Can you have carpet on top of underfloor heating?

[JustMakingBananaPancakes]

We're buying a house with underfloor heating in the open plan living room and connected dining room. It currently has laminate flooring on top.

My DH really wants carpet in the living room. So my question is, have any of you been in a similar situation? Did you have any issues with it? Should we pull up the laminate in the living room, or put the carpet on top?

I've done some googling and know any of these options are theoretically possible. I'm just wondering if you've done this and what you went for :)

Yes in theory but it really reduces the effectiveness of the heating and you'll be limited on what underlay you can use. I'd be concerned the living area will be cold and your heating bills astronomical as you're effectively insulating the UFH.

I have ufh with carpet, the thermostat is set the same as elsewhere in the house and it's as warm as all the other rooms, and actually feels more cosy as it's soft underfoot. You do need relatively thin underlay and carpet, I just went with the fitters advice.

We did and accidentally wrecked the underfloor heating. The area with the carpet over it got too hot and the electrics were damaged (I dont remember the details). We had to replace it - involved taking up the flooring, getting an electrician in to replace it, etc etc. Expensive mistake.

I think you can get hotspots. We had flagstones in a cottage and had to keep an eye on our rugs as they definitely felt warmer underneath with ufh.

I know that it is possible, and can be done, but it sounds slightly loopy - surely you'd be paying a fortune in heating for not much benefit. In the same way that you could wrap thick duvets around all your radiators then have them on full blast - it's possible but why would you?

You can. They use a different type of underlay.