Electric underfloor heating in Willoughby
We install electric underfloor heating across Willoughby, where most listed houses are listed right down to their interiors. Flats are 47.1% of homes here and separate houses 44.7%, so both kinds of job come up in the same week. Mornings on this side of the ridge are nearly two degrees colder than the city, and a tiled floor holds that until something warms it. A Chatswood flat bathroom takes an under tile heating mat, and a Castlecrag addition takes in screed heating cable.
The benefits of electric underfloor heating in Willoughby
Flats are 47.1% of homes here and separate houses 44.7%, which is about as even a split as we have written up. Most of the reasons below come from what the heritage controls protect inside a house. The rest come from the local plan's rule on where a unit sends its heat, and from a sloping block.
A listing here usually reaches the floor itself
202 of the 263 heritage items here are listed including their original interiors, and most of the listed houses are among them. Council's position is that a listing applies to the whole property and may include floor plan layout and internal detailing. The benefit of under tile heating mats is that they sit inside the tile bed rather than in the structure below. So the original floor the listing protects is left in place while the heating goes in above it. That is the opposite of the usual position on this side of the harbour, so ask Council before anything starts.
Gentle heat is what the heritage controls ask for
Council's heritage controls say to avoid heating and cooling systems of high output, because they may cause dryness and cracking. They add that internal condensation is the other risk, and that supplementary humidity control may be appropriate. They also ask that new services run through sub floor or roof spaces rather than through the rooms themselves. The benefit of under tile heating mats is that they run warm rather than hot, and our thermostats hold that temperature. A floor sensor in the tile bed is what reads the floor rather than the air in the room.
The listing is less of an obstacle than it reads
Council has waived development application fees on heritage items since 1993. It also says that upgrading a kitchen, a bathroom, services and extensions to contemporary standards are commonly approved changes. Under tile heating mats go into exactly that kind of bathroom upgrade, inside the tile bed of the new floor. Repairs and maintenance that introduce no new materials normally need no consent, and a minor works exemption is requested online. The benefit is that the listing protecting your interior does not stop the floor being changed.
The off peak circuit is less common here
12.7% of households here have a controlled load circuit, which is fewer than most areas on this side of the harbour. Our thermostats are programmable and run on a timer, so floor heating here does not depend on a controlled load circuit. The network peak runs from 3pm to 9pm every day of the week. The heating is therefore timed rather than left running, and the floor is warm when the bathroom is used.
The plan tests where a unit sends heat
Council assesses a development on how its heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems release heat. They have to be designed to minimise what goes toward private open space and the public domain. That clause sits in the local plan itself rather than in a guideline. Under tile heating mats and in screed heating cable release their heat upward into the room they are laid in. The benefit is that there is no outdoor unit, so nothing pushes warm air at a neighbour's courtyard.
A sloping block often has a room underneath
Under tile heating mats are the version of our three that adds no slab and no screed to a floor. Council's heritage guidance says a house on a sloping site may have a large underfloor area that can be excavated. It warns that adequate underfloor cross ventilation has to be kept, and that water seepage and rising damp have to be avoided. It warns separately that cement floors inside or outside may force ground water to rise up the walls. The benefit is that nothing is poured on the ground, so the cross ventilation under the new room stays as it is.
What we would install in Willoughby
Flats and houses are almost evenly split here, so both kinds of job come up in the same week.
A mat under the tiles
Flats are 47.1% of homes here and about four in five of them were already standing in 2006. Under tile heating mats go in while that bathroom is open, and the mesh is cut and turned to follow the fall.
Under tile heating matsCable in a screed
Where a Naremburn cottage or an Artarmon house grows at the back, the new floor is a screed topping. In screed heating cable is bedded into that topping, which gives the new room mass the old floor never had.
In screed heating cableCable in a slab
About 74 new houses a year are approved here, against about 185 new apartments. In slab heating cable is tied in before the pour, and on a steep block a suspended floor takes it too.
Slab heating cables, dual coreWhy Willoughby properties choose us
We install across Willoughby and the rest of the Willoughby area, 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 Willoughby
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 resident applies for the trade permit here
A trade parking permit in this area is applied for by the resident on the tradesperson's behalf, and it takes ten business days to process. A skip bin permit takes the same ten days, and on the road it is allowed only in extreme circumstances and in daylight. The weekday here is 7am to 5pm and the Saturday ends at 12 noon. Working outside those hours needs at least 48 hours of notice. So the under tile heating mats are ordered to those dates rather than to the week the job was booked.
Underfloor heating for Willoughby homes
An old tower stock and an even split
Flats are 47.1% of homes here and separate houses 44.7%, which is as close to even as any area we have written up. 17.7% of all homes sit in blocks of nine storeys or more, the third highest share in the state. About 80% of today's flats were already standing in 2006, so the towers here are not new ones. Chatswood holds half the area's flats and two thirds of its tall ones. So an under tile heating mat in a Chatswood flat bathroom is the job we quote most often here.
Where the conservation areas actually fall
Conservation areas cover about 23% of the residential land here. The Willoughby part of Roseville is about 76% covered and Artarmon about 58%, with Castlecrag at about 35% and Naremburn about 34%. Castle Cove, Middle Cove and St Leonards have none at all. Castlecrag is its own case, built from sandstone quarried on the site and from a patented concrete block Walter Burley Griffin called Knitlock. Most of the houses in it were given flat roofs. Under tile heating mats go into those houses without touching a wall, a roof or the sandstone they are built from.
What a listed interior means for a bathroom
Council says a listing applies to the whole property and may include floor plan layout, internal detailing and fittings and fixtures. It also says that upgrading a kitchen, a bathroom or services is a commonly approved change. Repairs that introduce no new materials usually need no consent at all. Development application fees on heritage items have been waived since 1993. So the answer here is usually yes with a written confirmation rather than no. The benefit is that the under tile heating mats are ordered once Council has confirmed what your listing covers.
Winter mornings in Willoughby
Riverview Observatory is the nearest record to Chatswood and Artarmon, between 2.5km and 4.6km away. Observatory Hill is the nearer one for the harbour peninsulas.
- July nights
6.4°C at Riverview Observatory nearest Chatswood and Artarmon, against 8.1°C at Observatory Hill nearest the harbour peninsulas. A tiled floor sits close to that overnight, and it is the first thing a bare foot meets in the morning.
- Frost
Riverview averages about three nights in five years at or below 2°C, and Observatory Hill has never recorded one at all. The overnight low is what decides how cold the floor is at seven in the morning.
- Climate zone
Zone 5 on all land here, from Chatswood down to the Middle Harbour peninsulas. Insulation under the heating is what keeps the warmth in the room, and it is sized from that zone.
Get a free quote in Willoughby
Tell us what you need done in Willoughby 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 Willoughby
New home builds
Home renovations
Bathroom renovations
Apartments
Hotel bathrooms
Office buildings
Cold storage and frost heave
Suburbs we service in Willoughby and surrounds
We install across the Willoughby area 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 Willoughby
Do you cover every suburb in the Willoughby area?
Yes. We install across the Willoughby area 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 Willoughby?
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 Willoughby, the day is agreed once we have checked installer availability. It is worth sending the plans as early as you can.
Is the inside of my listed house protected here?
Yes, and in this area that is the usual position rather than the exception. 202 of the 263 heritage items are listed including original interiors, and 185 of the 190 listed houses are among them. Council says a listing applies to the whole property and may include floor plan layout and internal detailing. So the floor itself is part of what is listed. Get the written confirmation first, then under tile heating mats go into the new tile bed above that floor.
Does Council object to heating in a heritage house?
No, but it has a view on the kind. The heritage controls say to avoid heating and cooling systems of high output. They may cause dryness and cracking or internal condensation, and humidity control may be appropriate. They ask that services run through sub floor or roof spaces. A heated floor runs warm rather than hot and sits inside the floor build up. The benefit of under tile heating mats is that they warm the room from the floor without blowing dry air.
What does the application cost on a listed property?
Nothing, as far as Council's own fee goes. It has waived development application fees on heritage items since 1993. A minor works exemption can be requested online instead where the work is small. Council does not publish how long either one takes, so ask when you lodge. It does say that bathroom, kitchen and services upgrades are commonly approved, and under tile heating mats are part of one.
Will a heated floor add damp to an old house?
No, and the mat is the version that adds least. Council's own heritage guidance warns that cement floors inside or outside may force ground water to rise up walls. It asks for adequate underfloor cross ventilation where a sub floor is excavated. A heating mat goes into the tile bed of the existing floor. Under tile heating mats add no slab, no screed and no mass, so the ground below behaves exactly as before.
How cold does it get on this side of the ridge?
Nearly two degrees colder than the city. Riverview Observatory, the nearest record to Chatswood and Artarmon, gives a July mean minimum of 6.4°C. Observatory Hill, nearer the harbour peninsulas, gives 8.1°C. Nights at or below 2°C come about three times in five years at Riverview and never at all at Observatory Hill. The argument on this side is not about frost at all. The benefit of under tile heating mats is that the tiled floor is warm instead of holding last night's temperature.
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