Construction work is proceeding at a leisurely pace, and although we are already laying paving stones in the yard, the floor inside the house is not yet concreted. Insulation and plumbing are currently underway and will be followed by concrete work.

The sand layer was first used to lay the zero drainage and electrical wiring. This was followed by levelling and compacting the sand. Of course, there was a shortage of sand inside, and we had a lot of fun carrying the sand in buckets inside the house.

The flooring work started with the interior of the house. A couple of hours of work that made a big difference to the feeling inside the house. We cleaned the house ourselves before the craftsmen arrived.

After that, the floor height was compressed and the sand trombelling work started. For the first time in our lives we tried working with a vibro plate. When you’re dealing with construction work, everything seems very complicated, but when you’re building a second house, it will be easier.

Preparing the base and putting the foam together cost 700 euros. The foam for the floor was bought last year, before the big price hikes, and cost around €1 600.

The second layer of foam was completed after the plumbing system was installed. We chose a collector system. It is about 30% more expensive.

We will install underfloor heating in the house we are building. Perhaps not many people choose radiators anymore?

With underfloor heating, you save about 30% on heating costs compared to radiator heating. Underfloor heating does not require such high temperatures – often between 30C° and 42C° is enough.  In contrast, radiators require around 60-70C°.

Which pipe should I choose for underfloor heating?

A common question in construction groups is what is the right pipe for underfloor heating? On Facebook, there is a lot of different advice, but much of it is not based on calculations. Our project requires the installation of a D16 pipe for the house. The choice depends on the size of the rooms and the type of heating. Our house will have an air-to-water heat pump.

Multilayered or simple pipes without aluminium can be used for the wooden floor installation of the underfloor heating. We have chosen the Wavin multilayer pipe.

How many metres of pipe do I need for underfloor heating?

We bought 1200 metres of Wavin 16×2.0 underfloor heating pipe for the house. Until we started building, we didn’t think we needed more than one kilometre of pipes to build a house.

The pipe barely fit in the car. For the next construction we will need a VW Passat!

Before the underfloor heating is installed, it is tested by pouring a layer of concrete over it, and it is important to check that there are no unexpected water leaks, as pouring concrete over the floor will not fix the problem.

The heating pipes were installed in one day. The entire preparation of the floor for concreting took 7 working days.

Concreting the floor

One week after the heating was installed, it was time to concrete the floor. Although the yard was ready for paving, we asked to wait until the concrete work was done to protect the new paving.

The cost of the concrete work was €1170. The work started early in the morning, and by 3pm we were saying goodbye to the foremen.

Before the concrete work, we took a look at the floor heights. Where the tiles will be laid, the floor was poured 1 centimeter lower.

We are now drying the house naturally. We have started to prepare for the airtightness test of the house.

An instructive story

Finally, we have a short story about how nobody cares about your construction. As we were preparing to pour the concrete floor, we wondered what the block sticking out of the door was doing.

This block was just a careless mistake that needed to be removed. Although the job went well at first with a Fiskars demolition hammer, the bottom of the block had already required the hire of a perforator. As the foil had already been laid and the heating pipes laid, the work had to be carried out with great care and without harming oneself.

Oscar Baker