How To Install Hydronic Systems Under Existing Floor

Radiant heat systems are easily hidden under a tile floor.

How to install hydronic systems under existing floor. Hydronic systems circulate heated water through pex tubing that winds under the floor. A pex radiant floor heating system can be the most comfortable efficient and often may be installed for less than other heat delivery hydronic systems. This is primarily used when the floor joists are exposed say in rooms over an unfinished basement or crawlspace. A good compromise is to install the hydronic system right in a concrete slab and install the wood on the concrete.

But that said even a wood floor will warm up and heat you and the room quite well. If you can access your floor joists from below you can easily install energy efficient radiant heat under your existing floors. There are many different ways to install a residential hydronic heating system in your home. The last system is the floor joist installation.

The two most highly recommended options are retroheat and floorheat both systems are very affordable and allow you to install radiant heat to existing floors without extensive remodeling or tearing up existing floors. Below are common hydronic installation methods. When you are installing wood floors over top of concrete the double layer two layers of 1 2 ply floating plywood method will be the best method. A hydronic floor is no less complicated than a zoned baseboard heat system.

Hydronic systems can also be installed beneath floor joists. Radiant floor heat stratifies the heat from the feet to the head. Install pex tubing before pouring a concrete slab for the home or install it when using plywood as a subfloor. It uses a boiler heated by gas oil or electricity and requires valves and manifolds to distribute the water as well as sophisticated thermostats to control the heat.

There are two distinct ways to install a radiant floor heating system. In most situations hydronic water based systems are the most efficient. The following is a look at a few of the most common installation methods. Whether you are building a new custom home from the ground up or undergoing an extensive remodel hydronic systems can be installed in almost any situation.

In this case the tubing is run between and through the joists and anchored to the subfloor. The first is in the floor itself the other under the subfloor between the joists. Another option for radiant floor heating that is energy efficient are systems that circulate hot water through small tubes under the floor. These radiant floor heating systems can also be installed on top of a slab before the flooring goes down.