Install heated flooring under your tile, stone and other flooring surfaces to heat your home from the floor up, keeping the heat where you need it most. These silent, nearly invisible systems offer a wide range of benefits that help you save on your monthly energy bills, protect your family and increase your home's comfort levels.
Learn more about the different benefits of heated flooring and which options are available for your home. For more information, contact your team at Area Flooring & Tile, Inc.
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How Does Heated Flooring Work
Radiant floor heating warms your home using thermal radiation generated by a system of wires installed underneath your flooring. These underlying systems generate heat through electricity, which runs through the grid system and sends the heat upward.
Heated flooring does not heat the air in the room, but instead provides indirect, diffused heating delivered where you need it most at floor level. The heat radiates up through your flooring and heats the room, creating a warm, cozy environment that doesn't steal your heat like a cold tile floor might.
Because the heat generated by radiant floor heating is so efficient, these systems operate at a lower temperature than other forced air or radiator systems. Heated flooring is effective for warming almost any room because it keeps the heat low and spread throughout the room with no particularly hot or cold spots.
We can power your in-floor heating system with an electrical connection to the breaker box. The flooring is hooked up to an electric thermostat, giving you control over the temperature in your home.
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What Are the Benefits of Heated Flooring
Choosing a heated flooring system is a great way to add value to your home. A warm, heated floor in your bathroom or kitchen is a luxurious selling point for many homeowners. Radiant floor heating systems are also one of the most interior-design friendly systems for heating your home because they're invisibly tucked underneath your flooring.
Other benefits of heated flooring include:
- Versatility:You can have your in-floor heating system installed in one room, like a bathroom or kitchen, or throughout your home in areas where you require the most warmth, so you only heat what needs to be heated.
- Energy efficiency:A heated flooring system is one of the most energy-efficient ways to heat your home because it eliminates duct losses and hot spots that need to be cooled off. Your heated floor can warm your room while running at lower temperatures than other systems because the heat is delivered in the lower half of your room closest to where you live.
- Reduced allergens: While other HVAC systems rely on air movement that stirs up dust and allergens, heated flooring does not disturb the air in your space.
- Comfort:Heated floors gently diffuse heat throughout your room, enveloping you in warmth and eliminating cold or drafty areas that steal your body heat.
Additionally, heated flooring systems require no maintenance after installation so you can enjoy reliable, comfortable heat every winter.
What Are the Different Types of Heated Flooring
There are three main electric heated flooring systems you can have installed underneath your floor, each with varied installation methods.
The first is a loose cable system. A cable or wire is placed in a specific pattern, fastened to your floor with staples or glue and finally embedded with mortar. The loose cable system takes longer to install, but it is the most inexpensive method to heat a floor.
The second type of electric heated flooring is mesh mats, where the cable is already laced together. Since the wires are already woven together, placing these mats is more efficient, and installation time is greatly reduced. Your installer can cut the mesh to fit into small spaces or around corners as long as they don't cut into the cable as well.
The last type of electric heated flooring is solid mats. These work similarly to mesh mats, but the cable is enclosed in another material, like fabric or foil. These mats are available in multiple sizes, so you can combine them to create a perfect fit. Solid mats are the most expensive options of the three, but they require the least amount of installation time and don't require embedding.
Our NuHeat floor heating system uses a series of wire loops or mesh mats with wire grids installed beneath your flooring. Mats can be attached directly to the subfloor, while loose cables require a matting system or coupling stud structures like the Schluter Systems DITRA-HEAT matting. Electricity runs through these wires, generating heat through natural resistance and radiating that heat up through your flooring.
Electric systems are ideal for retrofitting single rooms or completing minor renovations because the thin wires don't add much height to your floors.
While each type of electric heated floor has its advantages, in general, they're all flexible and customizable, allowing you to create multiple heating zones for different rooms and areas in your home. They can run on the same electric energy system as the rest of your home, so they're easy to tie into your existing systems.
Heated Floor Installation
Your team at Area Flooring & Tile, Inc. can install any type of in-floor heating system in your home, including electric NuHeat systems or Schluter DITRA-HEAT mat systems. Our trained professionals can work on new buildings or renovations to create seamless, reliable heat for specific rooms or your entire house.
The installation process depends on which type of electric heating system you select. A loose cable system requires the wire or cable to be arranged in a specific pattern before being nailed or glued to the floor. The wires are then embedded in mortar or a cement-based powder.
Mesh mats speed up the process since cables or wires are already attached to the mesh, but they still need to adhere to the floor before embedding. Electric systems installed with wire mats can be laid and attached directly to your subfloor before leveling and floor installation.
Solid mats have the most straightforward installation since fabric or foil materials already encompass the cables. The mats are placed on a layer of thin-set mortar and covered with another layer of thin-set before the floor is installed overtop. Solid mats can also be installed directly under floating floors without mortar.
For each type of heating system, you're free to choose whichever type of flooring you prefer over the top. Naturally cold flooring like ceramic tile and stone are the most commonly recommended flooring for heated flooring systems because they conduct and retain the heat well. Other options include engineered wood, luxury vinyl or laminate flooring. You can use carpeting and hardwood, but they may insulate the floor, making your in-floor heating system less effective.
Once your radiant floor heating system is in place and your preferred flooring is installed over the top, the system is maintenance-free.
Get Heated Flooring for Your Home
If you're looking to replace your existing flooring, renovate a space or start from scratch on a new build, consider upgrading your heating system to include heated flooring from Area Flooring & Tile, Inc. Our knowledgeable team can help you determine the best fit for your project, give price estimates and install your new system.
Area Flooring & Tile, Inc. provides top-quality heated flooring systems and installation to Crystal Lake, Illinois and the surrounding area. Get started today by reaching out to our team using our online contact form, or give us a call at 224-713-2732.
