# Underfloor Heating and Fridge



## nbu (8 Jan 2011)

Hi,
We are building a new house & we have installed underfloor heating. Unfortunately the builder didn't finalise the kitchen design with us before he put in the heating so now we have pipes underneath where our fridge is going to be. We have been told that there is some kind of foil or insulation we can get to put between the heating and the fridge. Does anyone know where what exactly this is and where I could get it?
Thanks,
Nora


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## Bluebells (12 Jan 2011)

Anyone who installs underfloor heating will tell you. It is pink bubbly stuff.


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## ryan-neil (13 Jan 2011)

Why woud this be an issue out of interest, your fridge draws air in from below it anyway which of course is warm, if anything it is of advantage to you as most fridges need air above 2c for the compressor to function, many peope during the cold spell had fridges which would not cool due to the air the room being told cold and the fridges began to taw. That hot air will still rise, most likely via the convection space in the back of the unit if its a built in fridge. Insulation would only stop the heat loss rate from the floor not stop it and given the footprint of a fridge it may be a non issue.


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## Leo (13 Jan 2011)

ryan-neil said:


> Why woud this be an issue out of interest


 
Compressor will have to work harder to disipate the heat pulled from the fridge, this will shorten it's life, oh, and will cost more to run. 
Leo


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## nbu (17 Jan 2011)

Yes, the kitchen people told me it would be a problem with the running of the fridge and that it wouldn't work as efficiently. I would have thought any underfloor heating people would know but I have asked them, kitchen people, place I bought fridge, builder,engineer & no luck!! For now I have bought that thermo stuff you use behind radiators to reflect heat back into the room - logic tells me it should work?


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## boardtc (22 Jan 2018)

@nbu how did you get on since? Exact same think happened to us, floor tiled and all before we realised. The fridgehas been in situ now for 2.5 years, I'm wondering how much extra elecricity it's costing us because of the extra work the compressor has to do...


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