One Contractor's Method of Installing Radiant Heat

David Pettigrew of Diamond D Concrete, Capitola, Calif., says that nearly half of his decorative concrete floor installations now incorporate hydronic radiant heating. Among his residential clients, the greatest demand for radiant heating is in the northern California area.

Pettigrew uses an innovative "double-pour" method that allows him to embed the hydronic tubing (he primarily uses PEX) in a thin concrete slab placed over a plywood subfloor. He then places another layer of 1 ½-inch-thick decorative concrete on top of that. In between the two layers of concrete, he installs a slip sheet topped by metal lath. He says the metal lath not only serves as reinforcement, it also helps to conduct the radiant heat. In the decorative concrete top layer, he makes sawcut patterns to control cracking.

Pettigrew does not design the radiant heating system himself; he leaves that up to a professional who understands the complexities of radiant heat transfer and zoning. "You have to zone the system properly, or one room will be warmer than another," he says. "For example, rooms with a southern exposure will need less heating than those with a northern exposure."

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