Under Timber Floor Heating Tips

Coldbuster often gets asked if floor heating can be installed under timber flooring. The answer is a resounding YES: almost all timber, vinyl and laminate flooring products are compatible with Coldbuster floor heating.

In close consultation with our manufacturers and timber flooring experts, we have designed our under-timber floor heaters to the best of manufacturers’ recommendation, to specifically address the contraction and expansion properties of timber floors.

At 100W/m2, Coldbuster under-timber, vinyl and laminate heaters generate the optimum heat to provide gentle, efficient radiant heat evenly distributed across the room.

A vast majority of engineered timber, vinyl and laminate manufacturers have products that are suitable for use with Coldbuster underfloor heating. However, they do have guidelines and recommendations for how this heating is to be installed and prepared.

A major concern for engineered timber, vinyl and laminate is expansion and contraction, which is why most manufacturers recommend underfloor heating be installed either in the cement slab or in a screed.

For in slab, this requires installation before the cement slab is poured, so pre-planning is required for in slab installations. When sub-flooring already in place (whether cement slab, fibre cement sheet, yellow tongue or timber), our under-timber, vinyl and laminate heating system can be installed, followed by a layer of a liquid leveller/screed product such as a product from Mapei, Ardex or similar suppliers. This layer should be 8 to 10mm in thickness, embedding the heating system within this layer. This layer has 3 main benefits:

1. being a liquid leveller/screed product, it is poured over the floor and heating system to create a dead-flat surface required for a professional flooring installation;
2. filling in any cracks, crevices and dips in the sub-floor that could cause hollow spots when flooring is laid over top; and
3. creating a medium for the heat from the underfloor heating to be more evenly dispersed to the bottom of the engineered flooring, which is a more user-friendly heat for engineered timber, vinyl and laminate flooring products.

Failing to follow flooring manufacturers guidelines and recommendations for use with underfloor heating could void the warranty of your new flooring product.