Installation of underfloor heating, installation instructions

In winter, especially in cold weather, traditional heating is not enough. We often encounter “blowing from the floor”, and this is a significant inconvenience, because it is extremely important to keep our feet warm. A particularly warm floor is relevant for those who have small children. As a rule, electric floor heating is used in bathrooms, loggias, verandas or baths. This option is a wonderful addition to the main heating of homes using electric heating radiators in apartments and houses where the installation of water heating is impossible. Installation of a heated electric floor is quite simple, and today there are many options for this. This makes it possible to install it easily and without any problems.

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Materials and tools necessary for the installation of a warm floor

Before proceeding with the installation of an electric heated floor with your own hands, you need to stock up on everything you need to work, so as not to be distracted and have everything you need at hand.

So, you will need the following:

• Directly the floor heating system itself, to which the heating cable belongs, sometimes with a pre-reinforced mesh.
• Copper cable for grounding.
• Mounts
• RCD protection system.
• Connecting wires.
• Regulator.
• Thermal sensor.

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Settlement stage

In order to correctly and easily calculate the amount of required material, it is best to use ready-made tables from the manufacturer. The main principle is the correct calculation of the heat loss of the room, after which the necessary step for laying the wire and the required length for the entire room are selected.

For film systems, the calculation is much simpler: it is necessary to choose such a number of elements so that they cover the entire area of ​​the room. Also, the calculation should include a wire for connecting the electric floor and the regulator from the meter and to the components of the system from the regulator.

Important! Direct connection of the underfloor heating to the outlet is prohibited.

According to the calculations and the received power for the entire surface of the warm floor, it is necessary to check the general electrical input for its ability to withstand the load. In the event that the existing input is small, it must be replaced and appropriate automatic fuses installed.

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The most common installation options for electric underfloor heating

There are several ways to make an electric heated floor with your own hands, and they can differ significantly from each other:

• The heating element is built into the screed layer, and then the floor covering is laid.
• A warm floor is laid on top of the screed under ceramic tiles.
• Laying is carried out directly under the floor covering (applies to film floors).

Method 1

The first option is optimal in order to heat living quarters, a bathroom, a kitchen, a loggia. In this case, the installation of cable underfloor heating is implied.

Important! The system is installed on a waterproofing and insulation layer, and a screed is formed on top of a small layer.

Method 2

If the floor below you have a pre-warmed room, then you can install an electric heated floor immediately under the tile, without laying a heat-insulating layer, without making a screed.

Important! Ceramic tiles and a layer of special glue alone insulate the heating elements.

Method 3

Installing a film underfloor heating, which is also called infrared, is a wonderful option if you intend to install a warm floor under a layer of laminate or linoleum, but do not have the ability or desire to do major repairs.

In this case, the insulation is laid in the form of a layer of foamed foamed polyethylene on an existing screed. Electric elements are installed on top, if necessary, a waterproofing layer, and only then the flooring itself.

Important! Do not install the infrared floor in the screed or under the tile.

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Distribution of heating units and control elements

First of all, it is necessary to create a detailed plan for installing a warm floor on paper. Please note that:

• You should not install heating cables or film in those places where you plan to put massive pieces of furniture and large household appliances.
• The area free from heating elements must be provided in those places where heating pipes and other heat sources pass.
• In the event that the heat output is limited, for example, by furniture, or if additional heating is from outside, the elements may overheat and fail. In addition, furniture may be damaged. This is a significant drawback of underfloor heating: rearrangement in the room is undesirable.
• As a result of developing the plan, you will get the correct figure, which is inscribed in the rectangle of the room. It is inside this circuit that a warm electric floor will be laid.
• The best option would be to create separate circuits for different rooms, even symbolically separated, with separate controllers and a power cable.
• If you are pouring a screed, then a damper tape should be laid between these sections on the floor surface.

Important! A feature of warm electric floors is that, unlike hydraulic systems, the elements of one circuit heat up the same way.

After the plan is completely drawn up on paper, it must be transferred to the floor surface. Mark the location of the regulator on the wall in a convenient place. Immediately make a hole for the mounting box and lower the stroba to the floor. Since the amount of materials you have already calculated, you can get to work.

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Preparatory work before installing a warm floor:

1. If there is a need, before installing an electric underfloor heating with your own hands, dismantle the completely old screed to the base and thoroughly clean the surface.
2. Then it is necessary to lay the waterproofing layer with a margin of approximately 10 cm on the wall.
3. Immediately on the surface of the wall you need to fix the damper tape around the perimeter: when heated, it compensates for the thermal expansion of the floor.
4. Excessive waterproofing and tape can be cut further.

Important! So that the idle heat does not go down, it is necessary to insulate the base of the floor.

The type of insulation should be chosen, depending on how the room is located, what type of surface. In this case, keep in mind the target orientation of the heating system:

1. If a heated floor is a tool that complements the main heating system, then foam foil (foamed foil polyethylene) will be sufficient as a substrate.
2. If under your apartment on the floor below is an insulated, well-heated room, then you can use any durable insulation with a thickness of 20-50 mm, for example, sheets of extruded polystyrene foam.
3. When installing a warm floor on a loggia or veranda that have not previously been heated, form a more solid and dense insulation layer. For these purposes, mineral wool or polystyrene foam up to 10 cm thick can be used.

Important! Over the insulation layer, you can lay a reinforced mesh. This is not always necessary, because for a thin layer of screed it is enough to add microfiber or plasticizer to the solution.

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Installation of electric underfloor heating

Before installing the cable underfloor heating, it is necessary to check its resistance and check with the passport. The run-up cannot be more than 10% of the data stated in the documents.

Important! It is possible to install an electric heat-insulated floor both by fixing it on a reinforcing mesh using screeds, but not tightening it so, using special fixing tapes.

Installation of a warm film floor is simple:

• Elements are spread over the insulation layer. If the manufacturer recommends a certain laying technology, then fixing with a special adhesive tape or behind the ears on the element may be required.

Important! If you make such a floor in a bathroom or bath, be sure to ground the reinforcing mesh, and ground to the controller. For these purposes, use tinned copper wire.

• In those places where the wire is located above the line that divides the floor slabs, it is necessary to hide it in a piece of corrugated pipe. This is necessary to prevent cable breakage during thermal expansion of plates.
• Connection points must be noted on the plan of the apartment. In the future, this will come in handy if you have to repair your warm floor.
• After you install all the elements in their places, you should once again check the resistance of the wire. You can turn on the warm floor only if the resistance slightly differs from the preliminary measurements.
• Then you need to lower the corrugated pipe along the strobe from the regulator, placing its other end between the nearest cable strips in the middle. A temperature sensor should be placed inside the corrugated pipe - with it you can regulate the operation of the warm floor.

Important! Some craftsmen advise using a tube with a slightly larger diameter for the temperature sensor than the one that is included with the cable. For example, place the temperature sensor inside the tube before filling the floor, and do not pull it out again. Since heat is transferred to the surrounding screed, the cable will not heat up to the maximum temperature.

• If everything is within the normal range, then turn off the power to the system and remove the regulator until you have completely finished all the finishing work. Then the screed is formed, and after it is completely dry, the operation of the entire system is checked. If the result is positive, you can proceed with the installation of the flooring.

Important! In the case of installing a film floor, there is no need for a screed, so a laminate or linoleum can be laid immediately.

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Stock footage

Surely you noticed that installing a warm electric floor is not such a difficult task. Using our advice and recommendations, you will be able to cope with this work, and your apartment will always be cozy and warm.