Often the concept of "heating" is associated with cast-iron radiators, which used to be in every apartment. Such radiators warmed up for a long time, but kept warm in the house for a long time, and functioned, in general, it was not bad, the only drawback, by and large, is an unprepossessing appearance.

With the advent of new materials and technologies, everything has changed. Nowadays, the underfloor heating system has become a worthy replacement for old heating radiators, for which the heating line is mounted in the floor. To date, all new buildings are equipped with such structures in the floor.

Having made the decision to lay the heating pipes in the floor under the screed, it is necessary to decide which type of pipes will work reliably for a long period. At first glance, this decision seems quite simple, but practice shows that it depends on many factors.

We also suggest that you familiarize yourself with the article - where we will consider in detail what types of warm floors are, their pros and cons, and how to install.

The principle of functioning of the "warm floor"

Why is laying heating pipes in a screed the right choice? After all, there is an easier way out - it is replacing the batteries. Yes, it is easier to do it, but it doesn’t mean it is more efficient than this arrangement, because the laws of physics have not yet been canceled.

According to the principle of operation, heating systems are completely different. Traditional radiators give off heat. It then passes along the walls into the ceiling area. It turns out that it is the ceiling zone that first warms up.

After that, the air moves to the lower region, but it gets here already cold. Thus, the following situation is obtained - in the area of ​​the ceiling it is warmer, and below the temperature is much lower. It turns out similarly with the convection principle.

And laying underfloor heating changes everything. The maximum heat is located at the bottom, and then, cooling down, passes to the upper part. This principle of heat distribution greatly improves the comfort of the home. Accordingly, such a system seems to be the most effective.

Floor heating: advantages and disadvantages

Before hiding the heating pipes in a concrete screed, it is necessary to study in detail all the pros and cons that this heating system demonstrates. They should not be ignored, because this will guarantee that finances will be invested wisely.

Consider the benefits of a floor heating system.

1. Long period of use.
2. Uniform level of warm-up.
3. The system in concrete flooring is distinguished by cheaper maintenance when compared with the classic options.
4. Easy maintenance.
5. No moisture.
6. Economical use of space.
7. Complete safety (installation of the system in a concrete screed avoids childhood injuries and burns from hot pipes).
8. The required humidity rate is constantly maintained in the air.

There are not many disadvantages of the network under the screed, but you need to familiarize yourself with them.

1. First of all, when laying the heating line under the screed, the height of the room is reduced.
2. Repairing pipes is not as easy to carry out as in classic cases, because it is not easy to find a leak in a hidden line.
3. Installation in specific places will not work. These include a flight of stairs, etc.

IMPORTANT! These buildings in mansions are carried out without restrictions, and the apartment will require a different approach. In apartment buildings, you need to make sure that the central network can handle the high hydraulic load.

The disadvantages must be carefully studied, and you need to be prepared for the fact that sooner or later the heating in the screed may leak. Do not forget that it is not easy to detect a leak on a pipe in such structures.

And after determining the location of the leak, repairs will not be easy. Therefore, it is important to approach work with full responsibility.

What types of materials can be used and what not

Before making a screed, you need to find out which heating pipes from which materials will be most suitable for installation in the floor. There are many options - you can choose products made of copper, you can dwell on such an inexpensive and practical material as plastic, which, in the case of competent installation, will work "one hundred percent".

It is also worth paying attention to metal-plastic products. Which one is better to choose from? In order to answer the question posed, we will consider pipes from the listed materials in more detail.

Pipe products for laying in the floor must have the following properties.

1. High strength index.
2. Resistant to corrosive formations.
3. Impermeable to oxygen, which causes corrosion of the steel parts of the heating network.
4. Good heat dissipation.
5. Small coefficient of expansion.
6. Environmental friendliness.

The listed requirements for laying in a floor under a screed are fully met by an assortment of the following materials - polyethylene, polypropylene and metal-plastic.

Polyethylene pipes and other types of pipes that are used in a screed have pluses and minuses, therefore, before you hide them and make a screed, you need to study each material thoroughly.

Polypropylene pipes for laying in a screed compares favorably with low cost. However, these products are not widely used. The reason is that polypropylene pipes hidden in a screed have a number of significant disadvantages.

So, the polypropylene (PP) assortment is distinguished by an eight-diameter bend radius. When laying a polypropylene underfloor heating system, this affects the distance between adjacent branches of the line.

If the diameter of the polypropylene line is 15 mm, then the branches are separated from each other by 120 cm, which will have a bad effect on the heating of the room. It is also possible to mount a polypropylene water-heated floor only at a temperature of at least fifteen degrees. Polypropylene products are inexpensive and have a large number of positive characteristics.

Polyethylene pipe-rolling materials only crosslinked ones are suitable for this task. Cross-linked polypropylene is durable, reliable and resistant to high temperatures. But, in a cement floor, these pipes do not hold their shape well. Therefore, a large number of fasteners must be used to fix such pipes.

Experts speak well of metal-plastic products. The metal-plastic pipe used in the screed lasts quite a long time.

Metal-plastic products appeared on the market not so long ago, but quickly took the leading position. The special three-layer construction of these pipe-rolling materials allows them to serve up to 30 years.

The disadvantages that metal-plastic pipelines have include the relative complexity of installation work at home. not difficult if you have some experience of such work.

Therefore, it is important to know the sense of proportion when clamping. At home, laser or ultrasonic welding is not used for this product range.

If it is bad to clamp the joint, then you should wait for leaks. And, if you "pinch", then the fitting will fail, and it will have to be replaced.

But the pipe rolling copper enlisted in a number of impeccable leaders. It is far superior to polyethylene counterparts. Cross-linked polypropylene and metal-plastic are also inferior to copper. In this case, there is only a huge list of positive characteristics.

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And copper products have one drawback. It too high price, which becomes the reason that not everyone can afford to use a structure made of this material for laying under a screed.

Speaking about the "warm floor" system, you need to remember such a material as metal. Metal pipe products in a screed, experts call an unreasonably risky undertaking. Heating water is often saturated chemicals and metal can just not resist before this aggressive influence.

Ultimately, corrosion appears in the metal structure, which means further leakage. Hard water also has a detrimental effect on metal.

Therefore, plastic and copper products are a more practical solution for floor installation. Therefore, metal pipe-rolling materials are not recommended for this work.

Room preparation

Before sealing the heating pipes in the floor screed, it is necessary to bring out all the connection points of the remaining communications, and put windows and doors. It is recommended to take out pieces of furniture from the room, and dismantle the old heating system, if this work is not carried out in new buildings.

Irregularities on the surface are allowed within a radius of one centimeter. If their dimensions exceed these figures, then the base for heating should be leveled.

The final stage of the preparatory work is cleaning. Before sealing the structure with a concrete screed, it must be done without fail. Industrial vacuum cleaners are perfect for this task.

Laying "warm floor" in the screed

This option is used in an apartment and in a private house. It is even used for wood flooring or under surfaces such as laminate.

Pouring is performed on a rough or wooden floor. They act in these situations according to the same principle.

1. Spread the waterproofing.
2. Insulation is laid.
3. Reinforced mesh is laid.
4. Wiring and fastening of the pipeline is in progress.
5. Glue the damper tape.
6. The entire structure on the floor is filled with mortar.

We carry out waterproofing

It protects against moisture ingress and to prevent wet mortar from coming into contact with the floor. After that, it is necessary to insulate the work surface. The best option for this task is foam. Also, high marks from specialists received a material derived from polystyrene - penoflex.

A steel mesh is applied to the insulating material. It is needed to evenly distribute the load over the frozen fill. Without such reinforcement, the screed can crack.

Piping in such networks is performed in two ways.

• A snail.
• Snake.

The first scheme is the laying in a circle from the walls to the center of the room. Such actions do not use sharp turns of the circulation direction.

The snake is directed from any wall, and then directed to the other, located on the opposite side. With this design, on all pieces, the direction of movement of the liquid is changed by 180 degrees. In everyday life, the first styling option is most often used.

The contour should be reinforced on the surface. With these actions, it should be borne in mind that it increases the dimensions in length. Therefore, the fasteners cannot differ in rigidity, and the pipeline must be able to slide. For such a task, plastic clips attached to the floor are effectively used. You can also use simple clamps.

It is very important not to forget to use a damper tape. It is a strip of polymeric foam. It needs to be glued around the perimeter of the room on the wall. And the bottom edge of the tape should run across the floor. This measure will help neutralize the increase in pouring, and will not allow the solution to stick to the walls.

Many are interested in how many centimeters the screed must cover the pipe structure. Masters say that it cannot be less than three centimeters. Its optimal size is 7 cm.

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If you make it less than the recommended value, then the fill will simply crack. If too large a layer is used, the expected temperature will not be achieved. And such floor heating will not add comfort.

When laying heating pipes, it is very important to maintain the same pitch between turns or zigzags. So, for example, for a room of 20 sq. m, this distance is equal to twenty centimeters. In a room with a large area, it is recommended to install several spirals or snakes for heating.

Floor heating pipes can be hidden under wet or dry fill. The first method is more common. Because with "dry" filling with voids, a lower density level is obtained, and because of this, heat transfer is inhibited.

It is not difficult to build such a heating structure with your own hands. The main thing is to have patience and some knowledge. If you add a little more effort to this, then the excellent result of the heating in the floor can please more than one decade.

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Heating in an apartment or a private house is, of course, a plus, and the absence of the latter is a minus that cannot be tolerated. However, any heating system, with the exception of one formed from electrical devices, includes a coolant transfer element - a pipe.

The appearance of the pipeline can hardly be called aesthetic, so homeowners take every opportunity to hide it from sight.

Installation methods

• Open - the pipeline is laid along the perimeter of the room from the radiator to the radiator. This is a traditional solution, but far from the most profitable. Firstly, this method involves a lot of fasteners, which is quite costly. Secondly, if plastic heating pipes are used, then some of the fasteners will not be rigid to compensate: this has an extremely negative effect on the appearance. Thirdly, the formation of a collector type of wiring is completely excluded, since it is simply difficult to place such an amount of pipeline in an apartment.
• Hidden in the wall - for laying the heating it is necessary to gouge the walls. This is hard and dirty work. It is also necessary to provide for thermal insulation, since in this case the heat from the heating pipes is transferred to the wall material and is not used to heat the room. However, the method allows you to hide the most complex communications from sight and removes the issue of compensation for thermal expansion.

• Concealed installation in the floor - has its pros and cons. There is usually no need for strobing, although this method is also used in a new building. The advantage can be considered the lack of insulation - it is enough to protect the pipeline with a plastic corrugation. The dissipated heat will be transferred to the floor material, that is, it is still used for heating in the apartment. The disadvantage is the need to somehow provide access to the joints in case of repair and for preventive inspection. The photo shows the working moment of laying in the floor.

Floor structure

In a new building, the floor is most often a reinforced concrete floor. That implies the installation of heating in the floor, only if a concrete screed is being constructed.

In a private house and an old apartment, you can find another solution: the floor on the logs. In this case, the pipeline is placed under the cover without any problems. A definite plus is access for repair and inspection. Another advantage is the ability to use any kind of water pipelines.

Heating pipes: varieties

It is worth noting that according to SNiP, only a metal pipeline can be installed up to a heat point.

Rolled metal products: pros and cons

When installing heating systems, steel water ducts are used - black or galvanized. The latter are much more protected from corrosion and are characterized by a smooth inner surface: over time, the working diameter practically does not change. In the new building, the connection to the central heating is made using black steel pipes.

Advantages:

• high strength;
• resistance to pressure drops and water hammer;
• very low expansion coefficient;
• durability.

Flaws:

• steel heating pipes are laid only in a straight line; fittings are used to form bends;
• galvanized products retain their qualities only with a threaded connection, since welding destroys the zinc layer;
• installation in the floor under a concrete screed requires the same safety measures as when using plastic products.

Reinforced-plastic heating pipes

Embedding them in concrete is also unacceptable. SNiP describes laying in the floor as follows: a metal-plastic pipe is placed in a metal sleeve of a larger diameter, and then the system is mounted. This provides space for expansion. Based on user feedback, this technology is not always followed.

Advantages:

• less weight, and, therefore, easier installation;
• high operating temperature - +95 С;
• possibility of laying at an angle without additional connecting elements.

Flaws:

• high price;
• for floor installation, only press fittings should be used. Compression loses its tightness quickly;
• docking points must remain accessible for inspection.

Plastic reinforced piping

The most common options today, judging by the reviews, are polypropylene water pipes, and heating pipes made of cross-linked polyethylene. The latter can withstand the temperature of the coolant up to +110 C. Installation of risers from polymer conduits according to SNiP is not recommended.

Fiber or glass fiber reinforcement significantly reduces the coefficient of thermal expansion. With hidden installation, the changes that do occur are perceived by the floor material and have no effect. The pros and cons of the products are as follows:

• installation under any floor is possible;
• the pipeline is flexible, installation is carried out along the most complex contour;
• does not need thermal insulation;
• the material is dielectric and does not require additional maintenance.

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Floor heating pipes: economical heating or a waste of money

In this article, I want to discuss heating pipes in the floor: the pros and cons of the solution, efficiency and comfort against the background of the usual convection heating, as well as the materials used and the procedure for installing a water heated floor. So let's get started.

What it is

The main idea of ​​the heating scheme we are interested in is that the entire floor in the room is made with a heating device. Of course, minus the location of large-sized stationary furniture: it makes no sense to heat the floor under the built-in or bed.

Heating is provided by heating pipes in the floor screed. They are laid with a step of 10 - 20 cm over the insulation and concreted. As a final coating, any material with a sufficiently high thermal conductivity is used - tiles, laminate or linoleum.

Underfloor heating pipes can be laid without a concrete screed, on a wooden floor. However, I will not touch on the corresponding styling schemes in this article: they deserve a separate study.

Extruded polystyrene foam with a thickness of 20-50 mm is traditionally used as a heater under a water-heated floor. Insulation does not allow the coolant to heat the overlap common with the basement or neighboring apartments.

Advantages and disadvantages

Of course, they can only be formulated if there is some alternative. In this capacity, the usual convection heating will act - wall radiators with open wiring of the coolant.

Pro

• Warm floor really delivers tangible heat savings... Not too big - about 10 - 30%, but tangible. Heating the floor to 25-35 degrees leads to the fact that the air heats up exactly where heat is needed - directly above the floor and at a height no higher than human height.
  The temperature under the ceiling is the same or slightly lower. For comparison - with convection heating at the floor level it can be +18, and under the ceiling +30 C. With in-floor heating, the average temperature in the room decreases, and therefore the delta of temperatures with the street;

It is the temperature difference inside and outside the house that determines the heat loss through the walls, floor and ceiling, which have to be compensated for by heating.

• Floor heating provides incomparable comfort. Remember the old adage “keep your feet warm and your head cold”? The warm floor allows you to realize it literally. In particular, you can forget about drafts above the floor and calmly let your child play on the rug without fear of colds;
• The low temperature of the heat carrier is very beneficial when using a heat pump as a heat source. The greater the temperature difference between the low-grade source (street air, water or soil) and the water in the circuit, the more electricity the device spends to obtain a kilowatt of heat.

This effect does not depend on the specific type or model of the heat pump and is a design feature of all products of this type without exception.

One of the important tasks that become in the process of installing a heating system for housing is the correct laying of heating pipes in the floor. This will determine not only the efficiency of heating the room, but also the durability of the system, as well as its correct operation and safety.

The way we will lay it will also depend on what material we have chosen for the heating circuit.

The heating circuit can be hidden either in a screed or with a floor covering. We choose exactly where to hide them depending on the premises and which method is more convenient and requires less labor and financial costs.

Laying heating pipes under the screed

We can hide the outline in the screed. This method is widely used in the installation of underfloor heating systems. The step-by-step process is as follows:

• We carry out a rough screed from a mixture of concrete and expanded clay. Expanded clay is a new generation of insulation, which, moreover, has a very small mass and helps to reduce the load on the foundation and floors;
• After the screed has dried, we spread its surface with bitumen mastic, thus providing waterproofing;
• We put an insulating layer on the waterproofing layer. For this we can use penoplex is a material made of air and expanded polystyrene. Penoplex perfectly holds compressive loads, has high heat-insulating and noise-insulating properties, is lightweight and can be perfectly processed using the simplest tools. We process all joints in the insulating layer with either glue or polyurethane foam. Penoplex plates with ready-made markings for laying pipes are also sold;
• We put either dense polyethylene as a vapor barrier or penofol on the penoplex. Penofol is a modern insulation consisting of foamed polyethylene and foil. This material is distinguished by high heat-insulating properties, does not transmit or absorb moisture, is highly environmentally friendly and non-toxic. The foil is used to reflect heat radiation back into the room. Therefore, in the case of one-sided penofol, we put it with the metallized side up. It will provide protection to the foam and further reduce heat loss. At the joints we glue the penofol with aluminum adhesive tape;
• Next, the heating circuit is laid. Its fixation can be carried out using special clips and a reinforcing mesh. You can use insulation where pipe channels have already been laid. Perforated strips are also used. The process itself is carried out in such a way that the coil of the rolled pipe is placed on the floor surface and laid according to a pre-calculated scheme;
• Next, fill in a layer of concrete 30-50 mm thick - this allows us to hide the pipes in the screed;
• After the mortar has dried, we can start installing the floor covering.

The underfloor heating system should be switched on gradually to avoid cracks in the screed. For laying under concrete, it is best to use XLPE pipes or.

Laying the contour under the floor surface

If the question is where to hide the heating pipes, but not for some reason we do not want to fill them with a screed, you can do this with the help of a floor covering.

Let's take a closer look at this process:

• A rough screed is made from a mixture of concrete with expanded clay;
• After the solution has dried, we spread the surface with bitumen mastic and glue the foam boards on it. We remove the cracks at the joints, covering them with glue, or blowing out polyurethane foam;
• On top of the penoplex we put either dense polyethylene or penofol. We place Penofol with a shiny coating facing up. We glue polyethylene at the joints with adhesive tape, penofol - with adhesive metallized tape;
• We lay the heating circuit, fixing them with clips, paper clips, or we use insulation with already marked channels for laying pipes;
• We place logs between the pipes and install the floor covering on them.

If we choose this option, then the contour should be made of metal-plastic. In this case, polymer pipes are not suitable, since they can be easily damaged and require mandatory protection in the form of a concrete coating.

Conclusion

Ways to hide heating pipes under the floor are quite simple and quite doable on their own. The choice of method depends on the installation conditions - both of them are equally effective and convenient.