Many people think that underfloor heating is something relatively new. In fact is has been around for thousands of years having been used by the Romans who realised the many benefits of heat from below. Modern underfloor systems have come a long way since then. Imagine heating that allows individual room control, feels warm under bare feet and avoids the clutter of pipework and radiators. This is the reality of wet underfloor heating, and almost any floor finish (Carpet, Vinyl, Wood, Tile, Stone) is suitable for use with underfloor heating.

Underfloor heating works by pumping a controlled flow of warm water from any heat source through plastic tubing embedded in the floor. Because the emitting area is large, sufficient warmth is provided even on a cold winter day with no need for supplementary heating or space sapping radiators.

As a specialist underfloor installer Retherm provides a full system design with bespoke CAD drawings showing all mechanical pipework and valves as well as electrical connections. Our installation team will lay appropriate insulation, pipework, install the distribution manifold and pressure test the installation prior laying a finishing screed.

There are many different types of floor construction used in the UK building industry. Retherm underfloor has a system to suit most of these. When designing our systems we would require the most up to date drawings from which we would produce our layout drawings showing the position of pipework, thermostats and manifolds. We would discuss this layout with the customer and would make any amendments before our final drawing is approved and signed off. Our installation team would fit the system in line with your schedule and immediately after installation we would screed (where applicable)

In this type of floor structure the system is fitted from above before the wooden floor is laid. Firstly mineral wool insulation is laid between the joists both as sound proofing and to prevent heat loss downwards. Aluminium heat emission plates are then fixed to the joists. The underfloor heating pipe is fixed into grooves in the aluminium plates this has the effect of making the whole of the plated area the radiant surface. After the underfloor heating system has been pressure tested, the wooden floor can be installed.

This tends to be the most popular system for underfloor heating. The heating pipes are buried in the screed which then acts as a large thermal store. ). Floor insulation is laid either by us or others prior to the pipe laying process. The insulation has the dual purpose of preventing the downward loss of heat and allows us to secure our pipework using pipe clips pushed in to the insulation. Once completed the screed can be laid either traditional 4:1 sand cement with additive (75mm depth recommended) or free flowing liquid screed (55mm depth recommended). Screeded floors must be allowed to dry before laying the final floor finish.

There are other more specialised types of system please ask should you have a specific need.