Installing Radiant Heat with Wood Floors

Imagine the luxury of stepping onto a warm floor on a chilly day—a radiant heat wood floor can allow you to do just that. It adds a layer of warmth underneath the floor, exuding comfort and warms up cool spaces. Before upgrading your wood flooring, learn more about installing radiant heat under wood flooring.

Can You Put Radiant Heat Under a Wood Floor?

Radiant heat floor systems can be installed with most engineered hardwood flooring, and cannot be installed under most solid wood floors. These heating systems are positioned between the subfloor and the wood boards. So, you'll need to make sure your flooring installation works with the radiant heat system. You can find peel-and-stick heat systems that work with glue-down installations and other systems that call for a floating flooring installation. Looking for a DIY-friendly option? Consider a tongue-and-groove or click-float installation that will work with your radiant heat system. You can find out more about what types of flooring are most compatible with radiant heat in our handy heating overview.

Is Wood Floor Radiant Heat Right for Me?

If you have a room that's hard to keep warm or if you're consistently irked by stepping on cold floors, then a wood floor radiant heat system might be the solution. This flooring system offers several benefits, including:

• Warmth underfoot when the system is running.
• Quieter operation compared to forced air systems.
• Reduced drafts since the heating system is underneath the planks.
• Ability to maintain consistent warmth in the room.
• Energy-efficient operation that costs less to run than forced air heating.

If you're intrigued by radiant heat, think about the rooms that would most benefit from this system. Even in finished basements, basement floors can be notoriously cold. A radiant heat system can make engineered wood floors more pleasant to walk on. If you're tired of stepping out of the shower or out of bed onto cold floors in the morning, try adding radiant heat under wood floors in the bathroom or bedroom.

 

 

What Are the Different Types of Radiant Heat?

Once you've decided that you want heated flooring, you'll need to find out what type of radiant heat will be best for your project. There are three main types:

 

Hydronic

Hydronic radiant heating uses a centralized boiler to heat water and circulate it through a closed tubing system, which then radiates heat into the room. Hydronic systems can be a large up-front investment, but in return they can heat an entire home. For this installation, you'll need in-floor temperature sensors and an outdoor thermostat to allow the system to adjust the water temperature according to anticipated heat loss.

 

Electric Radiant Heating

Electric radiant heating, sometimes called wire heating, combines a wire/cable system with panels to produce the heat. At LL Flooring, we carry electric radiant heating underlayment panels in various sizes for a variety of flooring materials, so you're sure to find a convenient option for your project.

 

Film

Film panels are the easiest radiant heat flooring to install, since they don't require mortar, glue, or self levelers. Simply roll the panels out under click-together floating floors (never nailed floors). At LL Flooring, we offer two types of radiant floor heating mats—QuietWarmth Peel and Stick panels and QuietWarmth Film panels. These panels come in a variety of sizes with a choice of 120V or 240V power configurations.

 

Installing Your Radiant Heat Wood Floor

The good news? Radiant heat wood flooring can be installed in any room if you're using the proper product for your flooring type—you can read more about it in our dedicated article. However, it's recommended to leave the installation to a professional electrician as you need to check wiring requirements and local codes. You must check the Warranty, Installation, and Care information for the flooring to determine whether or not your floor is warranted for use with Radiant heat. Plus, keep these tips in mind when your system is being installed:

• Make sure the system operates properly before installing flooring over it.
• Test the thermostat to ensure you can adjust the temperature to suit your preferences.
• Note that raising the temperature will not make the room warm up more quickly.
• Consider lowering the temperature when you're away from home to conserve energy.
• However, it's not recommended to turn the system off completely as radiant heat systems operate more efficiently and consume less power when maintaining a temperature than they do bringing the temperature of a cold floor up.

Add a layer of warmth and luxury to your room with a radiant heat wood floor. Explore LL Flooring's collection of radiant heat systems today.

Follow LL Style on Instagram & Pinterest

 

ALSO, do you learn about home improvement and design with fun and informative videos? Subscribe to the LL Flooring YouTube Channel to learn more, leave comments or ideas that helped you, and join the community!

This video might be humorous, but it is good information if you know someone thinking about new flooring. Give it a thumbs up!