Electric underfloor heating in Shoalhaven
We install electric underfloor heating across the Shoalhaven, from Berry and Kangaroo Valley south to Kioloa. No town here is dominant, and Nowra holds the largest share of homes at 7.9%. The station on the Nowra air base averages 6.8°C on July nights, which is below Observatory Hill in the city. Ulladulla and Point Perpendicular sit near the water, average 9°C to 10°C, and have recorded no night at or below 2°C. Separate houses are 87.2% of homes here and flats only 2.0%, so the job is usually a house.
The benefits of electric underfloor heating in Shoalhaven
23.1% of the homes here were empty on Census night, the highest share of any area we cover. The 2006 to 2016 run sat higher again, between 26% and 28%. Council expects owners to retire into those holiday houses, and the old fibro shacks are being rebuilt as permanent homes. Two of the reasons below come from Council's own flood and coastal maps, and the rest from the weather and the network.
Council's flood rules name heating and wiring
On flood prone land here Council's plan asks that all electrical installations sit above the flood planning level. Its flood proofing guide goes further and asks that heating be above that level to the maximum extent possible. In slab heating cable goes into a new floor set at the 1 in 100 level plus 0.5m, where that rule is met. We read that rule as putting the heating circuit above the level too, so we read the flood certificate before quoting.
A beachfront fit out can need a coastal report
35.5% of the homes here sit inside the state's coastal use area. Under tile heating mats in a bathroom retile usually sit inside exempt work and need no report at all. Council maps erosion and inundation at Collingwood Beach, Culburra, Narrawallee, Mollymook and Currarong. In the highest risk precinct a fit out that does need consent also needs a coastal engineering report.
Old fibro shacks need an asbestos check first
Council's own page says a home built or renovated before the mid 1980s is likely to contain asbestos materials. The beach shacks at Bendalong, Currarong and Swanhaven are the weatherboard and fibro of exactly that era. Under tile heating mats go in after that check, into the new tile bed rather than into the old floor. Many of those shacks are being knocked down instead, and then in slab heating cable is the case.
Kangaroo Valley is rated like the tablelands
BASIX models 98.4% of the homes here in zone 18, which is western Sydney's allowance on a frost free coast. Kangaroo Valley shares its postcode with Moss Vale, so a new house there is given roughly twice Berry's heating allowance. In slab heating cable is the system that allowance is modelled on, and we size it from your own lot. The two villages are about 15km apart and the figure follows the postcode rather than the weather.
Ask about the supply on a bush block here
35.6% of the street substations in this council report low headroom or overload. Almost all of those are small rural pole transformers rather than units inside the towns. One bathroom under an under tile heating mat draws little enough that the board rarely matters. A whole heated living floor on acreage is split into zones so no single circuit carries all of it.
Warm the floor before you drive down on Friday
38.1% of the houses here have rooftop solar, and Endeavour charges least on this network between 10am and 2pm. Our thermostats take a timer or an app, so floor heating comes on before anybody arrives. In slab and in screed heating cable hold that warmth for hours after the power goes off. So a house standing empty midweek is warm by the time the car pulls into the drive.
What we would install in Shoalhaven
Separate houses are 87.2% of homes here and only 865 flats exist across the whole council. So the three systems below nearly always go into a house rather than one lot of a building.
A mat under the tiles
A bathroom retile in a brick veneer retiree house is the most common job on this coast. The mat is cut and turned to follow the room, and nothing under the tiles is disturbed.
Under tile heating matsCable in a slab
About 498 new houses a year are approved here, and seven release areas at Nowra and Bomaderry are planned for 7,120 more. Cable is tied to the reinforcement before the pour, and on a flood lot the finished level is settled first.
Slab heating cables, dual coreCable in a screed
The cottages at Berry, Milton and Kangaroo Valley sit on timber floors over sandstone or brick piers. Cable goes into a topping laid over that floor, and the mass it adds is what holds the heat.
In screed heating cableWhy Shoalhaven properties choose us
We install across Shoalhaven and the rest of the Shoalhaven, and we size every job from your floor plans before we quote. Installation is always subject to checking installer availability, which we do before we agree a day.
How we install underfloor heating in Shoalhaven
Plans first, then a quote
Send us the plans for your new home, renovation, office or hotel. We measure the heated areas from them, calculate the cable size and quote the materials. If you want us to install, a second quote covers the installation labour. Nothing is ordered and no day is booked until you accept.
Installation day
Once you accept and tell us the job site is ready, we agree a day, subject to checking installer availability. The floor has to be prepared and ready before that day: your own trades handle levelling, waterproofing and anything else above the slab. Our installer lays the cable or the mat, fits the thermostat, and tests the system with our own equipment before leaving site. Your tiler covers it with the screed or the tile bed.
In a strata building the path is different again
In a New South Wales strata scheme the lot boundary generally sits at the upper surface of the floor. The slab underneath belongs to the building rather than to you. We lay the mat into the tile bed instead of touching that slab, and nothing is drilled or chased into it. Installing hard flooring, and the wiring and power points that come with it, is a minor renovation under the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015. Waterproofing is carved out of that definition, so a full bathroom rebuild goes to a special resolution rather than an ordinary one. Your builder or project manager deals with the owners corporation, and we build to whatever that approval allows.
The certificate comes before the floor goes in
A consent issued here in 2025 sets construction at 7am to 5pm from Monday to Saturday. Nothing runs on a Sunday or a public holiday, and your own consent is the document that governs. There is no out of hours permit and no work zone charge published at all. Opening the road reserve takes a separate approval under section 138, and there is no skip bin line. Council holds no damage bond for house works, so a bathroom job needs nothing lodged against it. What governs the order of work here is the certificate rather than the hours. On flood prone land the flood planning level decides where the electrics are allowed to sit, even on a minor alteration. Council's own bushfire rebuild answers say a home built before 1980 needs a new consent and a new BASIX certificate. In slab heating cable is counted in that certificate, so it belongs on the drawings well before the pour. In Kangaroo Valley a new floor over 30m² on a slope above 10% wants a geotechnical report first. So we ask for the flood, bushfire and slope paperwork before any installation day is agreed.
Underfloor heating for Shoalhaven homes
Nearly nine homes in ten here are houses
Separate houses are 87.2% of the homes here and semis and townhouses another 8.1%. Flats are 2.0%, and eleven of them sit in blocks of four to eight storeys with none taller than that. Caravans, cabins and manufactured homes are another 2.0%, which is about three times the state's share. Those park homes cluster at Swanhaven, Terara, Lake Conjola and Shoalhaven Heads. 41.1% of homes have three bedrooms, 37.8% have four or more, and 44.7% are owned outright, the highest share of any area we cover. So most quotes here are written for an owner standing in a bathroom they are keeping.
Six belts, and the empty homes follow the water
Nowra, Bomaderry, North Nowra and Worrigee hold 30.3% of the homes and only 6.4% of them were empty. Jervis Bay and the Basin hold 27.1%, taking in Huskisson, Vincentia, Hyams Beach, Sanctuary Point, St Georges Basin and Sussex Inlet. Ulladulla, Mollymook, Narrawallee, Milton and Burrill Lake are post war brick and fibro at 17.3% of homes. The river coast runs Shoalhaven Heads, Greenwell Point, Culburra Beach, Orient Point, Callala and Currarong, where 36.1% of homes were empty. The southern villages at Lake Conjola, Manyana, Bendalong, Lake Tabourie, Bawley Point and Kioloa were 45.2% empty. Berry, Kangaroo Valley, Cambewarra, Bangalee and Meroo Meadow are the hinterland, where 54.6% of homes have four bedrooms or more. Those coastal and village belts hold 44% of the occupied homes here and 71% of the empty ones.
The holiday house is becoming the permanent home
Council's growth strategy says older holiday homes are gradually being replaced with larger permanent residences, many with absentee owners. It also expects the vacancy rate to fall as retirees move from Sydney and Canberra into their holiday home. 28.0% of residents here are 65 or over, which is the highest share of any area we cover. Occupied homes rose 22.5% between 2011 and 2021, and the southern villages grew quickest of all by share. The state's target for this council is 4,900 completed homes by 2029, against about 775 approvals a year. So a heated floor here goes into a rebuilt shack about as often as into a new estate slab.
Winter mornings in Shoalhaven
Three open stations sit inside this council, on the Nowra air base at 109m, at Ulladulla and at Point Perpendicular.
- July nights
6.8°C at Nowra RAN Air Station 068072, against 9.0°C at Ulladulla 069138 and 10.0°C at Point Perpendicular 068151. A tiled floor sits close to that overnight, and it is the first thing a bare foot meets in the morning.
- Frost
1.2 nights a year at or below 2°C at Nowra, with a low of minus 0.9°C, and none at either coastal station. The overnight low is what decides how cold the floor is at seven in the morning.
- Summer
6.9 days a year at or above 35°C at Nowra, against 2.0 at Ulladulla and 1.1 at Point Perpendicular. Heating is a winter item here, and a thermostat on a timer draws nothing for the rest of the year.
- Climate zone
Zone 6 across the whole council, and 98.4% of homes are modelled on BASIX zone 18. Insulation under the heating is what keeps the warmth in the room, and it is sized from that zone.
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Tell us what you need done in Shoalhaven and we will get back to you with a price as soon as we can. There is no obligation to go ahead.
Services we provide in Shoalhaven
New home builds
Home renovations
Bathroom renovations
Apartments
Hotel bathrooms
Office buildings
Cold storage and frost heave
Suburbs we service in Shoalhaven and surrounds
We install across the Shoalhaven and the surrounding localities, and we check installer availability before we agree a day. If your suburb is not listed below, contact us and we will confirm coverage.
Frequently asked questions about Shoalhaven
Do you cover every suburb in the Shoalhaven area?
Yes. We install across the Shoalhaven and the surrounding localities, including every suburb listed on this page. We check installer availability before we agree a day, which is the one condition that travels with every job. If your suburb is not shown, contact us with the address and we will confirm coverage before we quote.
What are your service hours in Shoalhaven?
Our hours are Monday to Friday, 8am to 5:30pm, and we are closed on Saturday and Sunday. Plans and photographs can be sent at any time through the quote form on this page. If you need us on site in Shoalhaven, the day is agreed once we have checked installer availability. It is worth sending the plans as early as you can.
Can I put a heated floor in on flood prone land here?
Yes, as long as it sits above the flood planning level. Council's plan asks that all electrical installations be above that level, and its flood guide asks the same of heating to the maximum extent possible. A new floor set at the 1 in 100 level plus 0.5m can take in slab heating cable. A floor kept below that level cannot. We read your flood certificate before we quote anything.
Which suburbs here get the coldest mornings?
The Nowra side. The station on the air base at 109m averages 6.8°C on July nights and records about one night a year at or below 2°C. Ulladulla and Point Perpendicular are the two coastal stations, and neither has recorded a night at or below 2°C. Our thermostats are set to bring floor heating on before the household is up on a Nowra morning.
What does Council ask before a bathroom floor is heated?
No, not for the heating itself in most cases. A bathroom retile with an under tile heating mat normally sits inside exempt work and needs no development application. Two Council maps still govern where it goes. On flood prone land every electrical installation has to be above the flood planning level. In the highest risk coastal precinct, an internal fit out that does need consent also needs a coastal engineering report.
Why does Kangaroo Valley get a different energy rating?
Because BASIX reads the postcode rather than the weather. Kangaroo Valley shares postcode 2577 with Moss Vale, so a new home in the valley is modelled in zone 24. Berry, about 15km away, is modelled in zone 18 like the rest of this coast. That gives the valley roughly twice Berry's heating allowance. In slab heating cable is designed to whichever allowance your own lot carries.
Will the supply take a whole heated floor on acreage?
Yes, on most blocks, though it is worth checking first. 35.6% of the 2,405 street substations in this council report low headroom or overload. The stretched ones are mostly small rural pole transformers, and 60% of Kangaroo Valley's show it. A bathroom mat is a small load and rarely raises the question. A whole heated living floor is the one your electrician reads at the switchboard.
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