooling as it rises to the ceiling - without creating cold spots.
In terms of control, each room is a singular heating zone, which allows for different temperature or time settings from the next.
Independent tile, stone and wood retailer, Tile Depot, offers a choice of electric underfloor heating kits by Thermonet, one of the leading UK manufacturers, including one with an increased output ideal for more challenging areas such as conservatories and in wet rooms for accelerating drying times to minimise the risk of slipping. Each of the kits can be used as an only heat source, as supplementary heating or to just take the chill off a cold floor and comes with a fully adjustable digital thermostat.
Economical and totally safe with a 10 year guarantee for added peace of mind, Tile Depot's underfloor heating is suitable for use with concrete and timber floors and most types of flooring including ceramic, porcelain and stone, timber, laminates, carpet and vinyl.
Supplied as a heatmat with the cable stitched onto a fibreglass mesh, it simply rolls out flat allowing for quick and easy, hassle-free installation without the need for primers or tapes and raises the floor height by just 3.5mm. The cable is pre-spaced for guaranteed output and the mesh can be cut and the cable freed for the flexibility to be adapted to suit awkwardly shaped areas.
For older properties and uninsulated concrete floors, Tile Depot also provide a range of insulation boards which ensure the heating system runs at 100% efficiency whilst only being 10mm thick.
Tile Depot's electric underfloor heating kits come in a choice of sizes and are available to take away, at all 16 Tile Depot stores in London and the South East - in Aylesbury, Basingstoke, Bedford, Crawley, Cricklewood, Edgware, Greenford, Hanwell, High Wycombe, Milton Keynes, Slough, Tonbridge, Uxbridge, Watford, Wembley and Whetstone - and ordering is also available online.
T: 08000 740720
E: [email protected]
W: www.thetiledepot.co.uk
13th May 2011