North Leeds Plumbing & Heating – Home Improvement and DIY Advice

One of the primary ways self-builders illustrate their knowledge of the many advantages of designing and creating their own homes, rather than buying ready-built houses, is by featuring customised styling, combined with energy efficiency. A key was to do this is through underfloor heating.

Underfloor heating in British homes

Underfloor heating actually dates back to Roman times, where water was heated and then passed between and through flagstones to heat the floors. For many years, underfloor heating has been quite popular in Europe. Here in the UK, we have taken a bit longer to get used to the idea. In 2005, about 20% of new-builds included underfloor heating. Most of those were professionally developed properties rather than self-builds. However, since that time, the number of homes with underfloor heating built-in has increased.

How underfloor heating works

Underfloor heating works much like conventional heating does. Warmth is generated either by water or electricity and then passed through pipes. But, instead of leading to a series of wall-hung radiators, underfloor heating is installed into the fabric of the floor. This means each room within a home can have its own set of pipes, along with its own underfloor heating thermostat and controls.

Popularity amongst self-builders

Underfloor heating has become popular with self-builders because it is both cost-effective and space-efficient. Further, while it is easiest to install underfloor heating at design level, it is not all that difficult to include it in already-built homes by placing piping on the existing floor and installing a newly tiled surface above.