underfloor heating - glue/solvent smell ?

dada44

Hi,

Re a house that had underfloor heating installed a decade ago (new build). However, to this day, there is a strong solvent, glue smell that arises / offgases. Particularly at night.

Is this the case with all underfloor heating systems (with marble /porcelain floors) or is it likely that an incorrect sealant was used ?

premkit

never had any smells from under floor heating water or electric. do you have any mats on the floor. or furniture close to the floor that is new, the heat making the glue warm up and give off the smell.

dada44

yes, that is the case in one room. but there is also another room where there are no mats, yet the room smells of grout/glue.

is one meant to use a specific type of grout or glue for underfloor heating? or is such offgassing normal i wonder

thecarpetfitter

I fit Amtico/Karndean flooring often over underfloor heating. The adhesive we would select would be HT (High temp) this is to stop the flooring shrinking, I am not so sure about ceramic floor adhesive, but I would assume if they (tilers) knew about theunderfloor heating they would have used a specific type of adhesive/grout. As for the smell after 10 years? maybe see about sealing the tiles to trap this.

Rob thecarpetfitter

dada44

thanks for your replies.

yes - the smell is very pronounced when there is a rug on top of the tiles. I didn't know why, but the idea that it may be causing the glue to heat up is very convincing.

Similarly, in the kitchen, there is a grout smell where nothing is covered. Could this be simply because they used a 'wrong' type of grout or glue? one that wasn't specifically designed for underfloor heaters

to be honest, the builders weren't that good - and other things have failed in the house, particularly the plumbing.