What Mats To Choose For A Water-type Underfloor Heating Device

2023 Author: Philip Bishop | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-08-25 07:54

• Using
• Advantages
• Types of mats
• Profile mats
• Laying procedure
• Right choice

For the installation of a warm water floor, one of the most important stages is the installation of a layer of thermal insulation. It is necessary to direct the air flow coming from the heated pipeline, as well as the screed up, that is, to the base of the floor. In this case, no heat is consumed for heating the floor slabs. It is from the choice of a specific insulation material that the total amount of characteristics of the warm floor will depend. In addition, mats for a warm water floor must withstand mechanical stress and at the same time maintain their appearance. This indicates the need to purchase a material having a density of more than 25 kg per m ³.

Using

For underfloor heating, profile mounting mats are the most popular. They are based on polystyrene with a density of 40 kg per m ³. The process is carried out in hydropellant stamping, resulting in products that can withstand mechanical stress, maintain their appearance, and withstand aggressive environments.

In addition, they have a specific base with a relief, into which a pipeline with a diameter of up to 18 mm fits perfectly. In this case, no additional fasteners are required. The installation process of a warm water floor does not take much time and becomes simpler and more convenient.

There are special locks on the side surface of the underfloor heating mats, due to which they fit into a continuous canvas. No additional action is required here. In addition, there is also a ruler on the side surface, thanks to which the mats for laying underfloor heating fit together very well. The surface of the material allows you to smooth out minor defects in the floor surface, create a protective layer against noise penetration.

An important feature of underfloor heating mats is the complete elimination of heat loss during the operation of the room heating system.

Advantages

When special mats are used in the installation of a warm water floor, you can get a number of positive qualities, among which are:

• For each product in stores, certificates of conformity, fire safety, sanitary and epidemiological conclusion, etc. are provided. This already suggests that you don't have to worry about the quality of the material. They fully comply with the established European standards.

• The production of underfloor heating mats is based on self-extinguishing raw materials, produced by 90 percent on European equipment.

  

  All this also meets all available standards.
• The main material can be dense polystyrene foam. It is highly durable. All the original parameters of shape and size are retained even over a long period of operation.
• Mats, in contrast to a special underlay for a warm water floor, have an additional laminated board. There is a film coating on the upper layer of the material, which also performs a number of additional functions.
• The presence of additional fastening sections where the pipes for the warm floor are placed. Installation of the pipeline according to any of the chosen scheme does not take much time.
• Due to the presence of mounting markings on mats for warm water floors, the efficiency of heat distribution in the room is increased.

But this is only part of the advantages that mounting mats for the heating system in the house have. Without them, it would be problematic to obtain such qualities and properties, as well as to complete the installation of the entire circuit.

Types of mats

There are a large number of classifications of mats for warm floors. All of them are divided depending on the displayed functions and qualities, and also distinguish the mats depending on how they are arranged and how they are produced.

1. Foil mats. Here mats consist of three layers - expanded polystyrene as the main component, a layer of foil and a special film. Its density is sufficient for a warm floor and is approximately 30-35 kg per cubic meter. To make the process of installing the mats much easier, there are markings on it that allow you to dock with each other. The underfloor heating pipes are very securely fixed with brackets, since the density of the material itself is very high. They can be used for underfloor heating, as the main source of heating in the room.

2. Foil products.

   

   Such mats consist of foam foam, which has a foil coating on one side. But it is worth noting that such material can be used for warm floors only if it acts as an additional source of heating in the room. They have low efficiency when they are located on the ground floor with an unheated basement. Heating pipes should be laid out on the side where the foil is attached. For fastening, you will need to purchase additional elements in the form of clamps, brackets, etc., which causes certain difficulties and problems in operation.
3. Made of expanded polystyrene, flat. The thickness of the material can be up to 50 mm, and in terms of density - up to 40 kg per m ³. This allows them to maintain their shape and size parameters even under pressure and external influences. For fastening, you will also have to purchase additional fasteners. The best option in this case is special plastic staples. For high-quality installation on the surface of the mats, marking is preliminarily performed. This increases the duration of the work and creates some inconvenience.

4. With lugs. Here, the production of mats is based on the technology of hydropellant stamping. This process allows you to get on the surface of the product special curly protrusions in even rows. These protrusions are called bosses. If you still buy more advanced products, then the process of laying the pipeline does not take much time.

   

Still, more attention should be paid to the latest version of mats for a warm water floor, as their popularity is constantly growing. They have found the greatest practical application due to the manifested advantages and performance characteristics.

Profile mats

It has already been said about the production technology of mats with bosses. They are presented in the form of rectangles, the thickness of which starts from 10 to 35 mm. The height of the projections on each plate is usually up to 20 mm.

The protrusions are cylindrical or cubed. Between them, it is possible to lay pipes of the underfloor heating system, in diameter which even reach 20 mm. They are fastened so firmly and securely that even during the pouring of the concrete screed, they do not move, but remain in the place where they were originally fixed. They are presented in two forms:

• Regular.
• Laminated.

Laminated versions are covered with an additional vapor barrier in the form of a film. In the presence of such a layer, it is not necessary to create a vapor barrier when installing warm water floors. Among the shortcomings, one can only note the moment that such mats cannot afford to lay pipes with a non-standard diameter on them. We can note the qualities and characteristics that profile mats for the underfloor heating system have:

1. High density. This quality allows the material to withstand mechanical stress during operation.

2. Waterproofing. In addition to the laminating coating, it is obtained due to the presence of centering locks located along the lateral surface.

   

   The surface of the individual slabs is solid and reliable.

3. Low thermal conductivity. The indicator is about 0.037 - 0.052 W / m * K. This paragraph indicates the provision of reliable thermal insulation.
4. Excellent level of sound absorption and sound insulation.
5. The main difference lies in the size of the underfloor heating mats. Dimensions can be 1.0 * 1.0 m or 0.6 * 0.8 m. In addition, the step of laying the pipeline on the surface is somewhat different. If the floor warms up in the area where the ground is at the base or is the basement, then you should choose a large width for high-quality performance.

As for the choice of mats for the installation of a warm water floor, then one should proceed from certain points. The thickness of the slabs must correspond to the layer of the finishing coat together with the floor covering. We must not forget about a possible layer for insulation in the floor. If the thickness is suitable, then you can buy mats with bosses, since their main function is to securely hold the pipes. Under any circumstances, there will be no heat loss from the operation of the heating system. All of it will be transferred to the screed and further on the base of the floor, creating a comfortable environment.

Laying procedure

Regardless of what kind of mat is used for the installation of a water-heated floor system, in any case, a layer of waterproofing from a polyethylene film must be arranged. In addition, additionally fix the damper tape along the perimeter of the room along the walls.

When the preparation is completed, you can begin to lay the mats on the surface, connecting them together with a locking system. If the weight of the mats is insignificant, as well as small thickness, then a special adhesive is used, with the help of which the elements are connected together.

In this case, you should do without metal fasteners in the work. Otherwise, the integrity of the thermal insulation layer of the material, as well as the waterproofing layer, will be violated. So you should forget about fasteners such as screws or nails. When using foil plates in work, their assembly joints must be glued with adhesive tape. Additionally, markings can be drawn on the surface of individual mat variants. When all this is done, you can begin work on the installation of a water floor heating circuit or circuits. For this, a certain pipe layout is selected ("snake" or "snail"), or each of them is combined in one room.

Right choice

When it comes to choosing mats for laying a water-heated floor, you should pay attention to certain points:

1. Require certificates. Each seller for their products must have documentation confirming their high quality. In addition, warranty obligations from the seller must be issued. Otherwise, you may encounter fakes, which will only cause a negative manifestation during operation. Cheap foam is unlikely to withstand the loads.
2. The choice of mat thickness will depend on the future screed and its layer along with the floor covering. When pre-leveling the sub-floor, it will be enough to buy thin options equipped with bosses for better installation. Such underfloor heating mats will have better characteristics.

It is immediately better to buy laminated products suitable not only for dry, but also for semi-dry screeds.

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