'We turn every floor into a heater'

For more than 27 years, JK underfloor heating has been developing, producing and installing underfloor heating solutions based on low-temperature heating and high-temperature comfort cooling. "We are the specialist in underfloor heating for residential and commercial buildings and market leader in the field of cut-in and milled-in underfloor heating," says business manager of the Netherlands Rudi Maagdelijn. "But also for tacking or tying floor heating systems in large-scale projects we do not turn our hand around. From our location in Ede and with approximately 50 specialized employees, we carry out projects throughout the country. Here, clients and end users are assured of excellent quality and service."

Existing concrete and tile floors.

JK floor heating was born in 1994, when director and founder Hein Janssen introduced a patented grinding machine for existing floors: the JK floorgrinder. "Anno 2021, floor grinding and milling of underfloor heating is still our core business," said Virgin Line. "By using a special diamond grinding wheel, vacuum turbines and a HEPA filter, we can grind tight trench patterns completely dust-free, even in non-structural concrete floors and tile floors, in which the underfloor heating pipes are mounted directly. Thanks to this technology, existing homes can also be smartly and quickly preserved without having to remove existing screeds. Moreover, undesirable installation heights are not an issue. Because our underfloor heating pipes lie directly under the floor finish, fast response time and heat emission are guaranteed. This also applies at low supply temperatures, which means that comfort and sustainability go hand in hand." For this working method, JK is certified by DIN CERTCO. "Moreover, sustainability means that all grinding dust is efficiently captured, collected and filtered by us for reuse in the production chain, as an additive in our JK sealing compound and for other useful applications."

Dry building floor systems

Besides in existing homes and utility buildings, JK Underfloor Heating's ingrained underfloor heating technology scores high in transformation projects, where existing buildings such as offices or old monasteries are converted into homes. A great project example of this is the transformation of the former monastery JMJ Huize Nazareth in Ravenstein. The JK floorgrinder is also frequently used in combination with dry building floor systems, such as Knauf and Fermacell. "In this case, a special milling disc is used," Maagdelijn said. "Especially in the characteristic canal houses and 1930s houses with wooden beam floors, this is a very good solution." Especially for these buildings and in close cooperation with Fermacell, JK underfloor heating has tested the lightweight dry building system as a delivery system, which also scores very high in terms of fire resistance (30-60 minutes) and sound absorption (system Fermacell 2E26).

Existing and new construction

JK floor heating is active in several countries within and outside of Europe. "Whereas abroad we are particularly active in cutting and milling underfloor heating in existing buildings, in the Netherlands we also carry out large-scale new construction projects," said Maagdelijn. "A nice example of such a new construction project are the Havenlofts in the Nassauhaven, on the Kop van Feijenoord in Rotterdam. Commissioned by BIK bouw and in cooperation with Stam montagebouw, we realized a Fermacell dry-build floor system and installed underfloor heating in 18 floating water villas. With the JK sealing compound, all trenches were then sealed to provide a solid base for the final finish." JK underfloor heating was also involved in the new construction of 720 apartments in Diemen Holland Park. A project soon to be completed is Block 22 and 23 with 304 new-build apartments.

Whether for new construction, renovation or transformation projects, in residential or commercial construction: for grouting/milling, JK underfloor heating uses innovative inverse PE-RT underfloor heating pipes, with a diameter of ø 14 x 2 mm, in all its projects. "Inverse PE-RT means that the oxygen diffusion-tight protective layer is on the inside of the pipe," Maagdelijn said. "This makes the underfloor heating pipe very robust and prevents damage and corrosion." The basis of the floor heating systems is formed by high-quality stainless steel manifolds (both with and without pump), which are manufactured in JK vloerverwarming's own factory in Ede using only A-brand components.