A History of Underfloor Heating

Underfloor heating is not a new concept, and it is one that is gaining in popularity.

Amazingly enough, underfloor heating was first introduced to Britain 2,000 years ago during the Roman Empire.

The system used by the Romans involved “hypocausts” ducts under the floor and flues in walls with hot air from fires travelling through them. The hot air would then warm the tiles or bricks and the heat would be passed into rooms.

The Romans discovered that this form of heating was incredibly efficient. There was no need to continually feed or stoke the fires and a relatively small furnace could heat an entire property.

In the 1960s underfloor heating made a comeback in the UK, but this time electrical systems were used. Unfortunately, they proved expensive to run, were prone to mechanical failure and they often didn’t deliver the required heat. Even today when you mention “underfloor heating”, many people think back to the old electrical heating systems.

However, in Europe a different form of underfloor heating was developed – warm water underfloor heating. It proved an instant success and has remained popular ever since, particularly in colder parts of Europe but even in Mediterranean countries like Spain and Italy.

The first installations of underfloor heating with water-circulated PEX pipes in the UK were made in the 1970s but recent advances in material technology and heat transfer have opened up new possibilities. The heating circulates warm water through flexible plastic pipes installed underneath the floor. This turns almost any type of floor into a large radiator.

Today warm water underfloor heating is proving increasingly popular, particularly among self-builders and those converting old properties who can choose to install an underfloor heating system during the build.