Underfloor Heating for all Seasons
As one of the world’s leading suppliers of membranes, profiles and shower systems for tile, natural stone and other floor coverings, it made sense for Schlüter-Systems to develop its own easy to install, low profile versions to be integrated within a full build up of its unique technologies: therefore able to deliver enhanced comfort levels as well as stunning aesthetics.
It is, first of all, important for installers to understand the limitations as well as the potential of such systems.
As convenient as electric underfloor heating is to install – with its low build height possibly just adding a few millimetres to the overall depth and offering the ideal solution for taking the chill off a bathroom floor – they cannot effectively heat the air in the room above. So, although products from the Schlüter-Systems portfolio can deliver a luxury ambience and even higher hygiene standards by helping floor surfaces dry out quickly, electric UFH is only really intended as an adjunct to more conventional central heating installations. Shower rooms and wetrooms as well as kitchens and even conservatories can all be successfully fitted out, but whole-house designs are best linked to a primary heat source.
This is an ideal stage in the narrative to consider the characteristic flow or operating temperatures for underfloor heating, which are roughly half those for radiators. While the latter need water circulating at 60o – 70o C as they try and heat rooms from the ceiling down, hydronic UFH systems typically run at 30o – 55o C, which reduces the energy consumption and also makes them ideally suited to working with heat pumps and other renewable technologies such as CHP units.
Schlüter-Systems has developed BEKOTEC-THERM as its hydronic option, with studded modular panels laid out to accept the pipe runs connected back to manifolds which are tested before being screeded. But rather than waiting weeks for it to cure, as soon as it is dry enough to walk on, it can be covered with the manufacturer’s renowned Schlüter-DITRA uncoupling membrane, allowing tiling to commence immediately. Such benefits make BEKOTEC-THERM ideal for time sensitive projects such as in retail or commercial refurbishment.
Then one of the key differences between Schlüter-Systems DITRA-HEAT and rival electric UFH systems is that all the cable lengths feature a seamless transition from the hot leg to the cold leg which connects to the thermostat: a notoriously brittle junction and a cause of countless failures. The 4m long cold leg has a very fine strand wound around it which reduces the electrical resistance and therefore the heat generated. And rather than being segmented, the hot leg of the DITRA-HEAT cable is formed from very fine but strong strands extending along the full length as they deliver an output of 136 W/m2.
Recent enhancements to the DITRA-HEAT range include introducing the installer friendly DITRA-HEAT-PS (Peel & Stick) for rapid laying over a selection of challenging substrates, including green P5 chipboard, and the DITRA-HEAT-DUO membrane which integrates a thermal barrier to reduce warm-up times, and smart thermostat technology which enable Wi-Fi and voice control.