Under Wood Floor Heating helps homeowners find a happy middle ground between aesthetics and functionality for their wooden flooring. Although the idea of walking around barefoot on a smooth, wooden surface may evoke expectations of cold feet, few people would disagree that wood flooring is the most attractive option for their homes. The high-quality wooden floors available at Wood Flooring Ireland have an ability to fit in with a range of different styles while maintaining a clean, uncluttered look and adding a touch of class to the room.
Thanks to under floor heating, you don’t need to choose between looks and comfort for your home. The flooring used for underground heating is identical to the wood flooring you would use on an unheated floor, so you get the exact same stunning visuals, but with the bonus of being able to walk around with a comforting heat radiating from beneath your feet.
What is Underfloor Heating?
As the name suggests, this is heating that goes underneath your flooring, providing many benefits. Underfloor heating creates a gentle warmth that radiates through your flooring, making it pleasant to walk on and removing any chance of a nasty cold shock when you hop out of bed in the morning. The system does this through heating elements laid underneath your wood flooring. When they heat up, the heat transfers to the floor. There are a variety of under floor heating options available. There are water-based systems that involve running pipes under the floor, there are systems that involve heating element wiring and there are also under floor heating mats.
Engineered Flooring Suitable for Underfloor Heating
The main things to look out for when installing a timber floor over an under floor heating system is the density and thickness of the wood. The denser the wood is, the better it will be at transferring the heat away from the under floor heating. At the same time, you don’t want it to be too thick, because then it will retain too much of that heat. Your floor might be nice and warm, but you won’t get as much of that heat into the room itself. If you have Under Floor Heating, we would recommend going with our 15/4mm thickness option. This is a 4mm top layer of solid oak but 15mm in total. Perfect for heat transfer from system to floor.
Engineered wood flooring makes use of a composite structure, with a generous layer of all-natural wood on top of a base of engineered wood underneath. The engineered wood below ensures that the flooring has the ideal properties for flooring, while the natural wood on top gives you the best possible finish. Engineered wood flooring is also extremely durable with the ability to better handle expansion and contraction due to temperature changes of heating floors, as well as better heat transfer properties compared to solid wood.
Our Wide Range Of Flooring Styles
At Wood Flooring Ireland, we stock a wide range of flooring options to suit every room in your home. We have several styles of engineered wood flooring, all of which are suitable for underfloor heating.
- Long Plank Wood Flooring – Suitable for contemporary and rustic homes alike, long plank flooring evokes a more natural look, emulating floorboards.
- Chevron Flooring – The angular pattern of a chevron design adds a classical air to a room, though it is far from a luxury-only flooring. Equally suitable for humble homes and palaces alike.
- Herringbone Flooring – Herringbone is similar to chevron but with a little more of an organic feel. It is this design that people often picture when they think of parquet flooring.
- Versailles Flooring – Nothing adds an air of grandeur to a space like Versailles flooring. A beautiful pattern of squares crosshatch designs that are famous for adorning the floors of the Versailles Palace.
Call Us Today
Feel free to call us on 021 462 99 13 with any questions regarding the design of of floors for wood floor heating. Alternatively, you can call into our showroom in either Cork and Dublin. Our expert team will be delighted to speak with you. We would also recommend speaking to a under floor heating professional for advice regarding the different heating options available.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you put heating under wood floors?
You should make sure that the wood floor in question is suitable for use with under wood floor heating, but yes, you can put heating under a wooden floor.
What type of wood flooring is best for underfloor heating?
Engineered wood flooring is the best kind of wood flooring when it comes to underfloor heating because it provides the warm, natural finish of wood flooring with much better heat transfer properties.
What type of flooring is best for underfloor heating?
Wood is the best medium for underfloor heating, as it has the best heat transfer properties when compared to things like concrete and tiles.
Which underfloor heating is best for my home?
The best solution largely comes down to installation and running costs. If you have a very square room, the best solution, maybe heating mats, which are easy to install. Running costs-wise, you may find that a water-based UFH is more efficient.