What does bathroom underfloor heating cost in the Scottish Borders?
Our guide range in the Scottish Borders is £650–£2,400 including VAT. Prices in the Scottish Borders run at about 4% below the UK guide, based on Scotland labour rates.
Electric mat
- Insulation board
Electric, larger room
- Electrician sign-off
Wet system
- Pipes linked to the heating
Guide prices for Scottish Borders including VAT. Your itemised written quote after the free survey is the price that counts.
Which towns do we cover in the Scottish Borders?
Water across much of the Scottish Borders is soft. 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. We check door thresholds in Hawick homes at the survey, because underfloor heating and new tiles raise the floor slightly.
What the job includes
- Insulation boards over the subfloor, so heat goes up into the tiles rather than down into the joists or screed
- A dial, programmable or smart thermostat, with the supply RCD protected, tested and certified by a qualified electrician
- Bringing the system up to temperature gradually once the adhesive and grout have cured
- A floor sensor set between the heating runs and wired back to the thermostat
- The electric mat or cable laid to the open floor, kept clear of where the WC, bath and fixed furniture will sit
- Resistance and insulation tests on the mat before, during and after tiling, with the readings recorded
Decisions to make first
Floor heating and towel rail
Underfloor heating warms the room; a towel rail dries towels. Many bathrooms have both, and a dual-fuel rail keeps working in summer when the boiler is off.
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.
Insulation board thickness
Thicker boards warm up faster and lose less heat downwards, but raise the floor; the right choice depends on the door threshold and the next room.
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.