How To - Insulation Design
How do you design insulation to work most efficiently with your in-floor heating system?
Video Coming Soon!
Basic Ideas:
You will want to layer the foundations with sufficient insulation to hold your heat in your floor and not have it escape to the ground.
Under your floor you will want:
1. Dry clean sand
2. A vapor barrier (often 6-8 millimeter polyurethane plastic sheet)
3. Insulation (pink foam board), 2-3" of below grade use of expanded polyurethane
4. You can replace 2&3, the vapor barrier and the pink foam board with the HeatSheet insulation that has nodules to hold your PEX pipes in place.
5. Make sure to insulate along the walls where you will pour the cement.
Another Option: You can insulate all the way down the foundation
1. This will turn the dry clean sand into heat storage for about 3-4 feet down and will reduce building temperature fluctuations.
Instead of pink foam board, we now offer the HeatSheet, which has nodules on it so you can literally walk the pipes into place, with only an occasional staple. This reduced the PEX pipe laying out job by hours and making it possible to do it with only 1-2 people.
What's Happening in Cottonwood?
Extreme Panel's demonstration house brings building techniques into the real world. As a sponsor, HUG Hydronics is providing Heat-Sheet, PEX, and the in-floor heating distribution system for the project.
Fellow EP Summit sponsor BUILD Show Network is documenting the process with cameras, interviews, and a closer look at each step of the process, leading up to the January 2027 Summit.
See the build come together.
Take a closer look at the project, then explore what radiant in-floor heating could look like in your own home, shop, or garage.
Start the HUG Product Wizard
What HUG Hydronics Brings to the Project.
- Start below the slab
- Heat-Sheet insulation provides the foundation for the project's radiant floor.
- Put warmth underfoot
- PEX loops carry heated fluid through the floor, turning the slab into part of the heating system.
- Bring it together with HUG Hydronics
- The HUG Hydronics system brings pumps and controls into a compact system simplifying the mechanical setup that serves the floor.
No. The Wizard is designed to walk you through the basics in plain language. Homeowners and building professionals can use it to explore what their project may need.
HUG Hydronics is sponsoring Extreme Panel's project by providing its in-floor heating materials and system. BUILD Show Network is a fellow EP Summit sponsor documenting the demonstration house. The summit is planned for January 2027.
Yes. Call HUG Hydronics at 218-587-5001 or email sales@hugllc.com. Additionally, completing the HUG Wizard is a useful first step toward discussing your program.
Nope, and we love Extreme Panel's way of building, however this project showcases only one type of application of HUG's system. HUG Hydronics can also be used in other homes, shops, garages, and ag buildings where radiant floor heating is appropriate.
Have your floor plan or approximate dimensions handy, along with basic details about your insulation, ceiling heights, and windows. Think about which spaces you'd like to control with separate thermostats. The Wizard will guide you through the planning process, and HUG's team can help review your project's needs.