Does anybody have underfloor heating with carpets?

[ThePoplars]

When we were originally planning our extension, we considered, and then discounted, wet underfloor heating.  Now that the build is in progress, and I'm busy choosing radiators, friends have been recommending how good their underfloor heating is.  However, they have installed theirs in kitchen/diners with tiled floors and spend large amounts of time in the rooms where it is fitted.

 

The space we are looking at heating is approx 90m2, of which 58m2 will be carpeted with minimal heating as the rooms won't be used very often (an average of 2 hours per day), the rest could be tiles or wooden floor.  My partner is concerned that the rooms with carpets will take too long to heat up, even if fitted with less than 2.5 tog carpet/underlay.  The carpeted room which will be used most often will have an independent gas heater.  We would have independent timed thermostats for each room.

 

Does anybody have carpets with their underfloor heating?  If so, do you have rooms which are used as infrequently and are you able to heat them adequately?  Do they take long to come up to temperature?  With your experience, would you install it again or just stick with radiators?

 

Whilst we are thinking of wet underfloor heating, when we can afford to replace our roof, we want to install solar PV (probably in next 5 years).  If we decide to go ahead with underfloor heating, should we be better considering electric to utilise the output from the Solar PV?

[ProDave]

Out last house has UFH ustairs and down. Upstairs has carpets, downstairs solid floors.

 

Yes the upstaits UFH will take longer to heat up with carpets so just allow for that in your programable thermostat settings.

[ThePoplars]

Thanks @ProDave  Was it a massive difference in time to heat up, for example, would we have to have it heating up for 2 hours before using the room for 2 hours?

[ProDave]

No not massive, much less than the difference between radiators and UFH for instance.

[ThePoplars]

That's useful to know.  Thanks ☺️

[jack]

We have low temperature underfloor heating (typically the floor is around 21-22 deg C). The only carpeted room downstairs can feel a little cooler than the rest of the house, presumably due to the fact that the concrete elsewhere is a much better heat conductor.

 

If your wet UFH is reasonably high temperature, the carpet will be less of an issue.

[Onoff]

Off thread a tad but my friends and relatives delight in taking the pi$$ how well my "UFH" works. I had to "temporarily" divert the downstairs, single pipe system in order to gut the bathroom (the date stamp suggests it was taken 9th July 2015  )

 

 

Running at whatever the oil boiler kicks out, under now carpet tiles, the white pipe just under the surface of the floor provides a lovely warm strip in the depths of winter. This in an otherwise unheated room. Visitors, the kids and various stray cats migrate towards it and will fight over who gets to lie on the floor! 

 

 

 

Edited July 3, 2018 by Onoff

[ThePoplars]

Ah yes, we have a pipe like that on the upstairs landing.  The cats love it (visitors haven't found it yet though ?).

[ThePoplars]

11 hours ago, jack said:

We have low temperature underfloor heating (typically the floor is around 21-22 deg C). The only carpeted room downstairs can feel a little cooler than the rest of the house, presumably due to the fact that the concrete elsewhere is a much better heat conductor.

 

If your wet UFH is reasonably high temperature, the carpet will be less of an issue.

 

I'm really not sure what low or high temperature is in this context. We normally aim for a room temperature of 19.  Will have to investigate.