Floor insulation in a private house: how to make a heating system for concrete and wooden floors?
Floor insulation in a private home is not an easy task. If in multi-storey buildings the floors are insulated at the expense of the lower floor, then in a private home it is exactly the opposite. Cold air comes from the ground, which makes the task of private homeowners much more difficult. Therefore, owners of private homes pay special attention to the issue of floor insulation in their homes.
Of course, modern technology has solved this problem, and not in one way. There are three types of floor insulation in private homes:
- insulated screed;
- insulated wooden flooring;
- various floor heating systems.
Concrete floor in a private house
The easiest and cheapest way to make a floor is to fill its surface with screed. A mixture of sand and cement is much cheaper, than other building materials, but this type of floor has the biggest drawback - it turns out the cold. In winter it is absolutely impossible to walk on a concrete screed without slippers. But today, modern technology has solved this problem. Under a layer of a coupler the heater keeps within, which though a little, but solves this problem. Expanded clay materials are suitable as insulation materials, granular slag and foam. Modern craftsmen mostly prefer foam.
The structure of our concrete screed in section will resemble a pie, which has several layers. First, foam is laid on the floor surface for insulation, and then the screed is poured. The process of pouring concrete screed takes place in about five stages:
- The first stage is waterproofing the surface. It is best to lay special waterproofing materials on the ground, to avoid the appearance of mold and various fungi. The following material is suitable for this task, as a dense polyethylene film, which is spread directly on the soil surface. But it is best to use a special water barrier, which is made of bituminous mastic;
- The second stage - sizing around the perimeter, along the walls at a height of up to 15 cm of porous material made of foamed vinyl. This material provides plasticity of polyfoam at temperature differences and will protect it from cracks;
- The third stage is the laying of the foam itself. Foams should cling tightly to each other. If the concrete solution gets into the cracks, then the cold can penetrate from there, which makes our work absolutely useless. Therefore, the gaps are filled with foam;
- The fourth stage is the reinforcement of the screed. Concrete screed without reinforcement on the foam will not last a year. Just a few months, so that the concrete screed starts to crack and less than a year passes, how it will just fall apart. Therefore reinforcement, we can say, is a must;
- The fifth stage is the screed itself. After the reinforcement stage, the concrete solution itself is poured. The thickness of the concrete screed must exceed 50 mm. The concrete mortar must be stronger, than necessary, that is the usual ratio 1:4 not suitable, it is better to use the ratio 1:3. Also avoid cracking of the screed, plasticizers are added to the concrete solution.
The process of insulation of concrete screed is approximately as follows. Although concrete screed is the cheapest and most affordable type of flooring, but this is not enough, to make your home cozy and comfortable. To do this, resort to a variety of heating systems.
Concrete floor heating system in a private house
There are many options for floor heating in a private home. There are basically three types of heating:
- electric;
- infra-red;
- water.
It is best suited for heating concrete screed water floor heating. This system is quite easy to use, so you can do it yourself. But the calculation and design of such a system is best left to professionals. If you think about such a system to the smallest detail and do not save on building materials, then it may be more than a decade.
The benefits of this system are more than enough, the first of which is absolute energy savings, by connecting to the central heating system. You have not only a warm floor, on which you can walk barefoot, but also a safe to use heating system. Others, installation and installation of a water heat-insulated floor does not demand special efforts and expenses, so it is also possible to install such a system yourself.
How a warm water floor system works?
The main elements of water floor heating are polymer pipes, in which hot water circulates. The system is connected to central heating or to individual boilers, which is heated by liquid or solid fuel.
The temperature in the pipes is regulated by a thermostat, which connects to the pipes. Temperature regulators are installed on the walls, and in them it is enough to set the necessary temperature, to make the system work. Automatic thermostats are the most convenient to use. Reaching the set temperature, the system cools down automatically.
Installation of a water heat-insulated floor occurs in three stages.
Firstly, the soil itself is prepared, in which pipes will consist. The entire perimeter is cleaned of construction debris, all differences and slopes are leveled.
Secondly, substrates are placed under the pipes. This will help direct the heat up and distribute it evenly throughout the room. Thermal insulation boards are perfect for this task, which also play the role of pipe clamps.
Third, the concrete screed itself is poured. The thickness of the poured screed must be at least 3 div.
One of the disadvantages of water floor heating is that, that it is categorically incompatible with wood. This system is effective, only if your room is flooded with screed.
Wooden floor heating system in a private house
No special effort is required to heat a wooden floor, since wood is a warm material, that does not require additional heating. The only thing, what can be done is enhance its effectiveness due to additional heating systems. But laying insulation, we can deprive our floor of normal ventilation, why the wood material is deformed. Therefore it is necessary to calculate system of a waterproofing and to think over everything more carefully, the better.
To insulate the wooden floor, it is enough to lay mineral insulation under the flooring. It is not recommended to use polyfoam, since it is impermeable to air. And as a result, the natural ventilation of the room is disrupted. Everything, what can be done in this case is leave space between wood flooring and insulation. Space in size 50 mm will be enough, so that natural ventilation is not disturbed.
Conclusion
Finally, we can say, what to do underfloor heating in a private home - not such a difficult task. With a responsible approach to the case and careful design of the system, all the work can be done independently. But in modern homes, the floor heating system is already designed and its happy owners do not think about such a problem.
