Tiled underfloor heating

The tiled floor has many positive qualities. This is a strong and durable coating, has an attractive appearance and various external design. But such a coating is cold and does not add coziness in the house.

The way out of this situation is surface insulation. Ceramic tile has good thermal conductivity, therefore, its heating from an additional heat source occurs quickly and remains inside the tile for a long time.

An important quality is the resistance of the material to temperature changes, it is not afraid of constant heating. There are many ways to arrange the warm heating of a tiled floor. For the right choice, you need to familiarize yourself with them and decide which heating is suitable for the tiled coating in your home.

Types and device

The following main types of floor heating are distinguished:

1. Water.
2. Electric.

When using electricity to heat the surface, devices that differ in the way they transfer heat are used. They are convection and infrared. Carriers of such heat transfer are cable and film devices.

Therefore, the electrical type of heating is divided into:

1. Cable.
2. Convection roll.
3. Infrared film and in the form of mats.

Water heating is based on a lining under the cladding. plastic pipesthrough which hot water flows. Pipes, depending on the nature of the dwelling, are connected either to the autonomous heating of the private house, or to the general system, if it is an apartment building.

It is advisable to use water heating of the floor, which has a large area, because hot water evenly circulates through all the laid pipes and can heat the entire surface.

For this, during installation, an additional water pump is often used. The advantage of such a heating device is its low cost during operation, which pays for the costs of installation.

The water heating scheme consists of the following layers:

1. Thermal insulation material.
2. Reinforcing mesh.
3. Plastic pipes.
4. Cement strainer.
5. Ceramic tile.

With this scheme, the load on the floors increases significantly, and especially in old houses they do not designed for such additional pressure, therefore, the use of a water heating method limited.

Cable heating

The principle of heating a cable type is based on heating a shielded cable having a thickness of up to 8 mm. Heating occurs as a result of the resistance of the conductor when voltage is applied and electric current is passed.

Two types of cable are used: in single and two-core execution. Installation of a single-core cable must necessarily combine the starting and ending points of the cable, i.e. it must be closed.

Recently, a two-core cable type has been used mainly for which this requirement does not apply. The heating cable is laid in parallel rows at a distance of 8-25 cm from each other under a cement screed, which is made from 3 to 6 cm thick.

Tiles are placed on top of the screed. The installation of a cable heating system is not difficult, except for the filling of the screed, which takes a long time to dry up to 28 days. But the cable system provides quick heating of the surface after switching on.

The disadvantages are:

1. Significant costs to pay for electricity.
2. Increased Extra Load general power system of the house.
3. The presence of electromagnetic radiation.
4. Limited floor load: Do not place heavy objects in the form of furniture, equipment, etc.

Roll heating systems

Two types of material are referred to the roll type of floor heating:

1. Heating mat: convection and infrared.
2. Infrared film.

Heating mats

1. Convection. Mats, the principle of heating of which is based on convection of heated air, are a type of cable insulation of the surface. A feature of such mats is that the cable system is fixed to a fiberglass mesh. Such thin mats are easily attached to the surface with a minimum layer of screed, which rests on the mesh and, after drying, tightly adjoins the surface of the base. It is allowed to fasten the reinforcing mesh with a layer of tile glue, with which the tile is glued.
2. Infrared Heated floor cladding with mats, which are based on carbon rods. They also represent a roll form of heating material. Unlike convection heating mats, they are devoid of a backing.

The design of the IR mat is parallel to the elastic carbon rods with the addition of silver and graphite rods, rigidly fixed on both sides by conductive cables. Width - 830 mm, they work from a voltage of 220 watts. When connected to the network after heating, the rods begin to emit waves in the infrared range that convert energy to heat.

On such mats, without fear, you can put any furniture, because the rods have the property of self-regulation, and the heat blocked by the furniture location zone will be distributed through other channels.

Such mats are mounted with mandatory screed on top of them.

Their installation and the cost of the mats themselves is expensive, and this is their drawback.

Infrared film

The film material that provides heating the floor with IR radiation is a thin double film, between the layers of which graphite strips are located, which are conductors.

They are interconnected by contacts made of copper alloys with the inclusion of silver. The entire parallel-connected system is connected to the central bus, which supplies it with a voltage of 220 watts. When connected to the network, graphite strips, after uniform heating, begin to emit infrared waves.

There are IR film sheets on sale that have a different type of device. In them, a carbon fiber material made of carbon based paste with special additives serves as a heating element. Graphite spraying devices are also used. The basis in this embodiment is a lavsan strong film, characterized by elasticity and having good dielectric properties.

A feature of IR radiation is the heating of directly objectsrather than heat transfer through heated air, which is a fundamental difference from the convection heating method. The air temperature in the room remains comfortable, the heat from the source of infrared radiation is spent only on floor heating, which can significantly save energy consumption.

What material is better for insulation?

Having examined all types of devices for warm flooring, everyone determines which one is most suitable for his home. Under a ceramic coating, electric mats are recommended, which are based on a convection heating method.

They easily fit under this facing material and can do without carrying out a coupler. But the energy consumption during the operation of such devices as the cable system is significant. With the convection method of heat transfer, the air in the room warms up significantly with the floor, which does not contribute to a comfortable stay in it.

Another thing is IR film insulation, although it is not recommended to be laid under a ceramic coating, because the film is badly "friendly" with with tile glue and therefore between the film and the tile surface it is necessary to lay insulation or reinforcing mesh with subsequent screed.

But the use of an IR film to warm such a coating is justified by many positive factors:

1. It is easy to install. and is available for self-installation.
2. Convenient in operation: uniform heating, the possibility of replacing the faulty part of the system due to the use of parallel connection.
3. During operation, not air is heated, and objects through which infrared waves pass.
4. IR floor is not afraid of moisture, therefore, it can be laid in any damp room, where tiling of the floor surface is usually arranged.

Another advantage of IR film is its affordable price. It can be selected based on the needs of each customer, since many variations of the infrared film device are produced, which differ in price level.

DIY styling

The simplest installation option that you can do yourself is to install an infrared film.

For successful installation of underfloor heating requires:

1. Decide on the choice of infrared film with the necessary heating parameters, because for different species, these indicators are different.
2. Prepare the necessary insulation for the tileIt’s better to choose solid.
3. Plan a placewhere the film will be laid, because heavy objects should not be there.
4. Stock up with the necessary tools and materials: construction and double adhesive tape, scissors, pliers, a knife and wire cutters.
5. Remove debris and dirt from the bottom of the floor, you can use a vacuum cleaner for this.
6. Level the base with a level, deviations should not be more than 3 mm.
7. Install waterproofing in the form of polyethylene or a special membrane with a thickness of at least 50 microns.

Rules and procedure for installation:

1. Cut the film along the outlined dashed lines on sheets of the desired length.
2. Tape sheets togetherwhile the reflecting side should be at the top.
3. Lay sheets in the longitudinal direction of the room, because then there will be fewer bands and the number of connection points will decrease.
4. To prevent shear, the canvas is fixed on the side edges that do not contain elements to the base of the floor, using double-sided tape or staples.
5. Strips are laid in one layer. copper contact down, avoiding overlap.
6. Terminals are installed on the slices at the location of the copper strip to provide contact.
7. Wall nearest to wiringset the thermostat.
8. Then, fasten wires to installed terminals by crimping with pliers, having previously exposed the contact part. Connection points must be insulated. To do this, use rubber material included in the film kit. The insulation is carried out on two sides: above and below. Wires are placed along different edges of the insulation, avoiding overlap.
9. The fixed wires are connected to the thermostat.
10. Connect the system to the networkby pre-installing the tile temperature sensor.
11. Before laying the tile material, a reinforcing mesh is installed and perform a screed or lay a solid insulation.

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