Hello dear forum friends (it’s quite trendy these days to “collect friends” ;-) ),
we are once again faced with a question that has led us to gather so much information and so many impressions here in the forum (and pretty much everywhere else) that we no longer really know what is best or right for us.
As mentioned elsewhere, we are going to build a bungalow. So far, the plan is to install underfloor heating (additional cost about EUR 6,000). Now we have the feeling that this might not actually be the best choice for us. I won’t repeat all the pros and cons I’ve read, but simply explain what is important to us.
What really matters is that we would like to install hardwood flooring in the living room and carpet in the children’s rooms and bedroom. If we went with underfloor heating, we are also prepared to put tiles in the living room.
Now to our concerns:
1. Tiles = cold underfoot if the underfloor heating is not running. So in the transitional seasons and summer, this could be unpleasant, especially for the lady of the house.
2. Hardwood / laminate / carpet = generally less suitable for underfloor heating. There are products that carry a “suitable” certification, but it seems clear that heating costs will increase anyway, because these floor coverings usually provide good insulation.
3. The extra cost of EUR 6,000 really surprises me. Somehow, that must be balanced out by savings in heating or improved living comfort. Apparently, installing underfloor heating does not involve a significant additional effort, at least nothing close to that price level.
4. The comfortable climate in winter is probably guaranteed while the system is running and you don’t have to worry about much. However, short-term discomfort can’t be fixed with a quick turn of the room thermostat, because the thermal inertia of underfloor heating excludes a fast response.
So we are now wondering if we are the right candidates for this system, or if it would be better to install conventional radiators and provide a return line for kitchen and bathroom.
What do you think? Are we on the wrong path? Are we missing something? Are we letting all the writing confuse us too much?
:-)
Best regards from the Ammerland
Voki
we are once again faced with a question that has led us to gather so much information and so many impressions here in the forum (and pretty much everywhere else) that we no longer really know what is best or right for us.
As mentioned elsewhere, we are going to build a bungalow. So far, the plan is to install underfloor heating (additional cost about EUR 6,000). Now we have the feeling that this might not actually be the best choice for us. I won’t repeat all the pros and cons I’ve read, but simply explain what is important to us.
What really matters is that we would like to install hardwood flooring in the living room and carpet in the children’s rooms and bedroom. If we went with underfloor heating, we are also prepared to put tiles in the living room.
Now to our concerns:
1. Tiles = cold underfoot if the underfloor heating is not running. So in the transitional seasons and summer, this could be unpleasant, especially for the lady of the house.
2. Hardwood / laminate / carpet = generally less suitable for underfloor heating. There are products that carry a “suitable” certification, but it seems clear that heating costs will increase anyway, because these floor coverings usually provide good insulation.
3. The extra cost of EUR 6,000 really surprises me. Somehow, that must be balanced out by savings in heating or improved living comfort. Apparently, installing underfloor heating does not involve a significant additional effort, at least nothing close to that price level.
4. The comfortable climate in winter is probably guaranteed while the system is running and you don’t have to worry about much. However, short-term discomfort can’t be fixed with a quick turn of the room thermostat, because the thermal inertia of underfloor heating excludes a fast response.
So we are now wondering if we are the right candidates for this system, or if it would be better to install conventional radiators and provide a return line for kitchen and bathroom.
What do you think? Are we on the wrong path? Are we missing something? Are we letting all the writing confuse us too much?
:-)
Best regards from the Ammerland
Voki
B
baumann201319 Aug 2014 20:46We are still considering our options. It is clear to us that we want underfloor heating throughout the entire ground floor (living room, kitchen, hallway, utility room, guest bathroom, and storage). On the upper floor, we also want it in the main bathroom and the guest/office room. We are seriously thinking about installing radiators in the two children's bedrooms and the master bedroom, simply to be able to adjust the temperature more quickly when needed.
I fully understand the reasoning, but I wonder how this is supposed to work efficiently. As someone without a technical background, I would assume that a "standard" heating system operates with a higher supply temperature, such as when conventional radiators are used. In contrast, underfloor heating runs at a significantly lower supply temperature. If both systems are installed, wouldn’t that mean having two separate heating systems? Or am I mistaken? Wouldn’t this definitely cost a lot more money than installing underfloor heating everywhere?
B
Bauexperte20 Aug 2014 09:59Hello Yvonne,
Regards, Bauexperte
ypg schrieb:That’s not correct. Any homeowner who wants to use both traditional radiators and underfloor heating needs a mixing valve (I’m not exactly sure what the part is called); nothing more. Alternatively, it’s possible without a “mixing valve,” but then the radiators have to be significantly larger.
You need two heating circuits, right.
Regards, Bauexperte
Bauexperte schrieb:
Hello Yvonne,
That’s not correct. Any builder who wants to run both traditional radiators and underfloor heating needs a mixing valve (I’m not exactly sure what the part is called); nothing more. Alternatively, it’s possible without a mixing valve, but then the radiators have to be correspondingly larger.
Regards, BauexperteThanks for the info 🙂 I thought I had read otherwise somewhere...
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