Plumber in Tattenhoe Park
Tell Us About the Job in Tattenhoe Park
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Here is a problem we get called out to regularly on newer estates, and it is almost always self-inflicted rather than a fault.
Somebody replaces the flooring. A few weeks later the ground floor never quite gets warm, and everyone assumes the underfloor heating has failed. It has not. It is being insulated from the room it is meant to be heating.
Based in Two Mile Ash, around fifteen to twenty minutes north. Gas Safe registered, registration number 981362.
- Gas Safe registered 981362
- Around fifteen to twenty minutes north of us
- Send a photo of the manifold cupboard before we set off
- Booked work Monday to Saturday, 8am to 8pm
Last updated
The tog rule
Underfloor heating works by warming the floor surface, which warms the room. Anything laid on top resists that transfer, and the resistance is measured in tog.
As a general guide, the total floor covering including underlay should not exceed about 2.5 tog. Manufacturers vary slightly, so the specific figures for your system are worth checking, but that number is the one to plan around.
The trap is that people check the carpet and forget the underlay. A modest carpet on a thick thermal underlay easily blows the budget on its own, and thermal underlay is exactly what a flooring shop will recommend if nobody tells them there is heating below.
Tell the flooring supplier you have underfloor heating
That one sentence prevents most of these callouts.
What works and what does not
Tile and stone.
Best performers by a distance. Low resistance, high thermal mass, they hold and radiate heat well.
Engineered timber.
Generally suitable, and usually recommended over solid timber because it is more stable through the heating cycle.
Solid timber.
Problematic. It moves with temperature and moisture, and it can cup, gap or split over a heated floor.
Vinyl and LVT.
Usually fine, and worth checking the maximum surface temperature the product allows.
Carpet.
Workable within the tog budget, and the underlay is what decides it.
Thick thermal underlay, rubber underlay or a felt-backed carpet.
This is where systems get killed.
Before anything else, check the simple things
If your underfloor heating has stopped performing and the flooring has not changed, it is more likely a control fault than anything structural. A single cold zone is usually a failed actuator at the manifold or a flat thermostat battery, both inexpensive.
Open the manifold cupboard, photograph it including the flow meters, and send it over. We can frequently narrow it down before setting off. See underfloor heating.
Also worth knowing: underfloor heating is slow by design. A floor with thermal mass takes hours to respond, so it works best held at a steady setting rather than switched on when you feel cold.
And before you cut into the floor
The loop positions have to be located first
A drill through a heating circuit in screed is an expensive afternoon and it is entirely avoidable.
The housing in Tattenhoe Park
Recent development in the south-west of the city. Mains pressure throughout, unvented cylinders in many properties, underfloor heating on ground floors, and modern plastic pipework. The cylinders need an annual check of their safety devices, and a great many have never had one. See unvented cylinders.
Hard water
Same Anglian Water supply as the rest of Milton Keynes, around 300 mg/l of calcium carbonate against a UK average of 207. New house, same water, and the hot water side takes the damage. See our hard water guide.
Getting to Tattenhoe Park
Around fifteen to twenty minutes from Two Mile Ash. Fine for booked work and out of hours.
Frequently asked questions
Can I put carpet over underfloor heating?
Within limits. The total covering including underlay should generally stay under about 2.5 tog, and thick thermal underlay is usually what causes the problem.
My underfloor heating stopped working after new flooring.
Almost certainly the covering rather than the system. Check what underlay was used.
Is solid wood flooring suitable?
Generally not the best choice. It moves with heat and moisture. Engineered timber is more stable.
One room is cold and the flooring has not changed.
Most often a failed actuator at the manifold or a flat thermostat battery. Photograph the manifold cupboard and send it over.
Do you cover Tattenhoe and Kingsmead?
Yes, along with Westcroft, Snelshall, Shenley Brook End and Emerson Valley.
What we do in Tattenhoe Park
Where we cover in Tattenhoe Park
- Tattenhoe Park
- Tattenhoe
- Kingsmead
- Westcroft
- Snelshall
- Shenley Brook End
- Emerson Valley
Get in touch
Call 07514 312117 or send a WhatsApp with a photo of your manifold cupboard. Gas Safe registered 981362, CIPHE member, fully insured.