Topic: General Questions / wet/damp location

Dave_mc,

Thank you for your recent inquiry. Though the system you would require known as the Environ II system is not specified for high wetness areas, dampness or the occasional small amount of moisture will not adversely affect the system.

I would also suggest checking with the carpet manufacturer to make certain that the carpet is approved to have a floor heating system beneath it. Other than these few things to keep in mind, you should have no other issues.

Should you have any other questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us further. Thank you again!

~Keith

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Sensor wire...

Guyroch,

Thank you for your recent inquiry! To begin with, I am afraid that the lead wires do not heat at all hence the term ‘coldlead’ used to refer to said wire that is not attached to the green mesh material directly. Depending on the location of installation and proximity to the hot-lead wires attached to the green mesh would determine your next course of action.

If you have installed it closer to the coldlead wires but are within a couple of inches from the hot-lead wires, it should not be an issue. However, if the sensor was installed near the coldlead wires but no where near the hot-leads, then a new sensor wire will be need to be properly installed.

The installation instructions for the sensor states at least 6 inches into the edge of the mat, equidistant between two of the heating coils, but not crossing over any of the heating wires. A new sensor can be retro-fitted into the system if necessary by chiseling out a portion of the grout line, laying the new sensor into the chiseled grout line, and applying new grout over the area assuming you have a tile application.

Again, thank you guyroch for your inquiry. If you should have any other questions or concerns in the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact us further.

~Keith

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Sensor wire...

I’ve mistakenly installed the sensor wire between the 2 lead wires (yellow and white) instead of the actual wires in the mesh mat. I’m now wondering if it will work at all. Does the lead wire generate any heat at all, if yes I’m fine, if not, then the sensor will not register the correct temperature? What should I do? Nothing is live yet; I have to wait the 30 day period to ensure that the thinset cures properly.

Much appreciated

Topic: General Questions / wet/damp location

I’d like to use the floor in a mudroom- right inside the door to the garage, so we’ll occasionally be coming in with snowy/wet boots, raincoats, umbrellas, etc. We want to put a commercial-grade all-weather carpet over the floor so we don’t have to worry about the moisture ruining the carpet. Is this type of application acceptable for this product? I don’t want to short it out or anything.

Topic: Troubleshooting / only 1/3 is working and not too good either

Dear jlh,

Thank you for your recent inquiry! To begin with, I would ask how many mat wires are located at the back of the thermostat. Your area being 200 square feet and on a 240 volt system likely has more than one mat to fill the desired location. Keeping in mind that there are probably two or more mats in the area, if there are only two heating mat wires connected to the thermostat then the system was connected in series (which one should never do) as oppose to parallel meaning that all mat wires should run back to the thermostat location.

A couple of other flags that grabbed my attention are that the system is installed on a concrete slab and that it is expected to be used as a sole heat source. We always suggest installing an insulating underlayment when in slab applications. This is due to the slab acting as a giant heat sink, pulling anywhere from 10 to 20 degrees worth of the heat output down into the slab before it ever heats the flooring above. Insulating underlayments that we suggest consist of cork board, Wedi board, Easy Mat, or any other sort of insulating underlayment approved for floor heating systems. The underlayment is installed before the floor heating system in order to supply a sufficient barrier between the slab and floor heating system, allowing the heat to reach the flooring as desired.

Considering this as a sole heat source would have needed a heat loss calculation form to determine if the room where heat is desired can retain the amount of heat supplied by the system. If a heatloss calculation form was never completed, then there is no guarantee that any heating system can act as a sole heat source. Heatloss calculations involve many different factors such as what is above the room, below the room, relation to exterior walls, the R values of any insulation within the room, the flooring, any doors or windows and the dimensions of said doors and windows, among many others.

If you can possibly find out the initial questions about the wiring of the thermostat, we can take the troubleshooting from there! If you should have any other questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us further. Thank you again jlh!

~Keith

Topic: Troubleshooting / only 1/3 is working and not too good either

we just took over a job from another contractor who installed a warmly yours floor in a 20’ x 10’ mud room. it is on a slab in a converted garage. they installed a marble tile floor over the mat. he never hooked it up. i had our electrician come out and hook it up. he contacted your help desk to verify which wires to hook up. it is 240 volt 20 amp circuit. there is continuity. only approximately 1/3 of the floor is even faintly warm. the rest is ice cold. we’ve had it on for 72 hours and no real difference. it is supposed to be the only heat source.

suggestions??

thanks
jlh

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Integrating into existing heating.

Sarah,

As long as you’re existing circuit and wiring is up to code along with the intent on connecting the Environ system to a thermostat (suggested as a thermostat will allow you to closely regulate the temperature as oppose to a manual control device), there should be no problem.

Pertaining to your flooring, if it nothing more than a deck with a bit of insulation, my best suggestion here is that if you want the system to heat fully and evenly then some sort of insulating underlayment like cork board would be in order. The insulating underlayment will allow the system to operate more efficiently as there would be less chance of the heat seeping downwards through the floorboards and into the open exterior space beneath.

Again, thank you for your interest Sarah and if you should have any other questions, please let us know!

~Keith

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Integrating into existing heating.

Thanks, as for the voltage I’m not certain and pretty sure it has it’s own breaker. The plan was to remove the baseboard heat and replace with the Environ system. There is currently no thermostat control just a knob on the baseboard. It is a small room ~7ftx10ft. No basement or slab for that matter, I think it was a deck covered in. There is insulation under the floor and just floorboards would an additional subfloor be required?

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Integrating into existing heating.

Sarah,

Thank you for your recent inquiry! To answer your question, yes, it can be done but it would depend on how you intend on connecting the system to the existing. If you are removing the existing baseboard heat to replace that with the Environ II system, then it would depend on the amperage supplied by the existing breaker as well as the supplied voltage and these parameters taken into consideration when planning out the Environ II system. You would need at least a 15 Amp breaker in place and to know if your baseboard heat runs 120 or 240 line voltage.

If you were planning on using the Environ II system more as supplemental to the current baseboard heat, then I would have to say no, you cannot connect the Environ II system to a presently running and operating system. The reason for this is that the systems are suggested to be run on their own dedicated circuit to decrease possible amperage overloads on the breaker or thermostat as well as decreasing the difficulty of troubleshooting the system at a later point if necessary. This would also be applicable if you were planning on using a current control device if provided with your current heating system not to mention that some control devices act more as remote controls and operate off of low voltage as oppose to line voltage and the total amperage draw between the two systems if they were to be combined on one control device or breaker would be guaranteed to great for the current thermostat or circuit to handle.

Keeping these things in mind is not to say that it cannot be done, but that there are many factors involved order to ascertain what would be required to make certain the system works properly. Hopefully this has not confused you too much and we hope to provide you with a more definitive answer if aforementioned additional information is gleaned! Please do not hesitate to contact us again if you should have any other questions or concerns! Thank you again Sarah!

~Keith

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Integrating into existing heating.

We currently have electric baseboard heat in our sunroom can the Environ system be hooked up to the existing wiring?

Topic: Product & Installation Information / tile on concrete basement floor

Stuart,

Again, thank you for your questions! I’m glad to hear that we could help and again, if you need any other assistance or information, do not hesitate to contact us again!

~Keith

Topic: Product & Installation Information / tile on concrete basement floor

Good point about the cement board! Thanks very much for the advice. We will probablty install a baseboard heater or two to augment the WY, in any case.

- Stuart

Topic: Product & Installation Information / tile on concrete basement floor

Stuart,

Thank you for your interest! To begin with, you mention you want to use this in a basement as a sole heat source. May I suggest utilizing our heat loss calculation form which can be found here at http://hlc.warmlyyours.com/room/index_main. This calculation form will help you in determining if your area that you are aiming to heat can retain the amount of heat produced by the floor heating system in order to properly act as a sole heat source. The reason why we suggest this is due to the amount of factors involved in using a floor heating system as a sole heat source. These factors include but are not limited to insulation of the room, any doors or windows in the space, the size of said doors or windows and the materials that they are comprised of, relation to exterior walls, what is above the room or below the room, etc.

Heat loss aside, according to my own research into your question and though plyboard is not mentioned as an insulator, plyboard sub-flooring does have an insulating R value of 1.25, which considering insulation underlayments, is about the average. Thus equipped with this knowledge, I would say that the plyboard is certainly the better route to take over cement board and the biggest reason behind this is the insulating properties. Placing cement board on top of a concrete slab would essentially be doing nothing more than thickening the slab and the slabs heat-sink properties would not be lessened. In this case the only thing truly better than plyboard sub-flooring, would be to use a true insulating underlayment such as cork board.

I do hope this helps answer your questions and aids you in your endeavors! If you should have any other questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to let us know! Thank you again Stuart.

~Keith

Topic: Product & Installation Information / tile on concrete basement floor

Hello,

I am planning to use Warmly Yours in our basement, hopefully as a primary heat source, under ceramic tile.

I removed the old vinyl floor tiles, leaving this nasty black adhesive that I don’t intend to remove, for time and even safety reasons (i.e. potential asbestos particles).

I have been told by 2 different contractor friends that even without floor heating, I will have to use a plywood or cement board subfloor, since mortar won’t stick to this oil-based adhesive.

Therefore my plan is to use construction adhesive and tapcon screws with either 3/4 plywood or cement board. I notice that your guys don’t mention plywood in terms of a insulator. I would prefer it over cement board for cost reasons, but I won’t if it means losing too much heat.

Suggestions?

Thank you.

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Thermostat

Mattr,

Thank you for your inquiry. Whether it is the GA model or GB model, a rose by any other name is still a rose and the GFI or EGFPD is one in the same. The GB is the standard for use with any of our floor heating systems. Though the GB as you say trips at a higher mA rating, this should come to some comfort to you as the GB model in this case is more sensitive to fluctuations that may be harmful to the system.

The major difference between the two, other than the fact that the GA model is no longer sold nor in production, is the fact that the mA ratings are higher on the GB, the GFI test button is located on the top of the B model and not on the side as it was in the GA (or F model as it was also called), and the B model has the capability of operating on an ambient temperature sensing function and not only a floor temperature sensing function though we always recommend using the device on the floor sensing mode. Other than these few things, the operation of the device is the exact same as its GA model predecessor.

As to your questions about the breaker, No, you do not want to use a GFI breaker with a GFI active device. The initial GFI device or breaker on the line will always trip the secondary GFI on the same circuit as GFCI devices installed on the same circuit do not get along together. It is best to use a standard breaker when installing and operating one of our systems.

Hopefully this answers your questions! If you should need any other information, please let us know! Thank you again!

~Keith

Topic: General Questions / wet/damp location

Paul,

Thank you for your recent inquiry! Before I can fully answer your question however, I must ask how much water you are referring to. Our standard systems, though designed to be embedded into thinset which would act as a barrier from excessive moisture or water, can only be installed in areas where there is occasional dampness such as a bathroom atmosphere. If the water levels are that of a shower or the like, then by code, the system installed in said area would need to be a low voltage system. Thank you again Paul for your question and we hope to hear back from you soon!

~Keith

Topic: General Questions / wet/damp location

Can the product be installed on a floor that has occasion water? It is my basement floor and it will be installed on concrete and a tile floor installed over it.

Thanks

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Thermostat

Your website lists the 120v thermostat as model TH115-F-120GA. However, the model shipped to me is TH115-AF-120GB. Per the thermostat box the GA model is a GFCI and the GB model is an EGFPD (equipment ground fault protection device). Is the GB model the correct thermostat to use for a Tempzone system that includes both 120v and 24v mats (shower)?

I am concerned because the GB models trips at a higher mA rating than the GA and my first concern is safety. Can you explain the difference between the two and why a GB should be used over the GA model.

Can a GFCI circuit breaker be used on the dedicated circuit feeding the thermostat? Or will that cause problems with tripping?

Thank you

Topic: Troubleshooting / SmartStat Burnt Out...?

Brian,

I am afraid that other than checking to make sure that the Line and Load side of the input/output of the thermostat is connected appropriately (Line being your voltage input and Load being your voltage output to the heating mats), there is not much else that you can check besides the GFI. If you have voltage present, no GFI trip, and the thermostat is still not operating then it would sound as if a new thermostat would be in order.

As to testing the mats and our hours of operation, we have 24/7 technical support available so please feel free to call in at any time! Thank you again Brian!

~Keith

Topic: Troubleshooting / SmartStat Burnt Out...?

Thanks for the follow up Keith. To clarify, there is no display at all on the device. I do have incoming 120v at the connectors to the thermostat. Is there another way to test the thermostat?

I would also like to test the mats while I’m at it. What are the hours of operation for the 800 number? I appreciate the assistance.

Brian

Topic: Troubleshooting / SmartStat Burnt Out...?

Brian,

When you say it ‘did not power on’, I would assume you mean one of two things; either the thermostat is not showing anything on the display screen or it is showing a display, but there is no heat even when the device seems to call for heat. The first thing to check would be if the GFI has tripped on the device. If so, attempt to reset it by turning the device to standby and then back to on. This would be a rather pointless procedure however if there is no display on the screen of the thermostat constituting that there may be no power running into the device.

If there would appear to be no power going to the thermostat, make sure that the voltage readings on the input of the thermostat are reading your proper incoming voltage. If you do not have incoming voltage, then replacement of the breaker or troubleshooting of the electrical lines will need to be done. If voltage is running to the thermostat, then there is most likely a problem within the thermostat itself which would then lead to the need to replace the thermostat.

Also, depending on these results, testing of the floor heat mats may need to be done or not. If voltage is present, and there is a readout display on the screen, but the GFI has tripped and will not allow itself to be reset, then Ohms readings (resistance readings) will need to be taken off of the floor heating material wires located at the back of the thermostat in order to determine if the floor heating mats are intact or not.

Also, if you would like to run these tests yourself or if an electrician comes out to your site, we would be more than happy to troubleshoot the system over the phone with you or your electrician while the troubleshooting is taking place. Feel free to call in to us here at 800-875-5285. We hope to get this resolved for you quickly and efficiently! Thank you for your inquiry Brian!

~Keith

Topic: Troubleshooting / SmartStat Burnt Out...?

I am a WarmlyYours customer for several years. I installed 2 Environ II mats and a SmartStat thermostat myself 5-6 years ago. The system has worked without issue until I turned it on for the first time this season. The SmartStat did not power on. A quick check of the dedicated 20 amp circuit showed it was NOT tripped…?

How do I check to see if:
a) the SmartStat is damaged or not
b) the mats are damaged or not (is it possible to check them from the lead ends or do I have to pull up the rug and get to the heat element?)

Just want to narrow down the problem before replacing the SmartStat. Your assistance is greatly appreciated.
Brian

Topic: Troubleshooting / Stand by Light

Matt,

Feel free to contact us at your convenience.

Thanks again!

Scott

Topic: Product & Installation Information / Riviera Towel Warmer water?

Hi Lukas,

Thanks for the post. This system is not designed to be filled with anything.

Thanks for your post!

Scott

Topic: Product & Installation Information / underfloor from crawl space

Hi TT.

Thanks for the post!

Our system is not designed for such an application. Tempzone mats must be embedded in a thinset or SLC less than 1” from the top of the tile. That type of application meets neither requirement. Sorry!

Thanks for the post!

Scott