Underfloor heating - save money and keep warm!
Getting cold feet about this winter's heating bills? You definitely need underfloor heating then!
Underfloor heating is not new - just the opposite. It first appeared during the Roman Empire and was popular in the cold, northern countries that had been occupied. Their original system consisted of hypocausts - stone lined ducts which lay under the floors and through which hot air from a small furnace was flushed; thus heating the tiles and paving above and, from there, the whole house.
Underfloor heating became very popular - mainly because of its effectiveness but also partly because the warmth emanating from floor made for a pleasant environment. It was also cheap to operate in comparison to other heating methods.
The idea of underfloor heating then disappeared in the UK until the early 1960's when electric cabling was used instead of the hot air system. Unfortunately the electric wiring often shorted and the mechanical parts were prone to failure. Elsewhere in Europe, warm water was used in underfloor heating for the first time. Unlike in the UK, this was an immediate success and was adopted right across Europe from Scandinavia to the Mediterranean.
Nowadays, warm water underfloor heating systems are available anywhere although its economic appeal depends on the level of other refurbishment being undertaken. In order to be really cost-effective, underfloor heating requires the existing floor to be broken out. If this is a new home or a major refurbishment then such work should not represent much of an additional cost. Unfortunately, in an existing property, the construction work attached to installing warm water heating makes the idea prohibitive for the most part.
The main reasons why people choose underfloor heating are because:
Underfloor heating removes the need for radiators which:
- Reduces maintenance - radiators are always needing 'bleeding' or flushing.
- Improves safety - the surfaces of radiators can easily burn hands; particularly those of young children.
- Frees up wallspace
Underfloor heating provides evenly-distributed heat at floor level which:
- Means that both maximum and minimum warmth are where you need them to be.
- Is less damaging for antique furniture which can easily be damaged by temperature or humidity extremes.
- Turns the naturally cold floor into the warm spot.
- Removes 'cold spots' from the living area.
Underfloor heating also allows flooring materials such as tiles, mosaics to be used instead of carpets. These have a longer life and are easier to keep clean.
Finally, underfloor heating also operates with lower relative humidity than radiators and this, in turn, means that dust mites cannot survive and that there is less dust generally. Ask any asthma sufferer what that means!
The warm water can be produced by heating using either a traditional boiler or, better still, by using a condenser boiler. More energy can be saved by generating the electricity from solar panels or by using the increasingly-popular geothermal energy to heat the water.
|