Radiator or underfloor heating: What is recommended under these circumstances?

  • Erstellt am 2018-03-08 17:29:18

Rollo83

2018-03-09 09:03:55
  • #1
When I built two years ago, I actually didn't want underfloor heating but radiators. I hadn't had underfloor heating for the last 30 years either and didn't miss it. But then I thought about it longer, points like modern standards, possible resale, and especially the nice space. I really like it when it looks very tidy and almost bare, and radiators would simply get in the way. At first, I only wanted underfloor heating on the ground floor and it was around 6000 euros. Then I added the upper floor as well. The extra cost was just under 9000 euros, but I didn't care. In the basement and the attic, I have radiators, but I haven't turned them on once in the last two years. Now I am absolutely happy with my underfloor heating, I especially like the warm tiles in the bathroom, and I am glad there are no annoying radiators hanging on the walls.
 

86bibo

2018-03-09 09:04:38
  • #2
Then I’ll speak as a mixed installation owner. However, our house is not a KFW building but from 1990. I often wonder how such a mess could have been made. I installed a new heating system last year and am still trying to find the ideal adjustment, as you have to properly coordinate the flow temperature, heating ramp, mixer control, and underfloor heating. Of course, mixers and condensing boilers today automatically control many things, but that is exactly the problem. I have thermostats on the radiators. So they work quite dynamically. If I now change something in the individual room control of the underfloor heating, the system takes a few days to adjust the entire system back to the new state. Therefore, I removed the thermostatic valves on all UFH heating circuits and now only control 3 of the 9 circuits. This works quite well for me, and the different control loops don’t escalate each other. But it occupied me from November to February.

Of course, we need significantly more energy, therefore also higher flow temperatures than a new building; we also have a fairly open building design. Nevertheless, the underfloor heating causes significantly more effort in operation “just” for warm feet. To make matters worse, there were also isolated radiators installed next to the underfloor heating on the ground floor. We quickly dismantled those (except in the bathroom).
Of course, the underfloor heating has a lower flow temperature than the radiators, but that doesn’t help with the supply, since the radiators need at least 60°C. The mixer then reduces this for the underfloor heating. That is why the system is also more expensive, as a second pump, a mixer, and appropriate control must be installed.

If you had the option to go completely with underfloor heating (don’t know why that shouldn’t be technically possible), I would consider that because it’s effective, simple, and unobtrusive. But if the choice is only pure radiators or a mixed system, then definitely not the mixed system. It only creates more effort without additional benefit.

That you therefore feel like you have underfloor heating upstairs is, in my opinion, also not correct. Of course, the floor upstairs is not as cold as on the ground floor because the room below is heated. But there is still easily a 10-15°C temperature difference (depending on the floor covering). Underfloor heating makes the most sense in the bathroom, in the bedroom, and possibly in the living room. The first two rooms are upstairs for you, so underfloor heating doesn’t make sense, especially since you can quickly turn off the radiators when using the fireplace, while you cannot turn down the underfloor heating during that time. Although this doesn’t save costs, you won’t be heating the house twice.
 

Hafenlui75

2018-03-09 09:18:07
  • #3
We have both,
KFW 55 would not have been economical for us, but we just missed it with our equipment.
Our experience: All radiators are cold all year round (except the towel warmers in the bathroom).
Only the bathrooms and the kitchen are heated through the floor (because of the cold feet on the tiles).
Conclusion: Radiators are unnecessary for us and basically only take up space on the wall.

PS The central ventilation system with heat exchanger handles the heat distribution quite satisfactorily.
And for emergencies, we still keep a small fireplace. But it must not burn too strongly, otherwise we have to open the windows ;-)

Regards Hafenlui
 

jundb

2018-03-09 09:19:07
  • #4
Thank you for the numerous helpful contributions! There were a few new things for us that we will take into account.
 

bortel

2018-03-09 09:31:37
  • #5
I also don't understand at all why it is supposed to be "impossible" to install an underfloor heating system
 

Kekse

2018-03-09 09:39:49
  • #6
Of course that would be possible if the provider offered that. But obviously they do not. Cheap prices are achieved either by sacrifices in quality or by absolutely tight organization of processes and standardization. This inevitably comes with limited (read: essentially non-existent) choices. I know what I would prefer.
 

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