If you need a floor screed company in Surrey, you need to look no further than UK Screeds. We can handle your needs for screeding anywhere in the county and well beyond since we have eleven depots covering the whole of England and Wales.
We have over 15 years of experience in installing floor screed and underfloor heating. We provide self-levelling calcium sulphate screeds, also known as anhydrite or gypsum screeds. These screeds have several advantages over and above the traditional sand and cement screeds.
Just to begin with, a liquid screed is so much faster to lay. The old-fashioned sand and cement screed has to be laid by a labourer trowelling it into position by hand, and this obviously takes time. By contrast, our liquid screed is delivered to the site pre-mixed and since it is in liquid form, we then pump it into position using a pump and a long hose. This means that our teams can lay up to 2,000 square metres in a day. 100 square metres takes about 45 minutes. Once the screed is poured, we then dapple it in two directions in order to remove any bubbles and then it is left to dry.
Drying time is quick, even though the screed is liquid. It is dry enough to take light foot traffic after 24 – 48 hours. This means that, when using a liquid screed, other trades that need to work on the site are not subject to any delay.
We also install underfloor heating and use the water-based system of heating pipes. These are laid on top of a membrane that itself covers the insulation boards. The membrane prevents the screed from escaping when it is poured.
A liquid screed has many advantages when it comes to underfloor heating. Not the least of them is that because it is in liquid form it will totally enclose the heating pipes without leaving any voids or gaps so the heat transfer into the room will be perfectly even. When a traditional sand and cement screed is used there are almost always places where the heating pipes are not totally enclosed, resulting in an uneven heat transfer.
In addition to that, our screed can be laid a lot thinner than sand and cement, and when underfloor heating is installed the total depth can be as little as 40mm in domestic premises. This means that less energy is used to heat the room to the desired temperature compared with a sand and cement screed which will be at least 75mm deep and often more. There is an even further benefit in that the thermal conductivity properties of a gypsum screed are nearly twice those of sand and cement, again saving money on energy and heating the room faster.
Underfloor heating can be used in conjunction with almost any type of final floor finish, although there are one or two things to take into consideration, the thermal conductivity of the flooring itself is one of them. From that point of view, the best type of flooring is tile or stone. Not only is the heat transfer fast, but the tile or stone will also hold heat well. This makes it ideal for use in bathrooms and kitchens and also high heat loss areas such as conservatories. Tile and stone can also be heated to 29°C or more.
Another good flooring is laminate. When choosing laminate, it should be as dense as possible because this ensures better heat transfer. The laminate also needs to be as thin as possible, ideally no more than 18mm. Laminate should not be heated to more than 27°C.
Wood flooring is also very popular and is another product that can transfer heat well. Engineered wood is the best to use for this reason. As with laminates, the denser and thinner the wood boards are, the better the heat transfer properties. Also, as for laminates, the floor should not be heated above 27°C.
Polished concrete is another choice, and again this heats up quickly and retains heat well in a similar fashion to tile and stone. It is also very hard-wearing and easy to clean.
Of course, another type of flooring is carpet. If installing carpet, it is necessary to pay attention to the thickness of the carpet and any underlay. Felt underlay should not be used because it can act as a thermal blocker. In addition, the total tog value of the carpet and the underlay must not exceed 1.5 togs for the same reason.
