Floors from £40 a square metre; electric underfloor heating laid under them from £45 a square metre
Floors, with underfloor heating
Kitchen, hall and bathroom floors on a levelled, decoupled base, with electric underfloor heating laid in the same job if you want it. Large-format porcelain, wood-effect planks, and the patterns on the patterns page.
A tiled floor is only as good as what is under it. Concrete is levelled with self-levelling compound; timber is overboarded and laid on a decoupling membrane; and underfloor heating goes down in a bed of levelling compound so it is protected and the tiles sit flat on top. That is where most of the time goes, and it is why our floors do not crack.
Electric underfloor heating mats are laid on insulation board, tested before and after they are covered, and encapsulated in levelling compound before the tiles go down. The connection to the thermostat and the circuit is made by a registered electrician, who certifies it; we give you the test readings for the mat. For wet systems, we tile over the screed your plumber or builder has laid once it has dried.
Large-format tiles (600 by 600 and up) go down with levelling clips and back-buttered so there are no hollow spots. Wood-effect planks are laid with a third offset, not a half, so they do not rock. Herringbone, chequerboard and hexagon floors take longer and waste more tiles; the patterns page has the figures.
What is included
- Self-levelling compound on concrete
- Overboarding and decoupling on timber
- Underfloor heating mats tested before and after
- Levelling clips and back-buttering on large formats
- A third offset on plank tiles
- Board protection until the grout has cured
What it costs
Floors from £40 a square metre including VAT, levelling compound and adhesive; electric underfloor heating mats laid from £45 a square metre plus the electrician's connection. Including VAT, adhesive, grout and trims; tiles are yours or ordered at trade price and passed on at cost. The calculator counts the tiles, boxes and bags and prices the labour.
Questions about floors
Can tiles go on floorboards?
Not directly. Boards move, and tiles crack. We overboard with tile backer and lay a decoupling membrane, which adds a few millimetres and saves the floor.
How long before I can walk on it?
Usually the next morning with rapid-set adhesive and grout, carefully. Furniture back after 24 hours; underfloor heating on, slowly, after a week.
Is electric underfloor heating expensive to run?
For a bathroom or a kitchen floor, used as comfort heating on a timer, it costs little. As the only heating in a large room it is more expensive than a heat pump or gas. The installer can give you a figure for your room.
Measure the wall, count the boxes, then a survey.
The calculator turns your width and height into tiles, whole boxes, adhesive and grout bags, the labour and the days for your tile and pattern. The quote form takes two minutes; Lowri measures every wall and floor at a free survey and the written quote follows within three working days.