RADIANT FLOOR HEATING IN SALT LAKE CITY

Radiant floor heating is the quietest, most comfortable, and most efficient heating technology we install. Warm water circulates through pex tubing embedded in or under the floor, and the entire floor surface radiates heat upward into the room at body temperature. No blowing air, no duct noise, no dust movement, no hot-and-cold swings. Just a steady, even warmth from the ground up. Once people have had radiant in a primary living space — master bathroom, kitchen, basement family room — they don't go back to forced air if they can help it.

Utah's climate suits radiant well. Long heating season, cold floors over unconditioned crawlspaces or basements, tile and hardwood finishes that feel cold under forced air. We install radiant in three main contexts: new construction (easiest, done before slab pour or subfloor install), major remodels (still practical when floors are open), and targeted retrofit (bathrooms and kitchens under new tile, using electric radiant mats or staple-up hydronic).

The three radiant heating technologies

In-slab hydronic (new construction) — pex tubing tied to rebar or mesh inside a concrete slab before the pour. Warm water circulates, slab acts as a massive thermal mass, floor surface stays at 78-82°F. Most efficient and most comfortable installation. Only practical on new builds and some basement slabs.

Staple-up hydronic (existing floors) — pex tubing stapled to the underside of a wood subfloor from below, between joists. Aluminum heat transfer plates or plate-less installation. Works on existing homes where the basement or crawlspace is accessible. Not as responsive as in-slab but very effective.

Electric radiant mats (bathrooms and kitchens) — thin wire mats laid under tile or stone before thinset. Simple to install in small areas. Uses electric resistance heat, so operating cost is higher than hydronic for large areas. Perfect for primary bathrooms, master bedroom en-suites, and kitchen floors where you want warm tile in the morning.

What's in a radiant system

• Boiler or water heater — the heat source. Condensing boilers are most common; dedicated radiant water heaters work for smaller systems
• Manifold — a brass or stainless distribution hub where pex loops tie in, with balancing valves and actuators per zone
• Circulator pumps — move water through the loops at calibrated flow rates
• Mixing valve — blends supply water down to 95-115°F for radiant (way cooler than baseboard or radiators)
• Pex tubing — cross-linked polyethylene rated for 100+ year service life
• Controls — thermostat per zone, outdoor reset sensor, floor temp sensors in some applications

New construction vs retrofit

Pricing varies enormously. A new-construction in-slab install on a 500 sqft master bathroom addition runs $8,500 to $14,500 with boiler and manifold. A whole-home retrofit on an existing 2,500 sqft house with accessible basement runs $22,000 to $45,000 depending on boiler choice and number of zones. Electric radiant mats in a single bathroom are $1,500 to $3,500 installed. We scope honestly based on your goals and what's practical.

What Valley does differently

Most plumbing companies treat radiant as an occasional project. It's one of our growing specialties, and we've staffed accordingly. Every radiant project starts with a proper Manual J load calculation for the zone, followed by proper loop design — length, spacing, and flow rates calculated per room based on heat loss and floor coverings (tile conducts heat better than carpet). We don't guess on loop spacing, we don't over-zone or under-zone, and we test every loop with pressure testing before the slab pour or subfloor close-in.

Common radiant repair calls

Radiant systems rarely fail when properly installed. When they do, the calls we run are usually: zone valve actuator failure ($285-$485), manifold loop flow blockage from debris ($385-$685 to flush), circulator pump failure ($385-$685), mixing valve drift causing floor overheating or underheating ($285-$485 to recalibrate or replace), and rarely, pex punctures from construction activity years later ($485-$1,250 plus floor restoration). Most original pex tubing installed correctly will outlast the building.

Pairing with cooling

Radiant heat doesn't cool. If you want AC in the same spaces, you have three options: ductless mini-splits in the rooms where you want cooling (most common, clean install, no ductwork), a dedicated forced-air system just for cooling (expensive, redundant), or chilled water through the same radiant loops (possible but condensation management is complex and we rarely recommend it for residential). Most new radiant homes we do pair radiant heat with a multi-zone ductless mini-split system for cooling.