Hydronic underfloor heating in Auckland
Hydronic underfloor heating for the whole house, with each area on its own thermostat. We also install radiators, pool heating and hot water heating, and have designed, installed and serviced systems in Auckland since 2004.
28°C
We heat pools!Click here for pricing →
What IS HYDRONIC UNDERFLOOR HEATING?
Hydronic underfloor heating warms your home from the floor up. Warm water runs through loops of pipe laid in the concrete slab, the slab warms evenly, and the whole floor gives off gentle, radiant heat. There are no heaters or units on the walls, no air blowing around, and nothing to hear.
Champion Heating has been designing and installing hydronic underfloor heating across Auckland since 2004. We design the layout from your plans, lay and pressure-test the pipework before the concrete pour, install the manifold and thermostats, commission the system, and service it afterwards.
How it works
A heat pump or gas condensing boiler heats water to around 30–40 °C. The water is pumped to a manifold, which sends it through a separate loop of pipe for each area of the house. Each area has its own thermostat, so every room holds the temperature you set. The slab stores the heat and releases it slowly, which keeps the temperature steady.
FLOOR HEATING EXAMPLE HEATPUMP BASED
Swipe the diagram sideways to follow the full circuit →
Free heat from the air
The Heatpump unit pulls warmth from the air and lifts it to a comfortable water temperature.
Balanced at the manifold
Flow and return pipes feed every loop. The Manifold is fitted inside a lockable neutral colour cabinet recessed into the wall normally in a Storage Cupboard
The whole floor radiates
Warm water circles through the slab and the floor itself becomes the heater — quiet and invisible.
From plans to warm floors
The installation process
Design
We work off your plans: room-by-room loop layout, zones, and where the heat source and manifold live. You get a fixed quote from that drawing.
Pipe in slab
Loops are either tied to the mesh or stapled to the insulation (depending on our recommendation), set out and pressure-tested before the pour — and stay under pressure while the concrete gets poured.
Manifold
Every loop in the slab runs back to a manifold like this one. Recessed into the wall, a valve per zone, and a flow gauge on each circuit so the system can be balanced.
Controls
Each zone gets its own thermostat, the house can be controlled with one thermostat controlling all areas or we can add multiple thermostats eg bedrooms, living and bathrooms all run to their own schedule. We set the programmes up with you at handover.
Heat source
Heat pump or gas boilers options. Heatpumps can be fitted externally - often outside the Garage away from sight. Low flow temperatures are what keep the running cost down.
Handover & service
We balance the system, walk you through running it, and put you on our service database. We look after your system for life.
Before and after the concrete pour
To the left is the loops tied down to the mesh . To the right is the concrete pour.
Where it fits
Who can have hydronic underfloor heating?
The cost of underfloor heating depends mostly on when it is installed.
New builds
Loops are laid over the insulation and tied down before the pour. The slab is being poured anyway, so the added cost is mainly the pipework.
- We work from your plans, with your architect and builder
- Zones designed around how each area of the house is used
- The heat pump position is shown on the drawings
- Pool and hot water can be piped for now, connected later
Renovations & extensions
Any part of the house getting a new slab can have underfloor heating. For the rest, radiators on the same hydronic system give you one heat source for the whole home.
- New slab areas get underfloor as standard
- Existing rooms served by radiators off the same system
- One heat pump or boiler behind all of it
- Staged over time if the budget needs it to be
Comparison
Quiet heating with no indoor units
Underfloor heating vs heat pump units on the walls
| Underfloor heating + outdoor heat pump | Heat pump units on the walls | |
|---|---|---|
| What you see | Nothing inside. Pipes are in the slab and one heat pump sits outside, out of sight | A unit on the wall of each room, plus outdoor units along the house |
| How it heats | Radiant heat from the whole floor | Blows hot air into the room |
| Noise | Silent inside | Fan noise, even on the quiet models |
| Air and dust | No draughts, no dry air, dust left where it is. Good for asthma and allergies | Moving air stirs up dust and dries the air |
| Where the warmth goes | Low and even, wall to wall, where you live | Rises to the ceiling. Warm near the unit, cooler across the room |
| Heat source | One heat pump heats the whole home | Usually one unit for each room or zone |
Drag the slider to compare ↔
- Fan noise while running
- Heated air blown around the room
- Nothing to hear — no fan, no rattle
- Warm water pipes hidden in the slab
Also from Champion Heating
Other heating OPTIONS WE OFFER
Radiator CENTRAL HEATING
Hydronic radiators for renovations, areas without a concrete slab, and extensions.
Pool Heating
Heats a pool or spa to around 28°C from the same heat pump, extending the swimming season.
DOMESTIC Hot Water HEATING
Heat pump hot water uses up to 75% less energy than an electric element. Water heating is around 40% of a typical power bill.
Keep your system running well and look after it
We service all types of heating systems. Tell us a little bit about your system and we will be in touch to book you in.
Annual servicing keeps your heating system efficient and catches small issues before they become big issues.
At last we found a really experienced and knowledgeable team who know their stuff about servicing underfloor heating systems. So many other contractors just want to upsell you on new systems, but Tony knew all about our existing 20 year old system, and solved the problem without fuss. Fantastic! I absolutely recommend Champion to anyone with an underfloor heating system.
We have used Champion Heating for almost 20 years now and have always found them to give us great service. They are solution oriented, which is what we need when we contact them. I highly recommend them.
Fast and efficient, Tony replaced our old system and got us back on within 24hrs of install. Highly recommended.
Tony has been maintaining and servicing our underfloor heating system for over 15 years. He is very knowledgeable and experienced. I highly recommend him and his company.
We have had a great experience working with Champion Heating since they installed their system into our house. Tony is always willing to help whatever the question may be.
Great company to deal with, heating works great and would absolutely recommend it… Tony and Sarah were easy to deal with.
Builders, Architects, our partners
Quotes from plans, on-site work scheduled around your programme, and producer statements supplied.
Request a Quote
Send us your plans and we'll design the system and send a clear price.
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