Underfloor Heating Standards in the United Kingdom

The company that inspects, tests, and certifies electrical products and runs the BEAB Approved Mark within the United Kingdom has made the decision to enforce the standard EN 60335-2-96 for electric heating elements.

The implementation of this new standard will higher the level of safety within consumers’ homes. The changes from the old standard to the new standard will mean that there is a limit to the output of approximately 100W per square metre when used with timber floors. Also, it will be required that a thermostat with a floor sensor is fitted to ensure that the temperature of the heating system doesn’t exceed 35°C.

Why is this change so important?

Sometimes, heating systems with too high of an output is chosen for timber floors. This can cause drying out of the wooden subfloor which can crack and shrink the wood causing damage to the tiles or other type of floor covering. Even more dangerous, the temperature could rise to a level which would cause people to burn themselves on the hot floor. Or, in some extreme case, the thermal blocking can raise the temperature to levels that may have the power to cause a fire.

With the new standard in place and being adhered to by manufacturers and installers, customers will no longer have the worry about the system having too high of an output which could jeopardise the safety of the home.

If you’re worried that the current system you’re looking at won’t adhere to the standards in the future, think about choosing DEVI. At HTW, we stock a variety of DEVI underfloor heating systems that have adhered to the new standards since they were implemented in continental Europe and the US several years ago.