Underfloor heating - why don't more people have it?

Dimey

I have oil fired Uponor underfloor heating in my bungalow. It was installed as a new build - (so easy you could DIY it). I don't know about installing in an existing property as you'd have to dig the floor up or raise the floor level. Hardly worth the trouble with so many nice radiators on the market.

My system is capable of heating the rooms at high temperature but I really don't need it. It is so efficient that even in mid winter the room stats are set no higher than half way, reading temperature around 23 degrees. There is a delay of about an hour before I feel the effects of turning the room stat up or down. However I hardly ever change the room stats as I keep the place toasty warm in winter and down so low in summer that you wouldn't know its ticking over.

My oil bill is £890 per annum for a 4 bed detached bungalow. The oil boiler also heats the hot water system. No maintenance or service costs unless something goes wrong on the manifold. Not happened to me so far in 12 years - touch wood.

I have tiled floor so its great to feel the warmth on your feet in winter. I would definitely have underfloor heating again.

Edit - The underfloor pipes circulating the hot water were guaranteed for 50 or 60 years. There are no connections underground so nothing to leak.

mysti77

hmm, not sure if I agree with the 'has to be on all the time for it to heat up'. i have underfloor heating and it heats up the room within 30 minutes and it's very lovely and cozy. It's a new build property so has no draft coming in and that probably contributes to the fact that it's much warmer than I have ever got a room to be using Gas radiators and much cheaper too - bills are a quarter of what it used to be for a place with one more bedroom and bathroom.