Tag: Pretoria

Pretoria / Under floor Heating

We at JC Heat 2 Tile, install and supply all materials and thermostats you need for under floor heating. Our products can be used for tiles, carpets, wood, screed and most floor surfaces. We distribute our products from Johannesburg to Pretoria and Nationwide. Consequently, our DIY units can be delivered on the same day.

JC Heat 2 Tile are specialists in the installation of under floor heating, repairs and maintenance. We also replace damaged thermostats. You can buy all the necessary products you need from us to do a DIY installation. Thus heating elements, hessian, screed compound and a range of energy saving thermostats are all available. Our range of thermostats consists of Analogue, Digital, Programmable and Motion Sensors. In addition, these can be surface mounted or flush mounted. Flush mounted thermostats are made to fit onto a 4 x 2 box or a 4 x 4 box. Surface mounted thermostats do not require a box. Thus, they are plugged directly into your wall plug.

You can go to our online shop and purchase any of the products that we supply. Our pricing is competitive and affordable. Thus underfloor heating is no longer a luxury product.

Because we are on a wide variety of social media platform, you can always reach out to us and ask us any questions that you may have. Find us on Twitter, Facebook, Mix, Linkedin, Instagram and so much more.

Customers are welcome to send us a WhatsApp should you have any enquiries about any of our products or services.

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Installation of an underfloor heating mat

8 simple steps. Installation of an underfloor heating mat. This is a very simple process, and with our guidance, you will find that anyone can do their own underfloor heating installation! Lets take a walk through the process…

Supplies, supplies, supplies! What you need before we begin:

You will need a few basic supplies before you start your installation of an underfloor heating mat. You will need your heating mat from JC Heat2Tile. Your thermostat. A piece of trunking if you are placing your thermostat on the walls exterior surface. Some double sided tape. *If you do not wish to drill for mounting the thermostat* Some normal tape. A measuring tape and a pair of GOOD scissors (your kiddies safety scissors probably wont work for this). Although it is not necessary, feel free to recruit some minions for extra assistance at this stage!

First things first:

As i mentioned to you in the video, you will need to do a little bit of math! The heating mat will need to have a starting point, then make a zig zag across you floor area and then come back up and across to return back to your starting point. As stipulated in the video, take a bit of time doing this initial math, as when you come to laying the mat, having little markings on your floor surface will help you a lot! Lets start our installation of an underfloor heating mat…

Moving on:

Now that you have given your brain a workout and figured out how you will cut and lay your mat, take your marking pen. Measure out these guide line measurements and make little markings on your floor to guide you as you go along. I strongly advice that you do not miss this step. Believe me, when you are in the process of laying the mat and suddenly have to start trying to measure out your cuts, my voice will be ringing in your head saying “i told you so!”

Very VERY important:

Now that you have done all your math, markings, had a cup of coffee and decided to start, stand at your starting point and ensure that your heating elements will be facing down onto the floor when you roll out your mat. Lets carry on…

Start rolling, rolling, rolling:

Roll out your starting point until you get to your first marking. Now, take your scissors and cut along the mat to the bottom. MAKE SURE that you do not cut the element during this process!!! Now turn your mat and start rolling back again! Carry on rolling up and down until you get to your marking that stipulates that you must go up again towards your starting point. Roll up to your marking, and then back to your starting point again. In essence, you should have now formed a square of heating with both the beginning and end of the mat now at your thermostat point.

As you will see in the video, you must now ensure that your cold leads from the heater do not cross over each other when you stick the edges down. You should now be gazing upon a pretty little square of heating and patting yourself on the back for your achievement!

To screed or not to screed, that is the question:

Now this is a decision you will have to make, based on a few things that i am going to point out to you. Firstly, what type of flooring will you be laying?

If you are laying tiles, you will be using a tile adhesive and this is really not a necessary step. If you are using laminated wooden flooring, personally, i would say screed! Laminates are a floating floor and you would want your heating to be one with the concrete base. (This is my opinion and not an absolute instruction!)

Should you be laying vinyl flooring, then you must screed! The reason i say this is that vinyl floors “mold” to the floor surface. After time you could end up actually seeing the heating on the vinyl surface. In my humble opinion, it is worth spending the extra time to lay a skinny layer of screed over the heating. This will make sure that your heating is protected and actually becomes “one” with the concrete base.

Now for the thermostat:

Now that you have done all the heavy labor, all you have to do is connect the thermostat. Either you will have trunking in the wall that goes to a box, (This will have direct lines from your DB board and should be done by a qualified electrician) or you will place a piece of trunking on your wall surface. You feed the cold leads of the heater through this. Now all you will need to do is connect your thermostat according to the instructions… Taaa Daaaaa! You have now completed your underfloor heating installation!

A final word or two:

Before you run off to gloat about your achievement to all your friends, remember to watch the installation video. It goes through all these steps in a visual guide. Also, have a squizz at our video that explains all you need to know about setting your digital thermostat.

YAY! You are now officially an underfloor heating D.I.Y pro! Congratulations on your installation! Don’t forget to pop on over to our various social media pages. You can gloat about your success or simply ask us any other questions that you may have.

Find us on facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and more!

Stay tuned to our blog as we bring you more tips and tricks of the trade!

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Why is Under Floor Heating the best form of heating ?

Floor Heating
Floor Heating

Why is Under Floor Heating the best form of heating?

How effective are conventional heaters?

Conventional electric or gas heaters does not distribute heat evenly. These kind of heaters create cold and hot spots in the room. From where your heater is positioned, heat would rise up directly.  So, in essence, the heat would rise straight up from the source. This would result in heat accumulating in the roof, causing  hot and cold spots. The heat would only be felt when you are close to the heater.

It’s similar to standing around a fire, you only feel the heat when you are close to the fire. These types of heaters also dries the air, so not suitable for allergy, asthma sufferers and those who suffer headaches.

The benefits of underfloor heating.

Under floor heating is the best form of heating  because it is installed underneath the floor surface, covering 60% of the floor surface, resulting in  heat rising uniformly.

Underfloor heating is a durable heating system that heats your home effectively and efficiently with no maintenance required.
A uniform heat rises resulting in the entire room heating up. There will be no hot or cold spots. Ensure that the rooms are well insulated to maintain efficient running costs. Installing a modern energy saving thermostat also helps with consumption and managing your under floor heating.
The heating system is laid directly beneath your floor surface so there are no exposed wires making it the safest way to heat your home.
The heating system is controlled via a thermostat ( analogue, digital or programmable ), so you can choose the most comfortable temperature for you.
Underfloor heating can be installed under any floor surface. The most durable being tiles as it is a better conductor of heat.
This heating system is suitable for carpets, laminate floors, engineered wood, marble and tiles.

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How to install underfloor heating

Mesh Mats Underfloor Heating Guide.

How to install underfloor heating.

Installing underfloor heating yourself is a rather simple process. If you the handyman type, following the steps listed below should be easy and fun to follow; so…how to install underfloor heating ?

How to install underfloor heating
How to install underfloor heating

Step 1: Make sure the size mat you purchased is the correct size for your room.  Now you need to plan the layout of the mat. Start doing this by doing a sketch of the room with all measurements of mat. Also, know where you would be positioning your thermostat, as this would the starting and end point of the mat.
Step 2: Once step 1 is done, make sure the floor surface is clean and level. If there are any rough patches, level it out with self leveling screed.
Step 3: Now, from the point where you would place your thermostat, roll out the mat to the desired length, then cut the mesh to twist mat to run parallel next to rolled out length, be careful not to cut the wire. You may cut away some mesh if you have excess, this could happen when installing in bathrooms. Continue in this fashion until the desired floor space is covered, ending back at starting point.
Step 4: To hold the mat in place, use strong duct tape, hot glue gun or nails attached to mesh, NOT the wire.
Step 5: If you are installing an external sensor ( would be used for bathrooms, cemcrete floors and wooden floors ), this should be perfectly positioned in the middle of the heating wires. If you position it closer to one cable than the other, the temperature would not be gauged properly.
Step 6: If you had purchased an alarm ( ideally you should ), connect the cold tails ( this is the wire at end of mat which connects to the thermostat ), to the alarm to ensure the mat did not get damaged. If the alarm sounds, you have a problem.
Step 7: .To lay your tiles or floor surface: There are 2 methods, its up to your own initiative.
Method 1: You can lay tiles directly on top of mat ensuring the tile adhesive goes through the mesh to make contact with concrete floor.
Method 2: Prepare a slurry mixture of self leveling screed and bonding liquid. Spread this mixture over the mat and leave it to dry. This mixture will get rock hard. You can now install the floor surface of your choice.
Step 8. Assuming the alarm hasn’t sounded, floor surface been laid, you can now connect the thermostat to the heating system.
In our next blog we will explain how to connect and position various models of thermostats.
Step 9. Let it dry for a few days before first usage.
If you are using the wire without the mesh, you should watch the following video link
If you found this guide to be useful and user friendly? Then don’t forget to like us!!!
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NEWS

Underfloor heating.
Underfloor heating.

 Underfloor heating at J C Heat 2 Tile specializes at providing heating under any type of floor surface. Under tiles/porcelain, carpets, wood, screed and any natural stone,slate or marble in South Africa. We also supply D I Y under tiles heating units and floor heating thermostats.

The thermostats range from analogue to digital to programmable. Our underfloor heating system poses no harm or damage to any floor surface nor to your budget, health or environment.

Underfloor heating mats DIY
Underfloor heating mats DIY

 Installing underfloor heating 

the BEST durable investment you can make / add to your property and lifestyle. Installation is no more than 1 – 2mm thick under your floors. Heat is distributed evenly throughout your room/s which is regulated by the sensory thermostat that you have preset for your comfort.The lifespan durability of the underfloor heating system lasts as long as your floors. 

Answers about underfloor heating

When do I start ? As soon as you start planning your new home or renovations  in order to include it in your budget.

Is it possible to install the underfloor heating under any floor surface?Absolutely, our heaters can be  installed under most floor covering including : ceramics, porcelain, travertine, marble, slate, sandstone, screed  floors, carpets and laminated wooden  floors.

How does the thermostat work? Once it has been switched on, the thermostat has a sensor that measures the difference in air temperature. Once you have set the thermostat to your desired comfort level, it will switch on and off automatically to maintain the preset room temperature.

Is it safe to install undertile heating in my bathroom? It is completely safe as the heaters are fully earthed as per regulation.

How long will the underfloor heating system last? Our heating system has a lifespan durability when installed correctly.

How long will it take for the floor to heat up?   This depends on the thickness of the floor surface, but normally approximately 15 – 20 min for the floor to feel warm then 10 min more for the room to heat up.

Can the underfloor heating be fixed directly on top of existing tiles? Yes, the floor must be completely free from dust, dirt and grease. When installing on top of existing tiled floors this floor needs to be treated.

And finally !!

Can underfloor heating be used as the only heat source?  Absolutely, upon correct installation, the floor warms up causing heat to rise resulting in the entire room being warmed.

Is it advisable to do it myself and is it possible to fix? Is is preferable that you have it professionally installed  as it also comes with a guarantee.And  yes, we are able to find the exact point of  fault to repair.

How much will the running cost of my underfloor heating be? Upon  correct installation it should operate for approximately 8hrs a day. Eg: room size – 22m2 require 2kw heater. The average price of kw/hr = 1 R. Equals: 2kw x 8hrs x 1 R= R 16 +/- .Of course these calculations are all relative to certain conditions of your home, depending on the insulation and air current flow in your home.

Are the installations of the undertile heating system legal? All installations are according to legislation, ensuring the future sale of your home as it will be in compliance with your electrical certificate.