As the colder months start to creep in, many of us will experience the annoyance of stepping out of a warm, cosy bed in the morning or off of the comfortable sofa in the evening onto cold wood flooring.
There is nothing worse than being relaxed and toasty and then feeling that chill when your feet hit the ground.

Given that this is a common occurrence in UK households where we experience colder temperatures more than we do warm, it’s surprising to know that less than 40% of homes are fitted with underfloor heating. It is, however, growing in popularity every year.

If you’re considering installing underfloor heating - whether part of a renovation or just as a feature upgrade for your home - then let us tell you exactly why this modern invention is a major must-have for all.

What are the benefits of underfloor heating?

When you weigh up your heating options, underfloor heating might seem like a big investment and you may be apprehensive about relying solely on such a new invention to heat up your home.

However, when you assess all the pros of this modern-day method, it’s clearly a great option...

KEEPS THE ROOM WARM FOR LONGER

Whether you have an electric or water-based underfloor heating system, the outcome is the same.
The heat is distributed evenly across the entire surface area of the floor, effectively turning it into one large radiator and warming the room from the ground.

This keeps the majority of the heat at floor level, whereas traditional radiators heat up the cold air around them which then rises, cools and drops to floor level creating a circular airflow within the vicinity of the radiator.

As a result, the heat distribution is localised rather than evenly spread throughout the room which means that, often, when a room is being heated by a radiator - particularly if it’s a large room - it can take a while for the entire area to warm up and the temperature can drop quite quickly after the radiator is turned off.

With underfloor heating, the warmth fills the entire room instantly and remains at a steady temperature for much longer after the heating system has been turned off.

IT’S COST-EFFECTIVE

As a result of the above, underfloor heating also works out to be a much more affordable method of heating your home.

You won’t have to leave it on for as long in order to reap the full benefits and you won’t need to turn it on as often throughout the course of a day.

Furthermore, underfloor heating can run at a much lower temperature than a traditional radiator, which means that it consumes far less energy and keeps your monthly bill a lot lower.
In fact, it saves the average household up to 35% on their annual energy bill.

SAVES ON SPACE

A clear benefit of underfloor heating, and one that appeals to most homeowners, is the fact that it can save you some space.

Radiators are not always the most attractive feature of a home (unless you have the money to spend on some gold-plated ones) and they can take up a large portion of wall space in a room. Some rooms may even have more than one radiator in them, and this can make it difficult to place furniture and limit your options on the layout of the room.

Underfloor heating doesn’t present this problem as the entire system runs beneath the surface of your flooring, keeping it hidden from sight and making it the perfect space-saving solution.

BETTER FOR YOUR HEALTH AND SAFETY

Radiators provide convection heat which means, as mentioned earlier on, they heat the air around them which rises, cools and then falls. This process is repeated over and over again, moving the air around the room.
This can be a nuisance for those with asthma as the air being circulated will also carry dust and dust mites which can cause sneezing, wheezing and itchy noses.

Underfloor heating doesn’t have this effect because it’s a dust-free heating system which keeps the air in your home clean and greatly reduces allergy risk.

Additionally, the physical presence of radiators can be a hazard, especially if there are young children in your home.

Again, underfloor heating removes this hazard by keeping all of the heating equipment safe and hidden underneath the flooring.

NO LIMITATIONS

You would be mistaken to think that underfloor heating is not an option for everyone.
Although there are some types of wood that are better conductors of heat and, therefore, will heat up a room a lot quicker, underfloor heating can be used with any type of wood flooring.

Having said that, if you have solid wood floors then you will need to be mindful of the temperature as anything above 27 degrees Celsius could change the moisture levels in the wood.

QUICK AND EASY TO INSTALL

Underfloor heating installation is quick, easy and hassle-free.
If your flooring has already been fitted then it does mean that it will need to be lifted in order to lay the heating system (pipes or wires) underneath but, when done by a professional, it should take no longer than two days to fully install depending on the room size.

WARM FLOORS

The most satisfying benefit of all may be that you’ll never have to experience that uncomfortable feeling of stepping onto a cold floor in your home ever again.
No matter how good your radiators are, or how high you turn the temperature, they will never get your floors that warm simply because they do not heat the room from the ground up.
Hence, the warm air is starting from slightly above ground level, rising then cooling which means by the time it drops back down to the floor, it’s not that warm anymore.

Underfloor heating starts at the ground so you can guarantee that your wood flooring will always feel warm and comfortable when the heating is on.