It's hard to imagine modern life withoutthe benefits of civilization. Every person wants to be always warm and comfortable in his house. There are several ways to achieve this, but perhaps the most suitable option for warming a house or apartment is a warm floor. Electric is easy to make. Its installation will not take long if you follow some recommendations. 
Scheme for installation of electric underfloor heating.
Varieties of the warm floor and the principle of their operation
To date, there are 2 types of floor heating, which is heated by the supplied electric current: 
Variants of laying the cable of the warm floor.
Virtually all underfloor heating systems operatingfrom electricity, are made in the form of a designer, which allows them to be assembled independently and quickly. Regardless of the selected species, the system is arranged identically. It consists of:
- heating element (cable);
- heating mat;
- temperature sensor;
- thermostat.
The heating mat serves as the mainheater. Outwardly it looks like a mesh with the cable on top. The standard value of this mat is 25 m in length and 0.5 m in width, but there are other dimensions. When buying such a system of underfloor heating, special attention is paid to the area of the room that needs to be equipped. Professional builders do not recommend laying heating mats in places where furniture will stand. Therefore, before buying it is necessary to clearly define the layout. In order not to make a mistake when choosing, in the store you need to show your calculation of the room. On its basis, the seller will select the required value of the mat and its capacity. 
The design of a resistive two-wire cable. The thermal sensor makes it possible to control the temperature of the floor with a thermostat. Its installation is necessary, since the sensor allows you to track the heating temperature of the cable, thereby ensuring safety. The control unit or the thermostat has several modes. With its help, you can program the heating system at your own discretion. On the central control panel it is possible to set hourly, daily or weekly control over the temperature. The thermostat will turn on and off depending on the set mode. The cheaper models of the control unit do not have the functions of programming, they only monitor the maintenance of the necessary temperature. Their drawback is that they do not provide an opportunity to save energy. Back to contents</a> Preparing the floor for the installation of heating elements 
Scheme of connecting the electric underfloor heating to the electrical board. Before laying, you need to purchase all the necessary material and tools. For installation you will need:
- system of a warm floor (a grid, a heating cable);
- fasteners;
- a cable for earthing (copper);
- connecting wires;
- temperature sensor;
- thermoregulator;
- waterproofing (polyethylene film);
- heat reflector;
- metal reinforced network;
- sand;
- cement;
- lighthouses;
- rule.
The surface of the floor must be leveled, cleaned andrepair all cracks. That the heat radiated by a cable, directed directly in a room, instead of heated plates of overlapping, it is necessary to fill in a new coupler. This stage is not mandatory, but will significantly save energy consumption in the future. The polyethylene film is stretched on the floor (it can be replaced with foam plastic), on top of which the heat-reflecting material is laid. Places of joints teplootrazhatelya fasten with adhesive tape. Next, it is necessary to give a hardness screed, so the next layer is a metal reinforcement. After the "pie" is ready, beacons are put up and everything is poured with a solution. To avoid cracking, the thickness of the screed must be at least 50 mm. Back to contents</a> The technology of installation of electrical cable floor heating 
Wiring diagram for underfloor heating thermostat.While the screed hardens, proceed to the installation of the thermostat. To do this, it is necessary to lay a strobe in the wall to bring the electric cable from the panel to the control unit, and from the latter to the floor. Preparing the place where the control unit will be located consists in drilling a seat, as for a conventional switch. A specially designed plastic box is inserted into it and a cable is laid to it. A separate circuit breaker is required for the underfloor heating system. To do it right with your own hands, you need to learn how to cut the heating mat. It is rolled out to the required length and a mesh cut is made without violating the integrity of the cable. This cut will allow the mat to unfold in the opposite direction when the strip reaches the wall. When the entire surface of the floor is covered with a heating mat, its mesh is fixed using a mortar for laying tiles. The next step in the installation is laying the cable for the temperature sensor (cold cable). A prerequisite that must be observed when laying it, the cables must run parallel to each other, and must not intersect. They are fixed with alabaster, and the edges are led out to the junction box of the thermostat. The temperature sensor itself is hidden in a corrugation and is mounted in a groove made in the interval from its attachment to the thermostat. For optimal operation of the control unit, it must be positioned so that it is between the heating cable loops. On the back of the thermostat there are connection terminals and symbols indicating what and where to connect. In addition, the device must be accompanied by an instruction with a description of the connection diagram, which is suitable directly for this model of the control unit. To avoid short circuits or other malfunctions in further operation, the ends of the wires connected to it are soldered. Back to the table of contents</a> Technology of laying infrared warm floor 
Wiring diagram for electric underfloor heating tothermostat. Preparatory work for laying infrared is the same as for cable. In order not to damage the integrity of the infrared heating plates, the sheets must be cut only in the indicated places. It is preferable to start the heating strips from the wall towards the thermostat. This will simplify the connection process. A thermal sensor is attached to the reverse side of the heating plates using a bitumen adhesive strip and insulated with tape. It is necessary to lay an infrared warm floor so that the copper contacts are facing down to the floor. Next, lay the wires that will go from the infrared plates to the thermostat. Terminals are attached to the copper plates at the ends of the thermal film. A wire is connected to each terminal, which is clamped with pliers. Bitumen adhesive tape is used to insulate the joints. The wires and their connections with the infrared film are heated. To do this, you need to make cuts in the insulation (reflector). It remains only to connect the wires coming from the heating sheets and the temperature sensor to the control unit. Back to the table of contents</a> Finishing decorative floor covering Beforeto begin the final stage, warm floors made by own hands, it is necessary to check up on working capacity. Both the cable and infrared sheets should be warmed evenly. There should be no short circuit and no sparking. If the warm floor is made correctly, you can put a finishing coat on it. Cable electrical warm floors are poured with a layer of screed, on top of which the selected floor material is laid. If the finish coat is a tile, then there is no need for a screed. The tile is laid on top of the wires using a specially designed adhesive for the warm floor. Infrared warm floors after successful passing of the test for working capacity are covered with a protective layer of polyethylene film. With a laminate for the finish coat, a special substrate is used. For linoleum or carpet floor reinforced with sheets of plywood or chipboard. Particular attention should be paid to their fasteners, so as not to damage the thermal film. If the tiles are laid on the infra-red heated floor, then a concrete screed must be made. It is worth knowing that the layer of screed under the finish coat will play an important role in the further heating of the room. If it is made thin, then the floor will heat up faster, but also cool down. With a thick layer, the screed will warm up longer, but its ability to retain heat increases. Electric warm floors with their own hands make it simple, most importantly, observe all the rules of fire safety and recommendations for their installation. </ ul>
