A Dinesen floor is a unique piece of nature. It is a living material which must be treated with care. Our instructions explain in detail how you get the best result so the floor can last for centuries.
Our planks are very well suited for underfloor heating. Read more about underfloor heating and humidity in relation to Dinesen plank floors in our 'Underfloor heating' instructions.
If you need any additional advice about Dinesen floors, you are very welcome to contact us. To order and purchase products in the maintenance series, please go to our webshop.
If the air humidity is kept between 30 and 60% RH, underfloor heating will not result in cracks etc. If the surface temperature of the floor exceeds 27 °C, it will bring the air humidity under 30%, which may deplete the wood and cause cracks. Low air humidity and inadequate care and maintenance can cause minor cracks.
Wood will always strive for an equilibrium moisture level in relation to the air in the environment. Dinesen floors have been dried to 8-10%, and regardless of underfloor heating, they will contract in the winter, when the air humidity is low. With an interior air humidity between 40 and 45% RH, the wood will adapt to a moisture content of 8% wood humidity. If the air humidity drops to 30% RH, the wood will adapt to 6%, which means that it contracts. The underfloor heating does not in itself lead to larger contraction gaps. The higher the surface temperature, the larger the contraction gaps. You should expect the planks to contract by an average of approximately 1% in width, cf. Table 1.
With seasonal variations, floor planks will warp slightly. That is the nature of wood; it occurs regardless of underfloor heating and is of no concern. Significant warping only occurs if there are problems with humidity levels in the building, or if the construction humidity has not been fully eliminated before the floor planks were installed.
If you follow Dinesen’s recommendations for temperature and air humidity, underfloor heating will not make the floors creaky. Creaking often occurs because the joists are too wet, the joists are placed too far apart or the blocking up of the joists is not good enough. However, large variations in temperature or air humidity can temporarily cause individual planks to creak slightly.
A temperature above 27 °C will not be pleasant. If the temperature exceeds 27 °C, the air humidity can drop below 30% RH, which depletes the wood and may cause cracks and scratches. If the building is properly insulated, a surface temperature above 27 °C will never be necessary.
A room temperature of approximately 20 °C is easily achievable. Of course, this requires that the building is correctly insulated, and that you follow the advice and recommendations in Dinesen’s instructions. In older buildings with inadequate insulation, it will often be necessary to have a supplementary heat source.
As wood has insulating properties, a certain heat loss should be expected through the construction. Therefore, when the heat has to pass through a thicker layer, there will be a higher heat loss. A thick floor therefore requires a higher flow temperature to achieve the same surface temperature as a thin engineered wood floor. However, this does not lead to a significantly higher energy consumption.
The first time the water is heated to 45 °C instead of 35 °C, it uses slightly more energy, but in subsequent use, it makes no difference. This is because the energy consumption depends exclusively on the difference between the flow and return temperature.
The wood needs to adapt to the temperature changes gradually. If the change is too rapid the wood may warp. That applies both to the first start-up after installation and to any subsequent start-ups for the winter season.
Oil seals the surface and preserves the natural moisture content of the wood, which helps prevent the plank floor from drying out.
Yes. It is important, however, to pay attention to the state of the floor and to clean it in accordance with Dinesen’s recommendations. The floor needs moisture, soap as well as correct maintenance to avoid tiny depletion cracks in the wood surface.
If the room temperature is lowered from 22 °C to 21 °C you can save approximately 10% on your heating bill.
