Underfloor Heating Installation in West Sussex and Surrey

How wet underfloor heating works

Wet underfloor heating is a network of pipes laid under the floor. Warm water from your boiler or heat pump runs through them and gently warms the whole floor surface. The heat then rises evenly through the room, rather than collecting around a radiator on one wall.

What a wet underfloor heating system is made of

• Insulation boards under the pipework, so the heat goes up into the room rather than down into the floor
• Pipe loops, typically 16mm, laid to a designed pattern in each room
• A manifold, which feeds the loops and controls the flow to each zone
• A thermostat for each zone, so every area runs at its own temperature
• A circulating pump, where the boiler’s own pump does not serve the floor
• A mixing valve, which blends the water down to the temperature the floor needs when the heat source runs hotter

Where underfloor heating works best

• Whole house heating, including replacing radiators completely
• New builds and extensions, where the floor is being built anyway
• Large open-plan kitchens and living spaces
• Bathrooms and kitchens with tiled or stone floors
• Homes with a heat pump, or planning to fit one

Why people choose underfloor heating over radiators

• Even warmth. No cold corner at one end of the room and no hot spot next to a radiator.
• Free walls. With no radiators in the way, you can put furniture wherever you like.
• Warm floors. Tiles in a bathroom or kitchen become comfortable to stand on, and a warm floor suits young children who spend a lot of their time down on it.
• Quiet. No ticking or clanking as radiators heat up and cool down.
• Less dust moving around. Underfloor heating creates less air movement than radiators, which some allergy sufferers notice.
• Long life. The pipework is designed to last 50 years or more and needs very little attention once it is down.

How warm does underfloor heating get?

The floor surface typically sits at 25 to 28 degrees. That feels warm underfoot without being hot. The system is designed to bring the room to the air temperature you set, usually 18 to 21 degrees, rather than to push the floor as hot as it will go.

The water in the pipes runs at around 35 to 45 degrees, against the 65 to 75 degrees a traditional radiator system uses. A floor also warms up and cools down more slowly than a radiator, so underfloor heating works best on steady schedules rather than short bursts of heat. Good smart controls make that easy to live with.

Choosing a floor finish for underfloor heating

• Tile and stone. The best conductors of heat, and ideal for bathrooms and kitchens.
• Laminate. Works well. Choose one the manufacturer rates for underfloor heating.
• Engineered wood. Suitable, and more stable than solid wood. It needs a lower floor temperature.
• Vinyl and LVT. Compatible, as long as the product is rated for underfloor heating.
• Solid wood. Can work, but it can move and warp. It needs specialist advice and lower temperatures.
• Carpet. Possible, but it holds the heat back. The carpet and underlay together should have a TOG rating under 2.5.

If you have not chosen the floor yet, tell us at survey. The finish affects the design.

Wet or electric underfloor heating?

Electric mats sit a few millimetres under the floor finish and cost less to install, which is why they turn up in single bathrooms and small kitchens. They cost more to run than a wet system. Wet underfloor heating is the one to choose for whole floors, extensions, renovations where the floor is coming up anyway, and any home with a heat pump. We design and fit wet systems.

Underfloor heating installation, step by step

1. Survey and design. We look at the floor construction, the heat each room needs and how you want the zones set up, then quote with a floor plan design.
2. Floor preparation. The sub-floor is prepared and levelled, and the insulation boards go down.
3. Pipe installation. The pipe loops are laid to the design, room by room.
4. Connection and pressure testing. The loops are connected to the manifold, and the manifold to your boiler or heat pump. Everything is pressure tested before the floor is covered.
5. Controls. A thermostat goes in for each zone and the zones are wired to the controls.
6. Floor finish. The screed or overlay goes down. A screed needs time to cure before the heating is brought up to temperature gradually and the final floor is laid.
7. Commissioning and handover. We balance the loops, show you how the controls work and leave you the documentation and user guide.

The pipework goes in quickly. On a screed floor, the curing time usually sets the overall timeline, and we give you the full schedule at survey.

What affects the price of underfloor heating

Every installation is quoted on its own, after a survey. The main factors are:

• The size and layout of the rooms
• The floor construction, and whether it is a new floor or an existing one
• The number of heating zones
• What the system will run from, a boiler or a heat pump
• Anything specific you want from the finished system

You get a fixed price before any work starts.

Underfloor heating repairs

Many underfloor heating faults turn out to be in the controls, the pump or the manifold rather than the pipe buried in the floor. That is good news, because those parts can be reached without lifting anything.

Common underfloor heating faults

• Not heating at all. Thermostat faults, a wiring or power problem at the controls, or a failed pump.
• Uneven heating. Air in the loops, poor balancing, or a zone that is not opening.
• Thermostat problems. Faulty sensors, programming errors or poor connections.
• Leaks. Damage to a pipe, or leaks at the manifold and its connections.
• High running costs. Poor insulation under the floor, or settings that make the system work harder than it needs to.
• Slow to warm up. Circulating pump faults, air in the system or zone valve problems.

What a repair visit can cover

• Fault finding and testing
• Thermostat repair or replacement
• Manifold servicing
• Circulating pump replacement
• Zone valve replacement
• Leak tracing and repair, using our leak detection service where the leak is hidden
• Rebalancing the system so every zone heats evenly