underfloor heating concrete flooring

Heated Concrete Floors


Heated concrete floors offer a resilient and luxurious floor finish for contemporary living.

room with concrete flooring

Benefits of Heated Concrete Floors

Once primarily used in a purely industrial setting, polished concrete is now an increasingly popular flooring choice for home renovations and new-build projects across the world. Polished concrete flooring is hard-wearing and easy to clean whilst adding a sense of modernity and luxury to a space.

Due to their high thermal-mass, concrete floors are ideal to be heated by an underfloor heating system. Concrete provides quick heat-up times and retains heat well, even storing the warmth produced by solar gain, making a heated polished concrete floor a great option to improve the comfort and warmth of your home.

minimal style living room and bedroom

Best Floor Heating Systems for Concrete Flooring

The heat-retention properties of polished concrete make it an ideal floor finish for heating with a radiant floor heating solution.

Water Systems

Water underfloor heating systems are perfect to install with new polished concrete floor finishes as concrete is the ideal subfloor material to cover the system.

The Forte Grid System has been specifically designed to use with reinforced concrete floors and utilises a gridwork frame on which to install the heating pipes within the concrete.

The Total-16 System provides a low-profile hydronic heating solution for renovation projects as it adds just 16mm to floor build-up.

The Warmup Clypso System is designed for use within floating screeded floors. Typically, it does not affect the depth of a floor’s construction.

StickyMat 3D wall heating

Electric Systems

If you are installing a concrete floor as part of a new-build project, our Inscreed Cable System is an ideal electric floor heater choice. It is installed directly within a 50mm – 100mm layer of concrete and its slower heat-up and cool down times make it perfect for rooms in constant use.

If you are retrofitting an electric floor heating system onto an existing concrete floor or subfloor, the StickyMat System is a suitable system to use as it offers a low-profile installation, having little-to-no impact on floor build-up.

Types of Concrete Floor Finishes 

Polished Concrete Pour

A common form of concrete flooring, a deep layer of concrete is poured into position before being polished after curing.

Polished Concrete Screed

A shallow layer of self-levelling liquid screed is applied to an existing subfloor, then polished once dry.

Polished Concrete Overlay

In some cases, a very thin layer of polished concrete overlay is installed over existing damaged concrete floors.

wide stairs of modern house with concrete floor

Suitable for Any Project

Radiantly heated concrete flooring is suitable for both new-build projects and refurbishments.

New-Build Projects 

Polished concrete flooring is often fitted as part of a new-build construction project as its depth can be taken into account during the design stage. There is a selection of water and electric floor heating systems that can be installed directly within the concrete as you are installing the floor, for an efficient and hassle-free installation.

Retrofitting with Existing Concrete Floors 

You can install floor heating with your existing concrete floor or subfloor. If you already have a polished concrete floor, you may be able to fit a low-profile electric floor heater before adding a new layer of levelling compound and polished concrete overlay. If your renovation project features concrete subfloors and you wish to install a concrete floor finish above, there is a variety of floor heaters suitable for use. You must calculate whether the structure can take the extra weight of concrete flooring.

installer services gloves and schematics

Costs of Heating Polished Concrete Floors

Underfloor heating is an energy-efficient heating solution that can save you money on your heating bills. The cost of installing a heating system with a polished concrete floor is dependent on a few factors including the size of the project, your location, the quality and materials of your subfloors and the structural strength of your project.

Having existing concrete floors polished can cost from as little as £50 per square metre but this will rise substantially if you are undertaking a new concrete flooring pour. Installing a floor heating system as part of this process would cost from approximately £100 per square metre for an electric system with accompanying insulation and a Warmup Smart Thermostat. Contact us for an accurate, free quote for your project.

Installing Radiant Heating with Concrete Floors

The installation of heated concrete floors varies system to system however in this case we will explore installing our submersible Inscreed and Forte Grid floor heaters. Always ensure you are working with an experienced engineer who has installed floor heating in concrete floors before and make sure your project can structurally take the extra load-bearing weight of concrete floors.

It is recommended to install a floor heating system with insulation to reduce heat-loss and enhance the energy-efficiency of the system, so the first step will be to install a layer of Warmup insulation and damp-proof membranes on to your subfloor. The floor heater can be installed directly onto this insulation material before being tested and then covered in a concrete pour. Do not switch your heating system on while the concrete is curing as this will cause damage. Once fully dried, the concrete can be polished by your specialist tradesperson.

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Transform the way you heat your home with Warmup, the world’s best-selling floor heating brand.

Quoting Tools: instant, accurate, flexible

Warmup offers an extensive range of electric and water floor systems compatible with all floor types, rooms and projects.

Electric Systems

  • ✓ Ideal for zones less than 25m²
  • ✓ Ideal for single rooms
  • ✓ Does not alter floor levels
  • ✓ Great for renovations

Electric Systems Quote
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Water Systems

  • ✓ Ideal for larger zones over 25m²
  • ✓ Rapid auto heat loss calculations
  • ✓ Compatible with existing central heating systems
  • ✓ Great for new-builds

Water Systems Quote & Buy
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For areas of 24m2 or more, use our full quoting system
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