Can I fit wooden flooring over underfloor heating?

Underfloor heating is becoming a popular choice of alternative heating for the home and we are very pleased to say you can have a real wood or laminate floor as well. Underfloor heating is efficient and hidden from view, creating a clean look to your rooms and allowing other features to come to the fore. Engineered wood flooring can be installed over most systems, although it’s wise to check with the manufacturer of both the flooring and underfloor heating beforehand. We ourselves don’t recommend installing any solid wood floors over underfloor heating, although we do supply Junckers solid wood flooring systems who do. You can read further information about Junckers flooring and are other manufacturers below.

There are certain points that need to be adhered to when using underfloor heating with laminate or wooden flooring so below are a few general hints:

• The surface of the floor must not be more than 27C.
• The heating system must provide heat evenly across the floor, with no hotspots.
• Floors must be laid close to the subfloor, with no gaps between the layers so that floor does not dry out.
• The relative humidity of the room should be 60% or less. This applies when laying the floor as well as afterwards.
• Beech and Maple floors adjust to the climate more than other woods so these species can experience more movement than others, such as Oak or Ash.
• The most efficient underlay is paper felt as it has the lowest amount of thermal resistance. Thin foam underlays (2mm-3mm thick) can be used too but steer clear of fibreboard or thick acoustic underlays as these will reduce the efficiency of the underfloor heating system.

*For exact rules please follow the manufacturer’s guidelines.

By taking on board this information, you will be able to benefit from an efficient way of heating your home, along with an aesthetically pleasing dwelling. If you have any questions regarding wood over underfloor heating, please feel free to contact us.

Manufacturer specific information regarding wooden flooring over underfloor heating
Kahrs engineered information regarding underfloor heating
Boen engineered information regarding underfloor heating
Junckers solid information regarding underfloor heating
Quickstep laminate information regarding underfloor heating

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