What does bathroom underfloor heating cost in the Lothians?
Our guide range in the Lothians is £650–£2,400 including VAT. Prices in the Lothians run at about 4% below the UK guide, based on Scotland labour rates.
Electric mat
- Thermostat and RCD-protected supply
Electric, larger room
- Whole floor coverage
Wet system
- Manifold or single-zone kit
Guide prices for The Lothians including VAT. Your itemised written quote after the free survey is the price that counts.
Which towns do we cover in the Lothians?
Most of the Lothians is supplied with soft water. Soft water is kind to grout, so mid-tone and darker grouts stay looking fresh. Hardness varies street by street, so check the figure for your postcode with your water supplier. If your Livingston bathroom has a cold tiled floor and no room for a bigger radiator, an electric mat under new tiles is the simplest answer.
What the job includes
- The electric mat or cable laid to the open floor, kept clear of where the WC, bath and fixed furniture will sit
- Bringing the system up to temperature gradually once the adhesive and grout have cured
- A check of the floor construction, the room's heat loss and where the thermostat and supply will go
- For wet systems, pipes in low-profile boards or screed connected to a manifold or single-zone kit, with any boiler work done by a Gas Safe registered engineer
- Resistance and insulation tests on the mat before, during and after tiling, with the readings recorded
- Insulation boards over the subfloor, so heat goes up into the tiles rather than down into the joists or screed
Decisions to make first
Electric or wet
Electric is cheaper to install and quick to lay in one room. Wet costs more upfront but is usually cheaper to run where it is fed by a gas boiler or heat pump.
Thermostat
A simple dial thermostat, a programmable one with set times, or a smart thermostat you can control from your phone.
Mat or loose cable
Mats are quickest on square, open floors. Loose cable is easier to route around awkward shapes, pipe boxing and a curved shower area.
Floor finish
Tiles and stone pass heat through well. LVT and vinyl can work, but check the maximum floor temperature the flooring maker allows.
Rules that apply in Scotland
Electric underfloor heating in a bathroom must be on a circuit with 30 mA RCD protection under BS 7671, and the thermostat is positioned to suit the bathroom zones. There is no separate approval for the heating itself, but it should have its own thermostat and timer so it only runs when needed, and the electrical work must meet BS 7671 — in England and Wales it is notifiable as bathroom electrical work. Any work on a gas boiler for a wet system must be done by a Gas Safe registered engineer.
Scotland has no Part P. Underfloor heating added during a straight bathroom refit rarely needs a building warrant on its own, but it must be installed, tested and certified to BS 7671 with RCD protection.