With the onset of cold weather, every owner of an apartment or house is trying to find the most profitable way to effectively heat the home. In the past few years, an electric underfloor heating has become popular , the energy consumption of which can be very economical. For this, during installation and operation of the system, several expert advice should be taken into account. This will reduce the cost of the family budget for energy.
System device
To understand how to save on the consumption of electrical energy , you should first study the system device. For heating inside or outside the premises, special wires are most often used. They consist of a nichrome core. Around it are several insulating shells.
The device is connected to a thermostat, which controls the level of heating. The efficiency of this system is associated with its basic principle of operation.
The energy consumption of the underfloor heating will be less than that of a convector or radiator. His temperature peak is determined at the base of the room.
Cold masses are at the top.
Convectors, radiators, on the contrary, create maximum temperatures near the ceiling. In the area of the first 50 cm from the floor, heating is minimal.
Varieties of systems
They will help to understand the features that an electric heated floor has, characteristics. Power consumption is not the same for all systems. On sale are a cable mounted under a screed (3-5 cm), and a mat that is installed immediately in tile adhesive (5-8 mm). There are other systems.
The cable is commercially available as a bay. Its cross section is about 7 mm. Therefore, it is mandatory to fill it with a screed. The master independently unfolds the heating wire on the prepared surface. The laying step between the turns can be from 8 to 15 cm. Therefore, the power per 1 m² varies from the thickness of the turns.
The mat is a mesh of PVC material (50 cm wide), on which a thin wire (3 mm thick) has already been laid out. Here, a capacity of 1 m² is set by the manufacturer. Therefore, when buying, you need to choose the right option.
System power
Regardless of the type of system, there are certain standards regarding which the system capacity per 1 m² is selected. For room heating, a system from 110 to 180 W / m² is suitable. Equipping an anti-icing system for sidewalks, roofs, gutters, etc., a wire with a power of about 200-350 W / m² is required.
The choice of this indicator also depends on the flooring. Electric underfloor heating, the energy consumption of which is 110-130 W / m² per hour, suitable for laminate flooring. The wooden coating must not be heated above 30 ° C. Therefore, the power of such coatings does not require too high. I want to heat the tile more strongly. Therefore, systems from 150 to 180 W / m² per hour are used for it.
Infrared underfloor heating
Today is widely used infrared floor heating electric. The energy consumption of this system differs from cable varieties of heating appliances. The heating element of such a product looks like a film with stripes. This is a laminated carbon paste.
Such a warm floor is suitable for "dry" installation when the solution is not used. A laminate, linoleum or carpet are immediately mounted on the film without screed or tile adhesive.
The power of the infrared warm floor is higher than that of the cable. It is about 220 W / m² per hour. This product is best used for comfortable heating.
Power calculation
There is a certain technique that allows you to calculate how much energy a warm floor consumes. The calculation formula is very simple. Initially, it is necessary to determine by the method described above the required system capacity per 1 m².
Next, the area over which the warm floor will be laid is calculated. You can make comfortable heating and heat the room using additional appliances. In this case, the system covers less than 50% of the room area. If you want to heat the room with an exclusively electric underfloor heating, it is necessary to mount the system at least 70% of the base.
Suppose you need to make autonomous heating in the bathroom, which is located on the 3rd floor of a multi-storey building. The required power per 1 m² will be 150 watts (the flooring will be made of tiles). The area is 10 m². If you take the quadrature, which is occupied by furniture and plumbing, it turns out 7 m². The calculation is made:
M = 7 * 150 = 1050 W
You must purchase a 1050-watt system.
How much energy does the system consume?
The above calculation method allows you to find the maximum power consumption of the warm floor. But under normal conditions, such systems consume much less energy.
The fact is that the working temperature of the wire is usually 65 ° C. The surface to this level never heats up due to the mandatory presence of heat loss in the room. But with prolonged use, the system will be able to reach 50-55 ° C on the floor. It is comfortable for a person to stand bare feet on a surface with a temperature of 25-30 ° C. Therefore, the level of heating of the warm floor is controlled by the thermostat.
The system consumes the most energy during the first heating. If the wire is mounted in a screed, this process takes about 3-4 hours. For the mat, the first warm-up lasts from 40 minutes. up to 1 hour. Next, the thermostat shuts off the current supply to the wire. Screed can give off heat for quite a long time. On the surface, the temperature may not drop for more than an hour. Mat cools in 20-30 minutes. During this time, the warm floor does not consume electricity.
On average, an electric underfloor heating works for 8-10 hours per day, provided that there are no significant heat losses in the room and the heating level is 25 ° C.
How to reduce energy consumption during installation?
Electric underfloor heating, the energy consumption of which can be significantly reduced, requires the right approach to its installation. The better the base of the floor is insulated, the less the owners will pay bills for energy.
Be sure to insulate the base in the premises of the first floor, on the balcony. For this, polystyrene foam or rubber-based roll insulation is used. Filling the cable with a cable tie, it will also be better to equip high-quality insulation.
Due to the small thickness of the solution above the wire, the mat can be mounted without insulation, but only if this is not the first floor.
In a room with high ceilings, large window openings, poorly insulated walls, more energy is required for the presented system.
How to reduce energy costs after installation?
The heated floor is electric, the energy consumption of which depends on the characteristics of the room, also greatly depends on the type of thermostat. There are mechanical and programmable versions on sale. In the first case, the device constantly maintains a given level of heating, breaking the circuit when a certain temperature is reached.
Programmable thermostat will reduce energy consumption by up to 30%. This device allows you to use the warm floor only during those hours when the owners are at home. After they leave, for example, to work, the program reduces heating to a minimum level. An hour before the owners arrive, the appliance turns on the system and again heats the floor.
Having considered such a system as an electric heated floor, the energy consumption of which depends on many factors, each user will be able to significantly reduce the cost of paying bills for energy resources.