If you are undertaking a house renovation or home extension project, it’s a fantastic opportunity to add some modern touches to your home. This can include an in-built sound system, new double-glazed windows, large glass doors to the garden, or perhaps some underfloor heating. Homeowners often see underfloor heating as a luxury item, as it’s still relatively new in the market. At Home Tales, lots of our clients opt to include it in their scope of works. In fact, more than half of our clients use it as the heating method for their ground floor kitchen extension. It is more expensive to install, but it’s more efficient to run. If you are undertaking a home extension or renovation project, it is the perfect opportunity to introduce it into your home. 

Let’s be honest – radiators are only necessary for one practical reason. They have one job, which is to heat our homes. While they are now available in a whole host of styles and colours; they are bulky, unsightly, and often create a redundant area within the room. If you could heat the room in another way, would it be worth considering? 

Electrical vs water based underfloor heating 

There are two main types of underfloor heating, electrical and water based. Water based is the most efficient in terms of running costs. Electrical underfloor heating is easier to install, so it is generally better suited to smaller bathrooms or smaller spaces. 

Water based system

Water based systems generally connect to your boiler and use the warm water from your central heating system. The water is pumped through plastic pipes which is laid underneath your floor. Most of the pipes laid in today’s system are continuous, so there is no danger of leaks as there are no joints (or ‘weak’ points). The system is generally acknowledged to be maintenance free. In general, this is the best option if you are extending your home, as you will be creating an entire new floor slab anyway. If you simply want to add this to a room you already have, it’s a lot of work as you need to re-do the floor, including the sub level slabs. 

Electrical based system 

Dry underfloor heating is generally in the form of heating cables, sometimes loosely woven into mesh mats. These mats are laid out, connected together, and then connected to a thermostat or power supply. In general, these systems are cheaper to install as they cause less disruptive to the floor structure. They are less cost efficient then water-based systems. 

Underfloor heating has one massive advantage. It does the job without you knowing it’s there. You get all of the practical advantages with none of the visual disadvantages. If you are considering underfloor heating, but aren’t quite convinced, have a read of this blog. We thought we would talk you through some of the advantages of underfloor heating. 

Discreet Design 

If you are short on space, or are simply going for a minimalistic look, underfloor heating is your perfect companion. You can’t see it at all, it’s all hidden away underneath your floor. Compare this to a radiator, which you have to encompass into the room design. It limits your options on furniture placement, which can affect the whole dynamic of the room. They are generally quite unsightly. Yes, the radiator design has come a long way in recent years, if given the choice, you would rather have it removed from the equation.  

Cost & Energy Efficient 

While it does come with a high installation price (£2k to £5k for a typical room), it is cheaper to run. Underfloor heating heats to a much lower temperature then radiators, so the running costs are lower. It means you aren’t having to heat all that water to such a high temperature, in such a short amount of time. Underfloor heating generally maintains a temperature of around 18 degrees. This means it doesn’t require such a surge of heat to simply get to room temperature, and likewise to increase the temperature in the room too. If you chose an efficient floor material, that conducts heat well, it can also be very efficient as keeping the heat even after the underfloor pipes have cooled down.

It Fits To You 

Radiators are fairly inefficient as they heat one area of the room to a high temperature. This means the other side of the room will generally be cooler than the radiator side. Underfloor heating distributes warm air around the room evenly, making it more comfortable and far more efficient to run. 

Cleanliness 

Radiators are fiddley to clean as they have curves and hard to reach places that gather dust over time. Underfloor heating is all hidden away, so it stays clean and doesn’t need any maintenance in that regard. 

If you are thinking of extending or renovating your home, call our team today on 020 7043 2378 or email us at hello@hometales.co.uk.