Search Sort Posts:  Oldest to newest Newest to oldest

15/04/2008, 9:10 Gluestick Joined on 22/03/2006 UK and Nord Pas de Calais Posts 2,343 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort UFH runs at far lower temps than conventional wet CH. The aim is to keep the building at a comfort mean temperature level. Most systems suggest that some additional source of heating is required (e.g. woodburner) for evenings in the main room/s. Unfortunately, and as with so many engineering advances, all too often, realisations of concepts tend to be downgraded and thus defeat the primery original design philosophies. UFH ought properly to use the latest control technologies, including flow measurement, zoning and most critical of all, external sensors feeding into the central control logic, as well as "Smart" controllers which "Map" usage habits and enjoy access to historic memory; for example, average ambient external weather according to seasons. I recently posted some long overdue results from a chum who converted a bran in Wales a couple of years ago and heats this using geothermal bore holes. He recently sent me an update from his latest electricity bill. From interest, I'll post it again. This is the total cost for One Year! As a further matter of interest, the total bill for the last (Winter) six months has dropped even further, thanks to more insulation: down to £ 790! And this includes, of course, all the later price rises of circa 15%. A wee bit better than oil-fired in France with fioul now at circa 91-92 cents per litre! So, as I’ve said our single story cottage is approx 1900 squ ft. Insulation is basically stone walls with lime mortar 18” to 24” thick. The a 2” air gap to permeable building paper attached to a timber frame with 50mm celatex under plasterboard. Half the building is normal ceiling height while the remainder is open plan 16 foot to eaves. Total Energy bill per annum is £1800. I’ve subdivided it up as follows.   Jacuzzi heating and filtration.   £400        35degC operates 24/7/12 Workshop power & light.          £150        Welding, compressed air, battery charging etc. General Household.                £100         Computer, TV, domestic appliances etc. Cooking.                                £150        Heating & Hot water               £1000       Main room stats set at 18degC, Bedrooms 17degC. Hot water 49degC. Anti                                                                 Bacterial High hot water set for 60degC every 30 days. Wood burner (12kw) used in open plan area in the winter evenings. We have to be careful we don’t over do the wood burner as it easily gets too hot! "Yes, but that apart, Mrs Lincoln, did you enjoy the play?" Gluestick    Report

15/04/2008, 10:05 Benjamin Joined on 21/08/2005 Vendée South Posts 1,815 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort Really good technical explanations there Gluestick, without getting too techy. We also have UFH, although electric, in our modern three bed bungalow. It's by far the most comfortable form of heating we've ever had. We are all electric ie no gas, oil, woodburners etc., and our bills for the two complete years we have lived here were 764€ for 2006 and 825€ for 2007. I don't see this current year being any more expensive either. Having said that if you are installing in an existing property then the word is insulation, insulation and insulation. The system works on zoned thermostats so there's no question of overheating if you use these wisely. Yes, if heating from absolute cold in the dead of Winter, it can take up to 24 hours to reach full temperature but with today's modern delay timers and the possibility of telephone control from a distance this should never be a problem. Benjamin St Malo 1-New evidence suggests mis-trial    Report

16/04/2008, 13:37 just john Joined on 28/04/2005 Montignac le coq Posts 383 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort No-one mentioned coming down first thing in the morning in bare feet onto a warm floor Its been installed in our Uk property (with a new condensing gas boiler, too early for costs) but the girls in the family think its heaven. the real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, and blindside you at 4pm on some idle Tuesday    Report

16/04/2008, 14:05 WJT Joined on 22/09/2004 Posts 1,538 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort Gluestick, thank you very interesting information. Off subject I know but regarding your comment on the hot water setting, I had assumed that the setting needed to be on 60 deg all the time to prevent bacteria in the tank. In fact a few weeks ago our plumber turned it down to about 50 and I noticed the difference and turned it back up. Regarding UFH, we have friends that don't like it at all. They say it takes too long to heat up and if you have a mild day it is very uncomfortable.    Report

16/04/2008, 14:24 Gluestick Joined on 22/03/2006 UK and Nord Pas de Calais Posts 2,343 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort It's a good example of the new programming technology, WJT. Does it all autonomously, clears the bacteria and then back to low. And saves cash. Now he has finished all the building work, I am looking forward to my chum's further feedback through Summer etc. We'll see what he says about Summer temps.   "Yes, but that apart, Mrs Lincoln, did you enjoy the play?" Gluestick    Report

16/04/2008, 17:44 Matt Joined on 23/04/2006 Sussex & Cher Posts 71 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort I can only comment on the underfloor heating in my conservatory in the UK.In a word "fantastic".We don't have gas in France so no boiler but if I did then I would without hesitation put it in every room I could. Ours doesn't take days to heat up more like an hour or so and the cats absolutely love it.Rather an expensive cat basket though!    Report

16/04/2008, 21:02 Sparky Joined on 12/04/2008 Posts 2 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort The hot water pipe systems work well - wouldn't know how reliable the electric ones are.    Report

17/04/2008, 8:32 andyh4 Joined on 15/06/2005 Frankfurt and Ardèche Posts 959 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort It is true that UFH is relatively slow to react to changes in external temperature.  This is simply because there is  a massive block of concrete that needs to be heated up/colled down.  There are however things that can be done to alleviate this.  Modern systems with full controls and predictive programming go a long way, but also consider that with Geothermal and a heat pump it is possible to reverso that the system acts like a refrigerator and can actually extract heat from the building.  Like aircon.   Most of the negatives seem to be coming from people who do not have the system, but have heard that...................  Personally I would be very loath to change to another system, although next time I would probably consider the so called geothermal rather than oil.  Nevertheless we are consuming less than 1000l oil per year. Andy    Report

17/04/2008, 14:57 johnnyboy Joined on 14/06/2007 Posts 37 Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort Nice to hear a few positives about UFH,we have gone down the route with this for most of the ground floor areas (complete renovation project BTW). We have spoken with the plombier and hope that we have the balance about right.The main two rooms (8.5x6.4m) & (8.5x5m) approx are heated floors,with the larger being a double height room.Both will have woodburners,the idea being to keep floors relatively cool and supplement that on colder days as necessary.The system is oil fired and hot water is aided by solar panels too.Had looked at geothermal,but were advised that it would not be up to the task in hand given size of house/construction etc. Upstairs is normal rads and large heated towel rails in baths/showers.Thinking behind the system is to have an alternative supply always available.May work out a bit more expensive initially,but may prove worth it if any part should fail for any reason. Cost is difficult to quantify at moment as we have not finished,may be able to provide more on that later. Also have made the old error of changing things as we have progressed(see Gluey's post!!)  Hoping against hope that all complete by July,but not holding breath!!   Johnnyboy    Report

Page 2 of 6 (47 items) < 1 2 3 4 5 > ... Last »

France Forum » Building and Re... » House Renovatio... » Re: Is underfloor heating really worth the effort

(Quick links) Forums Home |- Search Forums |- Active Topics |- Unanswered Posts User Options |- Sign In |- Join this community |- Forgot Password About This Forum (READ ONLY) |- About This Forum Moving |- Finding/Owning French Property |- Making the Move From Outside the EU |- Long-Term Letting |- Employment Vacancies in France Legal and Finance |- French Legal Issues |- French Finance Building and Renovation |- House Renovations |-- Working with Wood Living |- Earning a Living |- Driving |- French Education |- Pets |- Animal Welfare, Rescue & Protection |- French Satellite TV, French Internet and Telephone |- Health |-- Changes to Healthcare Entitlement, CPAM, CMU and Cartes Vitales |- Swimming Pools in France Owning/Running a Business |- French Artisans |- Gite Owners |- Hotel and Restaurant Owners |- B&B/Chambres d'Hôtes Owners Leisure and Pastimes |- Gardening |- Sport, Leisure and Pastimes |- Shopping |- French Antiques, Arts & Crafts |- Photography |- Motorcycling in France |- Books and Literature |- Getting Married in France |- Pregnancy and Birth French Culture |- French Food and Wine |- French Culture |- French Language |-- French Language FAQs and Useful Links |- Wildlife/Nature/Environment |- French History Travelling to/from France |- Travelling to/from France |- Latest Good Value Deals to/from France Holidays |- Holidays General Discussion |- The Complete France Post Bag |- The Lighter Side |- Other Topics |- Forum Technical Support |- Useful Links About France/French Living Regions |- HOTEL SEARCH |- Central |- North East |- North West |- Paris Ile de France |- South East |- South West |- East |- West |- Corsica and DOM-TOMs