When creating a warm floor, it is necessary to take into account its thickness. If we make it small, there is a risk that the temperature will damage the material. But a too thick floor is also bad. It will block the flow of the required amount of energy. It is important to choose the best solution.
What should be the thickness of the warm floor under the tile
The content of the article
- What should be the thickness of the warm floor under the tile
- The thickness of the layers of the warm floor
- Deviation from the given parameters: consequences
The following parameters depend on this indicator:
- The life of the system.
- How quickly the floor warms up.
- The uniformity of heating.
- How well it keeps warm.
A thin layer heats up quickly, but with constant temperature support, cracks begin to appear on the concrete. Most defects appear in those places where the pipes are located.
The minimum height of the screed layer is about 7 cm, but it only fits under a tile that can withstand overheating. The average pipe fill is about 10 cm. This parameter is only suitable for floors in houses and apartments. And in warehouses or retail facilities, the layer height can be more than 25 cm.
The indicator also depends on the size of the pipes. Without thermal insulation, the figure will be about 5 cm.
Attention! With electric heating, the requirements for thickness are not so high, since it is much easier to regulate the flow of energy.
The thickness of the layers of the warm floor
Underfloor heating consists of several layers. First, the screed is taken into account. It is mounted to the finishing field, and tied to a base or foundation. But if the floor is insulated on the ground floor, the screed is done on the ground. The screed is a pillow for the floor. Its average size is about 5 cm.
The next layer is insulation. It all depends on the selected material. If you stayed on polystyrene foam (it is the most common), its average thickness should be about 10 cm. But you can set the minimum - 5 cm. The density of the material is also taken into account. These numbers are suitable if the density is about 30 kg / m3. For a denser material, the thickness must be reduced.
Then comes the plastic wrap. Its thickness is from 1.5 to 2 cm. On top of the polyethylene, a grid of rods is made, from a thickness of 0.4 cm. And after creating the fittings, you can solve the issue with the pipeline. The diameter depends on the material of manufacture. The average thickness of the pipe is 1.5 cm.
Now you need to cover the pipeline. For this, an additional 2 cm grid is enough. The last layer is a screed, about 5 cm thick. It is not only the base of the floor, but also responsible for the accumulation of heat.
After calculating the sum of all the layers, we get the height of the common floor.
Deviation from the given parameters: consequences
If you make the floor too thick, the temperature will be lower than expected. The reason is poor thermal insulation. It can always be increased, but then more energy will be required. And there may be problems with the regulation of the system.
If the insulation is made too thick, when it enters through the insulation, a large amount of energy is lost.
There are also cases when some parts of the floors are warm and some parts are cold (this applies to water structures). Most likely, heat is poorly distributed on the floor. In a place where there are no pipes, energy does not flow to the coating. You can reduce this figure or mount an additional pipe.
The last problem - if you make the insulation layer very thin, there is a risk of damage to the screed.
