Lawerence,Thanks for your comment. I'm pretty sure we showed you enough in that video. If we didn't, then hire a contractor to do the work for you. Our goal was to provide as much info as possible in 10-minutes or less. We suggested a dedicated 20-amp circuit - which is more than enough for a floor this size and larger. [US std] Using a 1/4 thermal insulating mat is perfectly acceptable and complies with 1/4" underlayment. Some folks us 1/4", 3/8" or even 1/2" underlayment [cement board] to deal with floor heights. As remodelers our goal is to try to eliminate thresholds at doors, but that is not always an option.Many of these floor is 3/4" subfloor not concrete. Your point on an insulated concrete floor [thermal mass] is correct, but again not always an option.
A heated bathroom floor is a wonderful luxury not unlike a heated steering wheel. You didn't know you needed it until you had a chance to experience it. Heated floors are especially useful over unheated spaces like over a garage. I'm considering going out over my garage in my current home for a master suite and I'm thinking about going full radiant floor heating.
suggest a spray foam added to bays under your space...ceiling of garage...this will make excellent R value but also cure the curse of 'over-garage-bedrooms', which is both cold floors/drafts but also cut chances of carbon monoxide getting into that living space above a garage. This is a huge hazard of this type of finished space. with the money you spend on floor heat you can probably cut out any separate heat system to save money or go with a small Mitsubishi heat pump to heat and A/C...
Rob, I used this for first time in my new timber home in master bath. wish I had known about the insul board at time. In place of that, I added two inch foam board in the bays below the floor in the unheated basement. My basement is insulated in floor slab and conc foundation walls, but not the floor joists since by code it does not require it but mostly because the basement may end up as finished heated space and i wanted no insulation to interfere with util install at that time.. I will say you should add something about the R value of the warm up insul board..my 2" foam board installed under the advantech ply has an R10 i believe. I know i don't get a thermal break over the cold floor joists my way,but R10 or even more is great to keep floor warm. I also found that you are MUCH better turning system on in October and off in May. It literally only added $5.00 to my monthly bill!!! just leave it on at room temp desired. Waste much more electricity turning it on each morning ahead of your day than you do by leaving it on all winter...works GREAT!
like the warm up insulated underlayment. that will save time over what I've been doing with foam, hardi backer, elec mat then tile. kills several steps.
Robert Ruddy,I disagree. They are made of waterproof extruded polystyrene with a fiberglass mesh embedded on each face into a cement polymer coating for exceptional compressive strength & rigidity.The cement coating offers several advantages when compared to uncoated polystyrene boards including: Class O fire rated BS - Floor InsulationGreater RigidityHigher point loading The use of insulated tile-backer boards will reduce warm-up times & reduce running costs in all cases, but they are especially recommended if installing under-tile heating on an un-insulated floor. The boards can be fitted directly over floorboards, chipboard, plywood using galvanized screws & over existing concrete floors with ordinary floor tile adhesive (a rapid setting adhesive is recommended)
Good information Robert but I need more details. I live in South Texas and nobody is doing heated flooring down here. So I have nobody to ask. Event at the tile store I have no luck in getting information. I’m remodeling my bath and wanted to used the heated floor system (on concrete) So I’m doing my homework before I install to get everything right. You mentioned using warmup board before installing the heat strips. Down here we used hardy backer between subfloor and tile. Can the hardy board be used as the “barrier” or do I need to find this warmup board???
mark Ramirez It’s designed to be at the coupling that to avoid cracking I have not heard anything about this particular product as of date One contractor of mine said he heard some issues with the Schluetr decoupling mat, but I have not heard anything
A Concord Carpenter / ToolBoxBuzz yeah a buddy of mine that is a union tile setter in the city of Chicago claims his company is getting feed back about cracking grout, leading to return repair visits. Anybody else hear anything??
Can you explain more on WHY you would NOT need to embed the mat in thinset if you use the insul-board underneath??? What would hold it down? And you still got to use thinset for the tiles. Confused here. Thanks.
Okay, maybe I missed it.....but I have to assume it wasn’t said. 1-if you show the install of something, I want to know how much it cost you for the parts, how much for tools the DIYer likely doesn’t have, and also what I would expect to pay for professional install in the part of the country person making video works in. 2-in the case of electrical installs, I want to know how it was set and what the draw was for a year or average of winter months. This is hugely important for people that want a small footprint, are using a solar power system, or don’t want to pay to install something that they may not be able to afford to run if it has too great of a draw. (I myself am considering adding this to cabin I will soon be building in Alaska, but don’t want to add a $10k solar system for a warm bathroom floor)... Nice video, appreciate all the tips and pointers.
That's fairly subjective depending on your area and *** your particular project.*** This is a 10 min over view to introduce you to a product. How simple is it for you to contact the company yourself and get your own specifics.
I realize your comment is 2 years old but, wondering if have educated yourself anymore or are you still relying on others to do the work for you. The man is doing a 10 minute review of the product...that is it. If you are considering an install you should find out as much info YOURSELF. Call the company as well as others and research if this product is really for you. Mommy is not always going to be there for you.
if i want to install in the kitchen area, should i 1st install the new kitchen and than floor or do the floor 1st and than kitchen on the top of the thermal floor? thank you
Rob, Great video. Just had this system installed in my master and the warmup controller clicks off all the time and sometimes shoots a red light out near the reset button. Can I replace the unit with another quieter version or different brand? thanks, Dan
I would call the customer service and run the red light by them. Some of the reasons why floor heat can turn off that I’ve encountered are: 1. The under tile sensor was put under a carpet 2. The under tile sensor gets too much sunlight through a window and heats up too fast 3. The thermostat gets too much sunlight through a window and heats up 4. A pet lays down on the floor in a favorite spot that happens to be where the sensor is
I'd like to have warmup as well as a fireplace and this towel drier rail (GCH) in by bathroom. Does it make sense or it's too much? Fireplace is good as it dries the wall and it looks gorgeous.
Hello Rob.. Great video. I need a direct answer before i do my install: u stated the sticky mats DO NOT have to be trowelled over with thin set if u are using the warm up underlayment thermal boards.. Is this correct?.. There seems to be some confusion in some of the other comments i have read below..
Nice review. Does the insulation take the place of other underlayment? We have been very happy with a combination of the Schluter heat membrane and WarmWire heat cable kits by SunTouch that snap into the Schluter mat. It all goes down very easily and provide great protection against cracking, etc. Schluter also has heat cable but it is more costly.
Rob, that's a very informative video thank you. I got a new build with no flooring done. I was planning on screeding the floor but want to know if the insulation mats can replace the screeding? Another question is, for tiling on concrete floor, are the sequence of events: screed, insulation board, heat mats, tile adhesive and tiles? Thank you.
A Concord Carpenter / ToolBoxBuzz Thank you for the reply. Hopefully don't need to level it. ( I'll have to look at it again next week as we don't have the keys yet to check if needs levelling. )
Hi @Jonathan - Warmup has worked with many tiny house builders. See our recent blog post about a floor heat installation in a tiny house: www.warmup.com/blog/terrified-to-go-tiny-explore-todays-tiny-house
Hi Rob, excellent video! So if I skip the step of embedding the heat mesh in thinset, do I go right to tile installation (using thinset)? I would worry about all the walking and kneeling on the mesh while I install the tile. Thoughts? Thanks a lot for the info, your video made the decision for me to go with floor heat (and insulation panels).
In the video when you start to trowel the sticky mat down with thin set, you say this step can be skipped if using the insulation board. So if you skip this step, does that mean you go directly to tile installation? This would mean using a notched trowel with thin set to lay tile directly on the mat. Personally I would rather trowel thin set on the mesh first as you do in the video but maybe I've misunderstood. Thanks for replying.
Hi J Smith - Absolutely - Here are some case studies of our floor heating systems installed in basements: www.warmup.com/underfloor-heating-case-studies. We also have a whole page dedicated to floor heat in a basement: www.warmup.com/underfloor-heating/basement. Hope it helps.
If your posting videos to diy'rs you may want to point that out. But in my opinion the sharp metal edge of a float can break, score , damage the wire so I would be inclined to advise to use plastic... especially considering most diy'rs don't have the dexterity and familiarity of using a metal one and could quite easily cause expensive damage...
Thicknesss: 1/8" - That doesnt include the mat and the sensor and connections are way thicker. Boards: Heatup reduced from 2.5hrs to 25min. Heatup time reduced by 90%. What? Power requirements: Is this not based on the Square foot and the W/Sqft you install? "Check your ohms" Is the American term for Resistance Haha.
Great video - you have convinced me to use in my "new build" here in Mexico Thanks - Bob
Lawerence,Thanks for your comment. I'm pretty sure we showed you enough in that video. If we didn't, then hire a contractor to do the work for you. Our goal was to provide as much info as possible in 10-minutes or less. We suggested a dedicated 20-amp circuit - which is more than enough for a floor this size and larger. [US std] Using a 1/4 thermal insulating mat is perfectly acceptable and complies with 1/4" underlayment. Some folks us 1/4", 3/8" or even 1/2" underlayment [cement board] to deal with floor heights. As remodelers our goal is to try to eliminate thresholds at doors, but that is not always an option.Many of these floor is 3/4" subfloor not concrete. Your point on an insulated concrete floor [thermal mass] is correct, but again not always an option.
A heated bathroom floor is a wonderful luxury not unlike a heated steering wheel. You didn't know you needed it until you had a chance to experience it. Heated floors are especially useful over unheated spaces like over a garage. I'm considering going out over my garage in my current home for a master suite and I'm thinking about going full radiant floor heating.
suggest a spray foam added to bays under your space...ceiling of garage...this will make excellent R value but also cure the curse of 'over-garage-bedrooms', which is both cold floors/drafts but also cut chances of carbon monoxide getting into that living space above a garage. This is a huge hazard of this type of finished space. with the money you spend on floor heat you can probably cut out any separate heat system to save money or go with a small Mitsubishi heat pump to heat and A/C...
Agreed on spray foam - best R-value and air leak sealing
That new intro is awesome, brother! Was waiting for it to make its debut! Great video Rob!
I'm glad you stay in touch, miss you. Stay well and focused!
I like the schluter type mat system the best. Easy to install
I can see you have put some sort of product over the metal washers and screws. What is this and why? thank you.
Rob, I used this for first time in my new timber home in master bath. wish I had known about the insul board at time. In place of that, I added two inch foam board in the bays below the floor in the unheated basement. My basement is insulated in floor slab and conc foundation walls, but not the floor joists since by code it does not require it but mostly because the basement may end up as finished heated space and i wanted no insulation to interfere with util install at that time.. I will say you should add something about the R value of the warm up insul board..my 2" foam board installed under the advantech ply has an R10 i believe. I know i don't get a thermal break over the cold floor joists my way,but R10 or even more is great to keep floor warm. I also found that you are MUCH better turning system on in October and off in May. It literally only added $5.00 to my monthly bill!!! just leave it on at room temp desired. Waste much more electricity turning it on each morning ahead of your day than you do by leaving it on all winter...works GREAT!
smasse64 excellent points thank you sir
no problem Rob...good stuff you do here.
How effective will this work under laminate plank flooring?
like the warm up insulated underlayment. that will save time over what I've been doing with foam, hardi backer, elec mat then tile. kills several steps.
Robert Ruddy thermal insulation boards have zero strength. no good on a floor with any kind of flex
Robert Ruddy,I disagree.
They are made of waterproof extruded polystyrene with a fiberglass mesh embedded on each face into a cement polymer coating for exceptional compressive strength & rigidity.The cement coating offers several advantages when compared to uncoated polystyrene boards including:
Class O fire rated BS - Floor InsulationGreater RigidityHigher point loading
The use of insulated tile-backer boards will reduce warm-up times & reduce running costs in all cases, but they are especially recommended if installing under-tile heating on an un-insulated floor.
The boards can be fitted directly over floorboards, chipboard, plywood using galvanized screws & over existing concrete floors with ordinary floor tile adhesive (a rapid setting adhesive is recommended)
Good information Robert but I need more details. I live in South Texas and nobody is doing heated flooring down here. So I have nobody to ask. Event at the tile store I have no luck in getting information. I’m remodeling my bath and wanted to used the heated floor system (on concrete) So I’m doing my homework before I install to get everything right. You mentioned using warmup board before installing the heat strips. Down here we used hardy backer between subfloor and tile. Can the hardy board be used as the “barrier” or do I need to find this warmup board???
Can you put this under vinyl planks?
Would you just install a floating floor (vinyl plank) right on top of this? Or do you need to put a self leveler down?
Great Job on the video. can you list some part numbers or links?
This product seems excellent!! My question for all you guys, has anyone heard of cracking problems? All that expanding and contracting, curious,
mark Ramirez It’s designed to be at the coupling that to avoid cracking I have not heard anything about this particular product as of date
One contractor of mine said he heard some issues with the Schluetr decoupling mat, but I have not heard anything
A Concord Carpenter / ToolBoxBuzz yeah a buddy of mine that is a union tile setter in the city of Chicago claims his company is getting feed back about cracking grout, leading to return repair visits. Anybody else hear anything??
Hi There ToolBoxBuzz Fellows, Does the Warmup stickymat work for epoxic floors? Cheers
That is an excellent tutorial video. Well done
*advert
would aerogel matting be a suitable alternative if insulation boards aren't able to be used?
Can you explain more on WHY you would NOT need to embed the mat in thinset if you use the insul-board underneath??? What would hold it down? And you still got to use thinset for the tiles. Confused here. Thanks.
The thinset glues it to the subfloor. You then thinset over that for the tile
Okay, maybe I missed it.....but I have to assume it wasn’t said.
1-if you show the install of something, I want to know how much it cost you for the parts, how much for tools the DIYer likely doesn’t have, and also what I would expect to pay for professional install in the part of the country person making video works in.
2-in the case of electrical installs, I want to know how it was set and what the draw was for a year or average of winter months. This is hugely important for people that want a small footprint, are using a solar power system, or don’t want to pay to install something that they may not be able to afford to run if it has too great of a draw. (I myself am considering adding this to cabin I will soon be building in Alaska, but don’t want to add a $10k solar system for a warm bathroom floor)...
Nice video, appreciate all the tips and pointers.
That's fairly subjective depending on your area and *** your particular project.*** This is a 10 min over view to introduce you to a product. How simple is it for you to contact the company yourself and get your own specifics.
I realize your comment is 2 years old but, wondering if have educated yourself anymore or are you still relying on others to do the work for you. The man is doing a 10 minute review of the product...that is it. If you are considering an install you should find out as much info YOURSELF. Call the company as well as others and research if this product is really for you. Mommy is not always going to be there for you.
if i want to install in the kitchen area, should i 1st install the new kitchen and than floor or do the floor 1st and than kitchen on the top of the thermal floor? thank you
Either, wire should not go under cabinets
@@ConcordCarpenter which one will be more practical and easy
Good stuff, super simple installation. Cheers for the info
Rob,
Great video. Just had this system installed in my master and the warmup controller clicks off all the time and sometimes shoots a red light out near the reset button. Can I replace the unit with another quieter version or different brand? thanks, Dan
I would call the customer service and run the red light by them. Some of the reasons why floor heat can turn off that I’ve encountered are:
1. The under tile sensor was put under a carpet
2. The under tile sensor gets too much sunlight through a window and heats up too fast
3. The thermostat gets too much sunlight through a window and heats up
4. A pet lays down on the floor in a favorite spot that happens to be where the sensor is
what if used Mgo boards for the subfloor
I'd like to have warmup as well as a fireplace and this towel drier rail (GCH) in by bathroom. Does it make sense or it's too much? Fireplace is good as it dries the wall and it looks gorgeous.
drania76 sounds perfect
Do I need to thinset the mat to Cerazorb insulation or can I just sticky tape it to to cerazorb?
So if using a thermal base, radiant mesh goes down, and vinyl floor can go right on top with no thinset?
I would encapsulate the mesh or wires first maybe do a SLP self level pour
@@ConcordCarpenter I thought you said in the video, if installing over the thermal, you don't need to encapsulate?
@VTK VoTranK OMG! Your helpless...you should not be doing any install like this if you must ask such a broad question.
Hello Rob.. Great video. I need a direct answer before i do my install: u stated the sticky mats DO NOT have to be trowelled over with thin set if u are using the warm up underlayment thermal boards.. Is this correct?.. There seems to be some confusion in some of the other comments i have read below..
Not sure right now, I haven’t used this in a bit I’m now using the decoupling mat with loose wire. Call their 800 line
Thanks for getting back to me i appreciate it.
CAn this be installed under hard cord vinyl planks?
Nice review. Does the insulation take the place of other underlayment? We have been very happy with a combination of the Schluter heat membrane and WarmWire heat cable kits by SunTouch that snap into the Schluter mat. It all goes down very easily and provide great protection against cracking, etc. Schluter also has heat cable but it is more costly.
+Kimber Janney Yes it does - that's what I love about it
Can a wood laminate be installed over the warm up sticky matt system with the insulation board?
Tommy Marshall I’d call them to check, I recommend d this approach ua-cam.com/video/sXhT1fYVPps/v-deo.html
Rob, that's a very informative video thank you. I got a new build with no flooring done. I was planning on screeding the floor but want to know if the insulation mats can replace the screeding?
Another question is, for tiling on concrete floor, are the sequence of events: screed, insulation board, heat mats, tile adhesive and tiles?
Thank you.
Samuel Spurgeon are you leveling? If not then this will replace
Same sequence for slab
A Concord Carpenter / ToolBoxBuzz
Thank you for the reply. Hopefully don't need to level it.
( I'll have to look at it again next week as we don't have the keys yet to check if needs levelling. )
How would this best be installed for a camper van? Any specific things to watch out for?
It’s designed to work with tile... so you have that to deal with. A shifting, flexing floor will destroy the tile.
will it work in a tiny house?
johnathan hawkins yes as long as you can dedicate a circuit to it
Useless.too much talking
I was wondering the same thing. Did you end up using this product? Thanks.
Hi @Jonathan - Warmup has worked with many tiny house builders. See our recent blog post about a floor heat installation in a tiny house: www.warmup.com/blog/terrified-to-go-tiny-explore-todays-tiny-house
You mean like a Ken and Barbie house?
Rob, it's a great video, really convincing. Thank you!
Hi Rob, excellent video! So if I skip the step of embedding the heat mesh in thinset, do I go right to tile installation (using thinset)? I would worry about all the walking and kneeling on the mesh while I install the tile. Thoughts? Thanks a lot for the info, your video made the decision for me to go with floor heat (and insulation panels).
Will Paterson not sure I understand your question, you are not supposed to skip that step
In the video when you start to trowel the sticky mat down with thin set, you say this step can be skipped if using the insulation board. So if you skip this step, does that mean you go directly to tile installation? This would mean using a notched trowel with thin set to lay tile directly on the mat. Personally I would rather trowel thin set on the mesh first as you do in the video but maybe I've misunderstood. Thanks for replying.
I had the same impression. If the insulation board is used, you can skip the skim coat of thin Set?
Doe this system bring the advantages you present in the video, also if installed in the living room or bedrooms under a wooden floor?
Climate Change I use a diff product under wood floors check it out at www.concordcarpenter.com
What is the R-value of the insulating board? Thank you.
Nick MIller I don’t remember, but it is in the article click on the link in the description below to the article
A Concord Carpenter / ToolBoxBuzz Thank you!
Where are the insulation boards available to buy?
marxtringer tile supply or online
Can I use this under a hard wood floor and if so how do you nail without damaging the cable?
Yes but a different wire and install
Should we still use the insul board PLUS the thinset on the other instal for hardwood? Its a cold crawl space under the floor.
L we did a hardwood install this year, did you happen to see it?
Warmup vs warmly yours ?
leo G both great
@@ConcordCarpenter thanks for the reply
In your opinion what's the best heating for bamboo flooring ( solid bamboo or ingineer bamboo ) thanks
leo G check this out ua-cam.com/video/sXhT1fYVPps/v-deo.html. @warmupnorthamerica
@@ConcordCarpenter thank you !! I appreciate your help 👍
You think you can do a whole basement floor?
Hi J Smith - Absolutely - Here are some case studies of our floor heating systems installed in basements: www.warmup.com/underfloor-heating-case-studies. We also have a whole page dedicated to floor heat in a basement: www.warmup.com/underfloor-heating/basement. Hope it helps.
Can u plz give me d rates and power consumption
This video is done many years ago you might go to the website ConcordCarpenter.com and look up the article or go to The manufacturers website
Can i use this under engineered wood floor?
Pretty sure you can - double check with manuf
i love the video, can you tell me where to buy the products ? including the warmup insulation board. thanks in advance !
Vinh Nguyen warmup.com
Great video and review!
WTF??? don't you put the heating element between the subfloor and the cement board???
that's what I did - OMG
MrSmackdab no but you should be fine the cement board will radiate the heat well
Using the metal float is a big no no...!!
Iain Chalmers As long as you do not use the notched and it is fine
If your posting videos to diy'rs you may want to point that out. But in my opinion the sharp metal edge of a float can break, score , damage the wire so I would be inclined to advise to use plastic... especially considering most diy'rs don't have the dexterity and familiarity of using a metal one and could quite easily cause expensive damage...
Iain Chalmers decent point
Thicknesss: 1/8" - That doesnt include the mat and the sensor and connections are way thicker.
Boards: Heatup reduced from 2.5hrs to 25min. Heatup time reduced by 90%. What?
Power requirements: Is this not based on the Square foot and the W/Sqft you install?
"Check your ohms" Is the American term for Resistance Haha.
Salesman for warmup