Adrian Troop speaks about single room underfloor heating In order to increase the amount of useable space as well as the value of the property, more and more people are extending their current home rather than moving house; which is why Nu-Heat has developed a home extension/single room kit specifically to integrate with any existing boiler and radiator system.
HPM magazine invited Adrian Troop, Nu-Heat’s Sales & Marketing Director, to explain how warm water underfloor heating (UFH) works, the importance of direct boiler control and the packages available for conservatories and extensions.
How UFH works – an overview
Underfloor heating works by pumping temperature controlled warm water from a normal central heating boiler (or other hot water heating system), through jointless plastic tubing embedded in the floor. It provides warmth to a room from the floor up, unlike radiators that heat the ceiling space first. The floor temperature only needs to be raised a few degrees above the room temperature to maintain an effective comfort level, resulting in improved economy.
A clear benefit of installing underfloor heating in conservatories and extensions is the additional living space gained as the need for bulky metal radiators is removed, allowing the homeowner far greater design freedom and enjoyment of the whole space.
The significance of direct boiler control
Whilst adding the underfloor heating on to an existing radiator system is a quick and easy solution for conservatories and extensions, it offers less controllability to the homeowner as the zone can only be heated when the rest of the central heating system is switched on.
Due to the different heating characteristics of underfloor heating, it ideally needs to operate as a separate zone with direct boiler control.
He continues: “Where single room and extension packages are installed without direct boiler control, the rest of the house will warm up quickly whilst the underfloor heating is still coming up to temperature. To balance this, the underfloor heating takes far longer than radiators to cool down and can, therefore, be switched off earlier – thereby delivering potential fuel savings for the homeowner.”
Most single room underfloor heating packages allow the homeowner a choice; either control via the existing radiator system or with independent control from the boiler. Nu-Heat believes the latter allows homeowners to direct heat exactly where it is needed; it also gives enough time for the underfloor heating to warm the room to the same temperature as the rest of the house.
Nu-Heat’s single room package, ONEZONE, has a control unit that carefully blends water from an existing boiler to the correct temperature for entry into the floor. A straightforward wall-mounted thermostat ensures that the homeowner always has complete comfort control as they can set the room temperature.
Conservatory packages can be fitted during the build process and Nu-Heat makes installation simple as the pack arrives pre-built, complete with everything needed to get on with the installation, including: system controls, flexible Fastflo heating tube, floor clips and a fully illustrated step-by-step installation manual.
In addition to ONEZONE, Nu-Heat also offers a separate multi-room extension package that can be integrated with any existing boiler and radiator system – this uses exactly the same Optiflo wiring board and high quality components that are supplied with all of Nu-Heat’s full-house systems.
The extension pack includes a centralised manifold complete with integrated pump, zone valves and flow gauges. The manifold feeds pipe work out to each heating zone, maximising controllability and comfort.
Nu-Heat’s extension packs undergo the same detailed design process as full house systems and comprehensive CAD drawings are provided for every project showing the exact heating tube layout so installers can guarantee their customers’ homes will always be warm.
Installation know-how and online ordering
If you haven’t yet installed underfloor heating, single room and extension packages are a great way of familiarising yourself with underfloor heating technology and Nu-Heat has captured the complete installation sequence in its ‘how to’ DVD, which can be viewed and ordered online.
Installers can also purchase Nu-Heat’s ONEZONE systems through the Company’s secure online webstore. All items will be delivered within three working days with email notification on order progress, as standard.
For more information about solar, underfloor heating, heat pumps or renewables training, please call Nu-Heat on 0800 731 1976.
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0800 731 1976
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