Our articles are informative and helpful for our readers, easing the beginning or growth inside the renewable energy world. This is the main focus of this section – to provide information to help guide you to the best green solutions.

Influenced by our clients feedback we decided to change our Green Section to Renewable Section, to honour and best represent our biggest objective yet – turn the Algarve into a symbol/staple of Clean, Green and Renewable energy. Are you ready to be part of this journey?

In search of the perfect, greener, most functional and “hidden” form of temperature control system for your home?

Hydraulic Underfloor Heating and Cooling

Installing a Hydraulic underfloor heating/cooling system in your home is a great choice and is widely acknowledged as being efficient.

Benefits

Warm or cooler floors – One of the main benefits of underfloor heating/cooling systems is how they feel. As the temperature flow gently emits upwards from the floor, it makes usually cold floors warm to the touch. Another advantage of this system is that it produces an even temperature, allowing you to walk barefoot all year long, avoiding draughts that are common with radiators.

Hydraulic Underfloor heating/cooling efficiency – Underfloor heating & cooling with water (hydraulic) uses far lower flow temperatures than a radiator system, and because it covers a much larger surface area it is still able to heat or cool the room effectively. For this reason, this system is around 25% more efficient than radiators, while electric underfloor heating (that can’t cool) is around 3 times more expensive to run than the Hydraulic ones.

Hidden heating & Cooling solution – This system is “invisible” as the tubes are hidden beneath the floor. This frees up wall space, ideal for open plan living and for design freedom. Enjoy your whole room without radiators or air conditioning units on the walls, decorate them as you wish.

Underfloor heating & Cooling is safe – By not having any exposed hot/cold sharp edges, this system is a safe and comfortable option for young children and elderly. This system is great for allergy sufferers as it provides warmth free from draughts and dust movements that can aggravate conditions. This is also much better for the air quality in a room since it keeps the air fresh and oxygen-rich. On the other hand, high temperatures caused by radiators increase discomfort and reduce oxygen levels. The thermal circulation, from air for example from an air conditioning unit rising to the ceiling and then back, gets all the dust going in circles which will not happen with a floor heating & cooling system.

The best solution is:
Hydraulic underfloor heating/cooling system

Water, also called wet or hydronic, underfloor heating & cooling systems are a popular choice for extensions and new constructions. The system uses water for heating & cooling, so it can be linked to virtually any heat/cool source from a standard boiler to newer sustainable technologies, such as solar thermal energy or heat pumps.

Each system we provide is tailored during the project’s design stage to get an optimal balance between the system performance and efficiency.

Running costs

Underfloor heating & cooling can offer substantially lower running costs compared to traditional central heating or cooling. This is because underfloor systems offer much quicker heat/cool-up times than central-heating based systems whilst also running at lower temperatures yet still producing the same level of warmth in the room.

Running costs can vary depending on your home’s design, how well insulated it is, what energy tariff you are on and how you control and monitor your homes heating/cooling system.

What Casa Verde recommends:

Lower the running costs even more of this system by connecting it to a solar thermal energy source. This adaptation means that the hot water that it’s in your hydraulic underfloor system, is being heated up by the sun – FREE energy. Note that hydraulic underfloor provides an average saving of 15% on heating bills thanks to the efficient way it warms a home.

Energy Efficient Heating

The main difference between the normal radiators and hydraulic underfloor heating/cooling is that radiators heat the air nearest them first, which is why rooms heated by radiators are prone to “cold spots”, meaning that the air feels cold in the middle of the room and very hot next to the radiators. This usually results in opening a window above the radiator to bring some fresh air in, and there we go again, letting all that energy paid to warm up the house escape out of the window. Hydraulic underfloor heating/cooling provides warmth from the floor up throughout the room without any cold spots or stuffiness in the area being heated.

To summarise, unlike traditional radiators which can make a room feel chilly at times and too hot at other, hydraulic underfloor heating does not overheat or overcool – instead, it achieves the desired temperature set by you using an on-the-wall thermostat.

Works with all floor covering

Hydraulic Underfloor heating & cooling gives you the freedom to design your home as you wish, making the most of all the wall and floor space. And you’re still free to choose the floor type* that you want as Hydraulic underfloor systems works well with laminate, wood, tile, stone, carpet and more.

*Do you know that for each type of floor there is a specification on the material used of your hydraulic underfloor heating & cooling system? Contact us now to know more about it.

Heating & Cooling
The process

After you contact Casa Verde, we will schedule a visit, where we’ll look at the location and the specifics of your home or room where the system will be in. When preparing your project, we will need the blue-print of your home to better plan your hydraulic underfloor system.

Note that this system requires an in-depth study of your home or room, meaning that we need to prepare according to the specifications of the local we are installing the system in. After collecting all this information, we will do the study and preparation can take about 2 to 3 weeks, to ensure everything is planned correctly and according to your consumer specifications.

Myths

The installation itself will take about one month and a half to be completed, depending on the dimension of the system and stages of the building works on site.

Myth 1: Hydraulic underfloor heating is much more expensive than radiators
It’s true that the price to install hydraulic underfloor heating is 30% more expensive than traditional radiators. But is an investment that pays off in the long run. The system is more energy efficient and requires less maintenance, users will find their energy bills and overall system costs are much lower than traditional radiators.

Myth 2: A house with hydraulic underfloor systems never gets warm
The system works to evenly distribute heat over the entire floor surface, so the room temperature can reach up to 25°C. Homeowners can even set the thermostat a couple degrees lower and rest assured they are not losing any heat, since this system works both for colder and warmer temperatures.

Myth 3: Hydraulic underfloor heating & cooling is technically electrical heating
Of course, electric floor heating runs on electricity, but the hydraulic system runs on hot water and central heating. There’s also an option to connect an underfloor system to a heat pump. While the heat pump does require a bit of electricity, it also relies on renewable energy. Hydraulic underfloor systems operate at a constant low temperature, choosing to add a heat pump, powered by photovoltaic panels, to your system is an ideal choice.

Myth 4: Hydraulic underfloor heating takes longer to heat up a house, so the temperature never stays consistent
While electric floor heating works almost as quickly as radiators, hydraulic systems react a bit more slowly. But that doesn’t mean you need to suffer through cold temperatures. It’s important to see how you can set up your system to best suit your lifestyle and keep your interior at a comfortable temperature. For example, with the hydraulic system, you can change the settings to make sure the room temperature only drops three degrees during the night.

Myth 5: Hydraulic underfloor systems is only installed in the floor
This may come as a bit of surprise, but you can actually install hydraulic heating & cooling systems beyond the floor. You can install it in the walls or ceilings to heat & cooling rooms even faster. Overall, Hydraulic heating & cooling systems do not take up extra space, so you can perfectly integrate it into any modern interior.

Myth 6: Hydraulic underfloor heating makes your feet swell
In the early days of underfloor heating, the room temperature could rise to more than 35°C, and if that was the case, your feet could swell up. But with the current systems today, these situations don’t occur anymore, especially if your house is well insulated. In fact, combining hydraulic underfloor heating with a heat pump allows the system to provide cooling as well, which is a plus in the hot summer months.

Myth 7: Hydraulic underfloor systems are unhealthy
Hydraulic underfloor systems prevent the circulation of dust particles that can cause allergies or sickness. Homeowners can also take advantage of the better humidity and a healthier environment free of dust mites and mold, which is especially helpful for people who experience allergies or respiratory issues.

A hydraulic underfloor system is an “invisible” system that allows you to create your dream home without compromising design or gaining big energy bills. It’s an indoors climate control system that allows you to enjoy your home all year long, especially if you like to walk around barefoot – now you can!

To find out more information or book your free assessment visit us here or contact us on:

Phone:
+351 289 012 373 or +351 967 946 216

E-mail:
enquiries@casaverde-int.com

Website:
www.casaverde-int.com