Orange Tent features Underfloor Heating

Orange Solar Concept Tent  (picture courtesy Orange)

Orange Solar Concept Tent (picture courtesy Orange)

  • Orange UK recently revealed the Orange Solar Concept Tent – a development of the Orange Solar Tent from Glastonbury 2003. Aimed firmly at festival-goers this tent is a tour-de-force of all things technological. Read on for more details.

    When this press release first appeared on my screen the words that jumped out were ‘underfloor heating’ – but I suppose that’s only natural as we’re an underfloor heating company! But this tent has so much more than just that, the boffins at Orange in conjunction with American design firm Kaleidoscope have come up with a ‘dream tent’ for modern times.

    It’s not surprising that a lot of the technology on show has to do with mobile communications – there’s the “glo-cation” feature that lights up your tent so you can find it in the dark, this works either by RFID as you approach the tent or (if you’re really lost) you can text your tent to make it light up from distance. Then there’s Wi-Fi to keep you connected to civilisation and a wireless charging station to recharge your mobile, laptop, gps device etc. And lastly, and here’s what caught our eye, there’s an underfloor heating system. The system only works at night to keep the occupants warm – I presume Orange think our British summer days will be warm enough to not need it – or the occupants will be out partying at the festival!

    All this gadgetry is powered from three movable solar panels that follow the sun to generate the maximum solar energy throughout the day. These are made from a photovoltaic fabric with solar threads woven into the tent material to make lightweight moveable panels.

    All clever stuff and it makes my tent seem positively stone-age in comparison. However, I think it will be a while before I see one of these pitched next to me at a camp site. When that day comes I’ll have to have a look into this Solar Tent malarkey.

    25 Jun 2009

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    Marmox at the Movies?

    Movie night

    When we received an order from Pinewood Studios this Friday, speculation began immediately amongst the floorheatingonline staff: where was this Marmox going to end up?

    Perhaps on the massive 007 stage at Pinewood or in Daniel Craig’s dressing room with a nice tiled floor over it?

    Or perhaps it’ll be a slightly less glamorous location; maybe for TV on the set of Harry Hill’s TV Burp or The Weakest Link? Not that Marmox will be a weak link with its 30 tonnes per square metre compression strength and 10 year guarantee….

    Most likely, though not at all glamorous, is that the Marmox we have supplied is going into some companies’ canteen or kitchen on the Pinewood site. Oh well, it gave us a little entertainment for a while, wondering what might have been.

    22 Jun 2009

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    Laminate Floor Heating Proves Popular

    We have always made a fair number of Laminate Underfloor Heating systems but this month it is proving an even more popular system than usual.

    zenaflex-laminate-floor-heating-multiple-rolls-450pix

    Our systems are complete when they leave us, all connected together and tested. The photo above shows five separate systems that we prepared for despatch recently – all on the same order. Each roll represents a separate system for a multi-room layout, as follows;

  • Lounge
  • Kitchen
  • Hallway
  • Bedroom 1
  • Bedroom 2
  • Time from order to despatch was only 2 days as, unlike some of our competitiors, we keep all the raw materials in stock and make-to-measure ourselves when we get an order. We don’t ‘farm out’ our orders to others.

    If you’d like a quote for this or any of our underfloor heating systems please contact us – we’ll be only too pleased to help!

    11 Jun 2009

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    Laminate Floor Heating FAQ’s

    Shop for Laminate Underfloor Heating

    With this film being just 0.3mm thick there really is no excuse for not fitting underfloor heating beneath your laminate floor. Bespoke Laminate Floor Heating is made up using our Zenaflex Heating Film, Aube TH132AF Thermostat and Dellava XPS insulation underlay (amongst other things).

    Bespoke Laminate Floor Heating Frequently Asked Questions

    Is there anywhere that I can’t fit Zenaflex?

    Zenaflex should not be fitted in wet rooms such as bathrooms, shower rooms or similar.

    What Power is the Zenaflex I will receive?

    You will receive:
    * 160 Watt Zenaflex for a conservatory or other area of high heat loss
    * 130 Watt Zenaflex for all other internal rooms such as kitchens, dining rooms, bedrooms etc.

    What will I receive when I order Zenaflex Kit?

    Zenaflex is supplied complete with everything that you need to install a superb underfloor system. It incorporates: Zenaflex elements cut to size, sealed and pre-wired, Dellava XPS 6mm insulation underlay, digital programmable air/floor thermostat with floor probe, factory test sheet, CAD layout drawing and full installation instructions. Zenaflex is a very popular system due to its ease of installation and also because of the popularity of timber and laminate floor finishes in our modern homes. It is extremely efficient as it is sits on insulation, Dellava XPS, and acts directly on the finished floor – be it timber or laminate.

    Which size Zenaflex Kit do I choose?

    Zenaflex is sized for you in bands measured in square metres. Just select which band your room size falls within. Remember to use only the available floor space for the Zenaflex. Ignore areas under permanent fixings such as kitchen units or similar. The Zenaflex system selected will be made to the correct size and shape for your timber floor.

    Where Can I fit Zenaflex Kit?

    Zenaflex can be fitted under laminate, natural timber or wooden floor. Where the floor is to be a ‘floating’ floor is ideal – the vast majority of laminates and timbers fitted today are of the ‘floating’ floor type. The maximum recommended thickness for the floor finish is 15mm. Any thicker and you should contact our technical department. It should only be fitted in dry rooms i.e. NOT in bathrooms or shower rooms. Contact your timber floor supplier for suitability for use with electric underfloor heating.

    How do I install Zenaflex Kit?

    Since the system has been made-to-measure, all that is required is to lay the Dellava XPS on the floor and then lay the Zenaflex elements out according to the supplied layout sheet. It is very simple to install and well within the scope of anyone competent in DIY. Then simply get an electrician in to test and connect the system before the floor is laid. Full installation instructions are provided. The final connection should always be made by a qualified electrician.

    What is Zenaflex Kit?

    Zenaflex is a carbon film underfloor heating system. We make Zenaflex Kit into a made-to-measure system for you. The thin heating element and dry-fit installation method (no need for glues, adhesives or screeds) make it very easy and quick to install. It also means it can be used as soon as the floor is laid (on floors that need no adhesive). Where glues are used allow sufficient time for these to cure before switching on.

    20 May 2009

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    Buying Power Offer

    Hello Buying Power members.

    Floor Heating Online have partnered with Buying Power to offer you a free £10 Marks and Spencer voucher with your first order.

    If you are a member of Buying Power you should recently have received our postcard as below:

    buying-power-postcard

    We hope you find the offer of interest.

    We have keen prices on all our products and often have special offers running too. Please browse our products; one of our most popular is laminate underfloor heating which we make-to-measure. We also have Cable Kits and Mat Kits at 120 W & 175 W per sqm as well as Marmox insulation, thermostats and an advanced solar water heating system – the Energie Thermodynamic Solar system that works day and night unlike conventional solar panels.

    If you find our products and services of interest but want some guidance then 10-ms-voucher-225 please give us a ring we’ll be only too pleased to help. Or if you just want to chat about the specifics of the offer or anything heating related contact us about that too.
    Above all, when you place your order remember to use the Buying Power code you’ll get a voucher from us as a ‘Thank you’.

    18 May 2009

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    Therma-Coat Acrylic Insulating Primer

    Want to install floor insulation but have no room to increase floor height?

    therma-coat-bottle-small

    Therma-Coat Acrylic Insulation Primer is a god-send if you need to insulate your floor but have no build up height to install an insulation board such as Marmox. The small ceramic spheres in Therma-Coat reflect the emissive heat from electric underfloor heating back where you want it – in the room, not the floor. Each sphere is hollow which reduces the thermal conductivity and adds to the thermal resistance of this “super insulator”. But enough of the science – in laymans terms all you need to know is that this milky liquid will not raise your floor level but will enable you to have a degree of insulation in an otherwise impossible situation. therma-coat-graph-smallTherma-Coat is Energy Star rated and is based on NASA technology – so anyone out there who doubts that a fluid can do what we state it can need only look as far as these two organisations, both leaders in their fields.

    Therma-Coat should be painted on the floor prior to floor heating being fitted; application is with either a brush or a roller and the entire floor should be covered, even any unheated areas. If the floor is to be tiled, then apply the Thermal Primer under the whole tiled area, not just the heated area. Also, be aware that it states on the bottle that the coverage is up to 16 sqm – in our experience the coverage is nearer to 12 sqm but it will depend largely on the type of surface to which you are applying the Therma-Coat and how liberal you are with the primer.
    estarlogo-small
    For extra efficiency we also recommend that you apply two or more coats of Therma-Coat. You can even apply it to insulation boards to increase their performance – for example a 6mm Marmox board with a single coat of Therma-Coat will have the thermal performance equivalent to a 10mm Marmox board. Muliple coats will increase that even further.

    Therma-Coat Acrylic Insulation Primer:

    • Insulates and seals in one
    • Greatly reduces warm-up time for underfloor heating
    • Reduces heat loss by up to 20%
    • Can make a +2 degrees C difference with the same energy
    • Multiple coats give even greater efficiency
    • Is specially formulated for use with electric underfloor heating
    • For use on concrete, tile backer boards, brick and most other surfaces
    • Available in 1 litre sealed containers

    What now?

    Thermal Coat is available to buy online at a cost of £30 for a 1 litre bottle (delivered inc. VAT). Or you can contact us for further information.

    05 May 2009

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    New Look Site

    Here at Floor Heating Online we never stand still. We are always looking for ways to improve – either our service to you, the products that we offer or in this case the web site itself. The old website (see below)

    Old FHO site

    Old FHO site

    has served us well and received many good comments but on the web things move quickly and we have new things that we want to bring you so we’ve added new categories and redesigned the site to bring it up-to-date at the same time.

    NEW LOGO – when we started the redesign we didn’t intend to change the logo but found that the old logo (below)

    Old FHO logo vs New FHO logo

    Old FHO logo vs New FHO logo

    did not ‘fit’ into the new web design so we had a new logo created that we feel is more modern and fits in with the style of the new site better.

    NEW PRODUCTS – we have extended our product range to include water underfloor heating, a new type of solar panel and miscellaneous items such as thermal primer, tapes and floor sensor.

    NEW PRICES – as our business grows so does our buying power. And we keep our overheads low and sell direct to you, the end user so there are no middle-men hiking the prices. We’ve taken this launch as an opportunity to realign our prices and have reduced our prices across a range of our products. Our prices were low before – now they’re amoungst the best you’ll find in the industry.

    SAME QUALITY – Although we’ve extended the product range, lowered prices and designed a new website we have not changd the quality of our products or our service. So whether you’re an existing customer or if you’ve never used us before, don’t worry, we’ve been in this business since 1999 and will continue to keep moving forward to provide more, for less.

    Now that we’ve got that off our chest, what do you think of the new design? If you’ve any comments please do not hesitate to contact us. We’ll be glad to hear from you!

    17 Apr 2009

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    Cable Kit FAQ’s

    Cable Kit contents

    Cable Kit is one of our most popular products. We specify it as Tiled Floor Heating; Bathroom Floor Heating & Conservatory Floor Heating.

    It is usually fitted under ceramic floor tiles but can also be used under slate, stone, marble & travertine amoungst others.

    Q: What is Cable Kit?

    A: Cable Kit is our most popular system as its versatile nature means that floor heating can be quickly and easily be laid in any room within your home. Cable Kit is a ready to install electric underfloor heating system. The small diameter heating cable (3.2mm) makes it simple to install under all types of solid flooring such as:

    • tiles
    • marble
    • slate & natural stone

    The small diameter of the cable also means that the floor build up is kept to a minimum.

    Q: Where can I fit Cable Kit?

    A: Kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms, bedrooms, in fact anywhere there is a solid floor (timber, concrete or Marmox). Cable Kit is perfect for awkward shaped areas, particularly bathrooms, where the loose lay cable can easily be fitted around fixed obstacles such as the bath, shower trays, basin pedestals and WC’s. Note: timber floors that are to be tiled must be made solid and bounce-free. This applies even without floor heating.

    Q: Where can I find Cable Kit on your Website?

    A: Cable Kit is sold as: Tiled Floor Heating Cable Kit, Bathroom Heating Cable Kit and Conservatory Floor Heating (all for Timber floors, concrete floors or conservatories). Each is sized to fir an area in square metres depending on your room, floor finish and sub-floor.
    If you are unsure how to choose Cable Kit, please use our interactive house product selector.

    Q: How do I install it?

    A: Cable Kit should be fitted in either a flexible floor levelling screed under tiles (or similar) or it can be fitted in a complete bed of flexible tile adhesive.

    Q: Which size Cable Kit do I choose?

    A: We sell Cable Kit by the floor area it will cover given a type of room, type of floor covering and the type of surface that the Cable Kit will be laid on – usually timber or concrete screed. As a guide:

    • timber floors should have approximately 100 watts per square metre
    • internal rooms such as kitchens, dining rooms etc. with a concrete floor should have between 100 and 150 watts per square metre
    • high heat-loss areas and conservatories / garden rooms should have 150 to 180 watts per square metre

    If you are unsure how to choose Cable Kit, please use our interactive house product selector.

    Q: What will I receive when I order Cable Kit?

    A: Cable Kit is packaged complete with everything that you need to install a superb underfloor system. It incorporates:

    • the heating cable on a drum
    • special high bond adhesive tape to fix the cable to the floor
    • a fully programmable Aube TH132-F digital thermostat and the underfloor sensor
    • protective conduit for the underfloor sensor
    • comprehensive installation instructions
    • The packaging also doubles as a very neat cable dispenser, again making the installation as fast and simple as possible.

    Q: Right. I’m ready to fit my Cable Kit. How do I determine the cable spacing?

    A: There is a simple calculation. It takes only a few seconds on a basic calculator: Take the room area in square metres and divide by the cable length in metres. Multiply the answer by 1000 to give the cable spacing in millimetres. As a guide, the minimum recommended spacing of the cables is 60mm with the maximum 120mm. The spacing for a conservatory will typically be 60 to 70mm, a kitchen 70 to 100mm and on a timber floor should be approximately100mm

    31 Mar 2009

    4 Comments

    Bathroom Mirror Heater FAQ’s

    Mirror Heater Before & After

    Mirror Heater Before & After

    Our Bathroom Mirror Heaters are a very popular product. But if you have not experienced or fitted one before you may have some questions regarding their fitting or usuage.

    Here are some of the most popular questions we get asked:

    Q: What is a Mirror Heater?

    A: Our mirror heaters are a low power, 230 volt self-adhesive heating pad. They simply adhere to the back of your bathroom mirror and prevent it from steaming up. No more steamy mirrors!

    Q: How easy is it to fit a mirror heater?

    A: Our mirror heaters simply adhere to the back of any standard or safety-backed mirror. They are self-adhesive so are extremely easy to fit.

    Q: How long will it take to heat up?

    A: Our mirror heaters will usually heat the mirror enough to prevent misting or clear existing misting within 2-3 minutes of switching on.

    Q: How big a pad can I fit on my mirror?

    A: You can heat almost the entire mirror or just the facial area. However, the Mirror Heater should always be at least 100mm smaller in width and height than the mirror to which it is applied. Example: On a 500 x 600 mm mirror the maximum sized Mirror Heater Pad that could be fitted is 400 x 500 mm. Our nearest size below that is 400 x 450mm; i.e. use a FHO4045 Mirror Demister (400 x 450mm)

    Q: Can I fit more than one pad on my mirror?

    A: Two pads can be fitted to the back of a large mirror, if needed. They should be butted together so that they act like one Pad and need to be connected in parallel to the supply by your electrician.

    Q: Can any type of mirror be used?

    A: Any normal mirror with or without safety backing may be heated. However, we do not recommend that our heaters are used with foil backed or copper backed mirrors. If you have one of these mirrors we recommend it is safety backed over the foil / copper backing before the mirror demister pad is fitted.

    31 Mar 2009

    2 Comments

    Underfloor Heating Prices Down

    Floor Heating Online has reduced prices across the site in line with the Government’s new 15% VAT rate.

    Following Alistair Darling’s 24th November pre-budget report we, like many other retailers, have been hard at work to implement the VAT changes for the 1st December. Thanks, Alistair, for the advance warning! However, after much burning of the midnight oil we have managed to implement the changes and prices have been reduced with the full savings passed on. This is one downside to having VAT and delivery inclusive prices that we didn’t see coming!

    If you browse our site you’ll now find our Cable Kits start from £96.89, our 120W Mats start from £103.74 and 175W Mats from £166.38. We also have thermostats, insulation, Inscreed cables and Zenaflex foil available to buy on our site all at reduced rates thanks to the VAT change.

    With the 15% VAT rate set to stay until 1st January 2010 and then return to its current rate (unless you believe the reports that it’s going to increase) these savings are here for at least a year.

    02 Dec 2008

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    Floor Heating Online, Grimsby, N.E Lincolnshire - - Call: 0845 644 8057 - - Email: info@floorheatingonline.com