Today, there are many options for heating systems. They differ in the cost of installation, operation, as well as their efficiency. One of the best heating options is underfloor heating. This system can be mounted independently both in a private house and in an apartment.
There are several types of such systems. They need to be selected and mounted correctly. This will allow you to operate the presented type of heating as efficiently as possible. How to make a warm floor will be discussed in our article.
general description
Before you consider how to make a warm floor, you need to know the features of this system. It is one of the newest and most effective today.
In the construction of the base of the room, heating elements are mounted. It can be pipes through which the coolant circulates, electric wires or a film. The choice depends on the features of the system.
In the course of its work, the heater makes the floor surface warm. Heat gradually rises to the ceiling. Here the air cools down and again falls to the floor. In this case, a person in such a room becomes warmer much earlier than in a room with a wall convector of the same power.
The fact is that batteries and other similar wall-mounted heating devices provide intensive heating of air in the upper part of the room. The space near the floor remains always colder. Therefore, more energy is required to make a person comfortable in such a room. A warm floor, on the contrary, consumes less energy, while creating the most comfortable heating. Heated air is concentrated at the base of the room.
Types of systems
When considering how to make a warm floor, you need to start by choosing the right design. There are water and electric varieties of designs. They differ in the principle of work.
Water underfloor heating is connected to the boiler. From it, the heated coolant enters all the circuits of the system. This type of heating is suitable for a private house. The boiler can operate on solid fuel, gas or electricity. The choice depends on the indicators of economic feasibility and the possibility of using a particular resource in a particular area.
Electric underfloor heating is suitable for an apartment. It is easier to install. If it is not practical to install a boiler in an apartment, the electrical type of systems will be the best solution. To make the right choice, it is necessary to consider the features of each system.
Features of water systems
Considering how to make a warm floor in a private house, the best option is to install a water system. It will need to be equipped at the stage of construction of the building or in the process of major repairs. In this case, the floor will be created from scratch.
A separate heating circuit will flow from the boiler to each room, and coolant should be circulated through the pipes, the temperature of which should not exceed 55 º. A temperature sensor should monitor this process. After the boiler, a special comb is mounted. She will open and close the reinforcement of each circuit.
When the water in the pipe of one of the circuits becomes colder than the set level, the sensor will work. The shutoff valves will open, letting a new portion of hot liquid into the pipe. After the water heats up, the mechanism will block the receipt of the heated coolant from the boiler. It is very important to plan the installation of a water floor heating along with the purchase of a boiler. It must have an appropriate capacity that can satisfy the needs of the premises in heat.
Installation of water underfloor heating
Making a warm floor with your own hands in the house is quite simple:
- It will be necessary to prepare the foundation. The old screed is removed to the log or foundation.
- Next, you need to fill up a layer of expanded clay. A layer of thermal insulation is laid out on it and a rough screed is poured.
- When it dries, thermal insulation is laid on the floor. Expanded polystyrene with a thickness of at least 3 cm is suitable.
- Waterproofing is laid out on the insulation layer.
- Next, mounting rails are installed. A pipe will be laid out on them, which can be made of different materials. The contour is created from a special heat-resistant plastic, which most often has a red color.
- The pipe is laid out on a prepared base in the form of a “snail” or “snake”. The choice depends on the preferences of the wizard. Each room creates its own separate circuit, which is connected to the boiler.
- Next, the pipes are poured with a layer of screed at least 5 cm. The composition should include plasticizers.
- When the screed has dried, you can create a finish coat.
Water floor in the apartment
Some apartment owners are wondering about how to make a warm floor from heating. It should immediately be said that such an action is illegal. Installing water underfloor heating in the apartment is possible only with an autonomous boiler. It will need to be legalized in the relevant municipal institutions.
If you conduct pipes from centralized heating, then on the subsequent length of the line, the temperature will decrease significantly. At neighbors, the water temperature in the batteries will not be able to reach the set level. Such violation of the use of the heat supply system is punishable.
It should also be noted that pipes that are in the floor can begin to leak after a certain number of years. If there are neighbors below, this can lead to a flood, damage to their property. Water floor heating requires raising the floor level by at least 10 cm. This will require the installation of new doors. In an apartment, it is more advisable to install an electrical type of system.
Electrical type systems
The owners of apartments may have a question about whether it is possible to make a warm floor in their home. This will be possible using an electrical system.
It can be of several types:
- The first variety is a wire that is mounted in a screed. It is used only during major repairs.
- The second type of electric floor is mounted immediately in tile adhesive. This greatly simplifies installation. In this case, it is possible to arrange a new floor without even having to remove the old coating, if before that ceramic tiles were laid on the base. On top of such a system, you can install tiles, laminate.
- The easiest to use is a film underfloor heating system. This warm floor is mounted literally in an hour. At the same time, it is not poured with screed or tile glue. This is the best option for those owners who want to lay a laminate or linoleum. In this case, you can not even carry out major repairs.
Screed Mounting
When figuring out how to make a warm floor in a house or apartment, you need to consider several installation options.
The first type of heating system involves pouring a heating wire into a screed (such a cable has a thickness of about 7 mm):
- First prepare the base. On a flat floor you need to lay a layer of insulation, for example, polystyrene foam. Its thickness should be at least 2 cm (as much as possible).
- Next, lay a layer of waterproofing. It places metal mounting rails. With their help, the wire is fixed.
- The electric cable must be laid out with a “snake” in increments of 7 to 15 cm. The narrower the coils of the wire, the faster the floor will heat up.
- Next, a cement-sand screed is poured onto the wire. It is better to choose a special solution for these purposes, which includes plasticizers. When laying a warm floor, the appearance of air pockets is unacceptable.
When the screed hardens, the topcoat is laid out on it.
Installing wire in tile adhesive
Considering how to make warm floors yourself, you need to study the second installation option. It has a lot of advantages. In this case, a thin cable is used, the thickness of which is about 3 mm. It is most often released in the form of mats. The wire in this case is already fixed on a special polymer mesh with a width of 50 cm. It is rolled out onto a smooth concrete floor.
In some cases, you need to lay out the wire yourself. The step should be from 5 to 12 cm. If a warm floor is arranged in an apartment on the second floor and above, you can not install thermal insulation, since there is a heated room below. The thickness above the wire will be minimal, which allows you to optimize heat loss.
When the wire or mat is laid out, a layer of tile adhesive can be applied. Its thickness can be only 5-7 mm. It is best to choose ceramic tiles as the topcoat. It is a durable material that is characterized by high thermal conductivity. Electricity costs will be minimal. Laminate will restrain heating, and more energy resources will be required.
Film mounting
When considering how to make a warm floor with your own hands, you need to consider another type of system. This is a film infrared warm floor. It is mounted under a laminate or linoleum. The screed, tile glue is not laid on it. Such solutions quickly corrode a thin film.
Inside such a system is a conductive paste. It heats up to 50 º. The laminate can not be heated above 30 º, so first you need to lay the substrate under the laminate on an even base. A film spreads on it. The wires are brought to it with the help of metal contacts, which pierce the contacts in two places of the heating sheet.
They are isolated using bitumen material. Top cover with plastic clips. In places where they will be laid, recesses are cut out on the substrate. This will drown the junction of the wires with the film. Further on top is a laminate.
Temperature controller
Figuring out how to make a warm floor in the house, you should consider the heating control system. Each manufacturer of electrical heating systems provides for their maximum operation. To reduce heat, a temperature controller is used. This device has a built-in or remote sensor in its design.
The temperature controller is installed on the wall. Leads from a household network and from a heat-insulated floor lead to it. The sensor will monitor the heating temperature. If it is built into the housing, then the heating device will be turned off and on according to the level of air heating. Remote sensors monitor the temperature of the floor directly.
Thermostats can be mechanical or programmable. The first option allows you to set the heating level manually. The device will keep it for a day at a given level. Programmable models are more economical. For them, you can install a program according to which they will work during the day.
Setting the thermostat
Knowing how to make a warm floor, we must not forget about installing a thermostat. It is mounted at least 1 m from the surface. If the kit includes a remote sensor, it is placed in a corrugated pipe and installed next to the turns of wire. Next, the network and wires from the floor are brought to the device. On the back of the thermostat are terminals that are designed for each specific type of wire.
We hope that the answer to the question of how to make a warm floor will now not cause you any difficulties.