Can I Put Radiant Heat Under A Tile Floor

These heated floors are a project best done when overhauling or changing the floor covering of an existing room or when adding a new room.

Can i put radiant heat under a tile floor. Such expansion and contraction can cause cracking. They work well as supplemental heat in bathrooms kitchens and entryways. Yes you could install a radiant heated lvt floor over a preexisting ceramic tile floor. Since concrete flooring is homogeneous concrete alone is a poor choice for radiant heating.

Radiant heating works well with ceramic tile and vinyl but not with wood floors. Electric radiant heat mats with wall mounted thermostats are easy to install under new tile floors and provide comfortable invisible heat at a reasonable cost. However you ll need to make sure that the tile floor is primed and prepared to accept the self leveling compound slc that the heating system will be embedded in. In addition tile flooring will not expand as it warms or contract as it cools.

Then the lvt flooring can be installed on the flat surface created by the cured slc. They re ideal for whole house heating but professionals suggest installing them during the home s construction because they can be difficult to retrofit if the home isn t already outfitted with the proper equipment. Laminate flooring on top of a radiant heated floor is the perfect solution. Radiant heating can be a smart way to add a sense of luxury to a petite bathroom where there s a small area of open floor space as the cost won t be nearly as high as in a large bathroom.

Porcelain and ceramic tile are great conductors of heat so your home will get the full benefit of the radiant heating system. Its success with carpeted floors depends on the length of the weave thick carpets or those with thick pads won t work well as heat generated by the system will stay trapped in the floor. Plus i m sick of tiling do i need to put thinset over the radiant heat coils or can i put the vinyl flooring right on top of the heat coils and keep under 80 degrees. However radiant heat systems can be embedded in concrete floor slabs as long as a subsequent top floor covering such as tile is added.

As long as proper precautions are taken it is perfectly fine to install laminate over a radiant heated floor. Hydronic floor heating systems use hot water pumped through plastic tubing laid out in a serpentine pattern to heat the floor. It sounds like vinyl plank flooring would be a lot quicker and easier to install in the remainder of my bathroom.