The comfort of staying in the room, the mood and health of the residents depend on the quality of heating in the house and apartment. If you put a heating mat under the tiles, you can achieve ideal heating of rooms, where warm air will be distributed evenly throughout their entire volume. Installation can be done by hand, saving well on the services of specialists. To achieve the best result, you should familiarize yourself with the varieties and features of the products on sale, study the technology for their installation.
Varieties of heating mats
Electric mats for underfloor heating under tiles are a complex multi-layer structure consisting of several functional elements. The basis of the product is fiberglass mesh, which has high strength, flexibility and resistance to high temperatures.
A cable with a diameter of 3-4.5 mm is fused into the mesh, having the following device:
- a metal core that heats up when electricity is passed through it;
- polymer insulation;
- copper braid shield;
- external insulation.
The cable is evenly distributed over the base in the form of a wave with an amplitude of 50 cm and a distance between the wires of 8-12 cm. Temperature sensors and thermostats are supplied or purchased additionally with the products.
According to the electrical diagram, heating mats are divided into the following types:
- Single-core. They consist of one continuous conductor, which is closed in a circuit. Products emit a large amount of electromagnetic radiation and are intended for the arrangement of non-residential rooms (corridor, loggia, bathroom). When laying the mats, it is necessary to give the desired position for easy connection to the network.
- Two-core. They consist of two conductors, one of which is heating, and the other is wired. The presence of two conductors simplifies the installation of the mats and reduces the electromagnetic background.
After laying, the products are connected to the household network 220 through a coupling. Reliable insulation of wires and joints allows you not to worry about the safety of property owners.
Advantages and disadvantages
Electric mats laid in a warm floor, like any similar products, have their pros and cons. The combination of tiles and heaters gives a much better effect than linoleum and laminate flooring.
The advantages of the products include:
- Environmental Safety. The exposed parts of the equipment do not emit harmful substances into the air. Two-wire constructions produce an acceptable level of electromagnetic radiation.
- High performance. The optimal distribution of the cable over the mesh contributes to uniform heating of the surface. There are no cold spots.
- Ease of installation. The mats simply roll out like a normal rug. The surface of the product is embossed. An adhesive solution adheres well to it, on which the floor covering is laid.
- The heating mat is thin enough not to raise the floor significantly.
- Energy efficiency. In the underfloor heating system, the heating mat transfers heat to the tiles in a direct way. There are practically no losses.
- Simplicity of calculations. There is no need to count how many cables or pipes are required.it is enough to divide the area of the room into the area of one mat.
- Maintaining a comfortable temperature for a certain time of the year. Automatic regulators allow you to set the desired value with an accuracy of 1 degree.
Matt floor heaters also have their drawbacks. These include high initial costs for the purchase of material and high electricity consumption at medium and maximum modes. In addition, repairing the product is impossible in principle. If the mat fails, it is necessary to open the tile covering and replace the faulty fragment.
Features of choosing the right option
When buying, you should consider the following points:
- Power. For different models, it varies in the range of 100-200 W / m². The choice depends on whether the floor structure will be used as the main or auxiliary heating.
- Warranty period of operation. Given the peculiarity of the placement of heating elements, you should purchase quality products from trusted manufacturers.
- Coverage area and room configuration. You should take mats of such a configuration that they evenly cover the surface of the screed, without overlapping.
It should be borne in mind that it is impossible to cut the mats by cable, only the wires for connecting to the network can be shortened.
Laying and connection
The correct approach to installation involves the use of quality materials and proper placement of elements. Heaters must not be placed under cabinet furniture and household appliances. Lack of air circulation leads to overheating and burnout of the cable.
For work you will need:
- roulette, level;
- grinder or tile cutter, powerful drill or hammer drill with mixer;
- mallet;
- notched trowel, rubber trowel;
- tile glue, grout;
- plastic crosses;
- sponge;
- container for mixing the solution.
Given the peculiarity of the work, it must be performed in soft shoes, a respirator, goggles and gloves.
Underfloor heating mats are laid in the following sequence:
- Checking the condition of the screed. In the presence of cracks, holes, chips, they are sealed and leveled with cement mortar.
- Treatment of the bearing surface with a primer. This will strengthen the surface of the material and improve its adhesion.
- Arrangement of thermal insulation. For this, a dense and rigid polystyrene foam is taken, trimmed with foil on the front side.
- A laying scheme is drawn up. Grooves are made for laying the cable and a hole for installing the thermostat. Thermomats should be at a distance of 10 cm from the wall and 15 cm from the radiators.
- Layout of mats, cutting them out. This should be done along the grid without touching the wires.
- Bonding products to the base. If the mesh is on the bottom, the cable is recessed to its full thickness in the solution. When the wires are on top, gluing is done pointwise. All further actions are carried out after the glue has completely dried.
- Connecting wires to the thermostat and to the network, checking the functionality of the structure. It is better to do this before installing the finish, since it will be impossible to fix anything later.
- Mixing heat-resistant glue and covering the surface of heating elements with it, so as not to damage them during the laying of tiles, when strong pressure is applied to the products and there is a risk of heavy, sharp objects falling.
- Drawing up a tile laying scheme. If necessary, you can lay it out according to patterns and mark it. After that, the drawing is transferred to the base.
- Deep penetration impregnation surface treatment. It is best to apply at least two coats to ensure a good preparation.
- Kneading the adhesive.It is applied with a notched trowel to the back of the tile, which is then pressed onto the floor according to the markings. The ceramics are laid in rows, starting from the far wall. Horizontal and alignment are controlled by level and plastic crosses.
- Grouting. They are preliminarily cleaned and primed. The mortar is pressed into the openings so that it fills them completely. Excess grout is removed and used again.
- After drying, the tiles are washed off with a soft cloth.
It is possible to connect the structure to the network only after the glue has completely solidified.
Heating mats manufacturers
Products of domestic and foreign production are on sale.
The best heating mats of the following brands have proven themselves:
- Equation;
- Teplolux;
- DEVI;
- Nexans;
- Ensto;
- Hemstedt;
- Profi Therm;
- Extherm;
- Fenix;
- Woks;
- RATEY;
- Veria.
Purchases should be made at trusted retail outlets, without fail checking for a quality certificate.
