type of flooring options Radiant staple up.

KevinHughes

I have recently installed staple up with Omega heat transfer plates. I currently have the 20 year old Pergo engineered wood flooring. There is a little de lamination around the seams in some areas. 

I am looking for the top products that can stand the warmest temperatures. Tile and quarter sawn hard wood excluded. 

The products we are looking at are the engineered wood plank's and vinyl plank flooring.  All the flooring companies say keep temp under 80* and we like to run our water temp at 120 to 140* 140 Preferably  any experience with These products? 

Any recommendations on types of flooring. 

Paul Pollets

It's surface panel temps that have limits, not the tubing loop water temperature. Better pre-engineered products are Khars, Junckers, Timbergrass and Lowenstein.

hot_rod

What are the heat loads? BTU/ sq ft. If the loads are too high you may not be able to get adequate heat out of the floor. 82°F is about as warm as you want to run the surface temperature. That 80-82F will be common with any wood products. The quality engineered products are the best over radiant.

140F SWT seems high for an aluminum plate system unless you have thick subfloors?

How's the humidity? Expansion and contraction of wood floors has a lot to do with moisture also.

With an 82F surface and a room of 70F, expect about 22-24 btu/ sq ft

The supply temperature depends on the subfloor material, any foam under the flooring etc.

nosirra1Arrison

Paul Pollets said:

Better pre-engineered products are Khars, Junckers, Timbergrass and Lowenstein.

100% agree with Paul.
I have Khars with underfloor plates with no issues. Be sure to follow manufacturers recommendations to leave expansion gap around exterior.

Alan (California Radiant) Forbes

I have a 101 year old house with single glazed windows and hardwood floors and a boiler with outdoor reset; Radiant Engineering thinfin staple-up plates. The manufacturer of the plates recommends water temperatures no greater than 120F and in the past, I've had water temperatures up to 130F and the hardwood is no longer the same as it used to be. It's cracked and separated in places.

I don't think an engineered wood floor will react the same, but follow the instructions and guidelines. As far as staple-up plates, it's all about how large your heatloss is.

TAG

Alan (California Radiant) Forbes said:

I have a 101 year old house with single glazed windows and hardwood floors and a boiler with outdoor reset; Radiant Engineering thinfin staple-up plates. The manufacturer of the plates recommends water temperatures no greater than 120F and in the past, I've had water temperatures up to 130F and the hardwood is no longer the same as it used to be. It's cracked and separated in places.

I don't think an engineered wood floor will react the same, but follow the instructions and guidelines. As far as staple-up plates, it's all about how large your heatloss is.

What floor type do you have?

I have had some movement with older wide plank ...... not so with new --- fully coated after being acclimated in a climate controlled house

Alan (California Radiant) Forbes

What floor type do you have?

3/4" tongue-and-groove fir subfloor, 5/16" hardwood.

hot_rod

That flooring build up is reasonable. Two tubes in each bay? Got access to an infrared camera? that would show how consistent the floor temperature is. Well insulated below the plates?

Still, the load calculation, room by room may have the answer to why you need such high SWT.

TAG

3/4" tongue-and-groove fir subfloor, 5/16" hardwood.

Have had some movement on an older 6" beach floor -- it had a lot of gaps to start with and fit the project so I was not going to replace 1500 sf of flooring. That was 3/4 over typical plywood decking. Most of the old places I rehabbed had various red oak flooring and they seem to take it well.

On new floors, since I aways use wide boards -- coat the backs of the boards with finish along with giving the boards lots of time to acclimate. All the new projects have been over Warmboard and none have had problems -- even my newest with some 14" wide white oak. This is the second winter and it's nice and tight. AC in the summer

ibal

OP, what did you end up doing?