Do you put the matts all the way to the edge of the counters and walls?? Seems like I can save a little money by not putting the matts where I know I will not stand. Am I thinking correctly? Or do you cover the entire floor

Most people will only mat the areas where they will normally walk or stand. It's a complete waste to mat under the vanities, or up the sides of the toilets-- places like that. As for price, it won't be cheap-- for something the size you're talking about, give or take around 10- 20.00 a foot for the mats, and about 2-3.00 a foot for installation of the mats, plus whatever the electrician will charge you to rough in and hook up the controls and power for the mats.

One thing you might look into is a product on the market that's relatively new (from this manufacturer). It's from a company called Laticrete who is one of the leaders in the industry. They just started, about a year or two ago, putting out a heating mat called FarenHeat, which is very similar to Suntouch's and Warmly Yours' systems. The mats will cost you about the same, but as for the controls, what you pay for the baseline controls in the other systems (basically an on/ off switch), you'll get the programmable controller, so you can set it to come on and off automatically at certain times. You might talk to someone in your area who carries Laticrete products. If you can't find anyone, let me know.

Thanks Bill for your response. Would it make sense to only matt the area in front of the vanity say out 3 feet and possibly into the toilet room? Sorta thinking getting in and out of the tub/shower only lasts a couple seconds and I could save money there. I don't want to skimp to much and then regret it.

What normally gets matted is the area directly in front of the vanity, the toilet, the tub, and/ or the shower, as well as any wide open space.

One great thing with many of the floor heat sellers is that they will do a precise layout diagram *for you* if you fax them your layout. That way you know exactly what to order and where to put it (didn't mat behind the toilet or under the vanities, btw -- no one would suggest you do that, I don't think). You could tell them your thoughts and they'll give you great advice. I received great service in that regard and others from the company I worked with (it's in the thread I mention below).

I would not encourage scrimping by not matting all the areas. It will feel odd as you walk in your bare feet from warmed areas to cold. Ask me how I know. (no, don't :) -- just go read the "just shoot me" thread -- DH was actually suggesting that we just keep the little heated central area and not worry about the big heated perimeter -- but it felt SO weird and so "half-done" that I can guarantee you for resale you might as well not have done it at all. You'll kick yourself if you do that, IMO. Just IMVHO.)

I agree, you should put it in all the areas you'd walk. If the mat prices are budget busters for you, a cheaper option is from Warming Systems and it's the wire without the mat. It's around $3.69/sq ft coverage, plus about $120 for a programmable thermostat. You tape it to the floor in winding rows 3" apart with aluminum tape and then tile over it. My DH and I put down 180 sq ft of it in about 3 hours. That's not the hard part, it's troweling the thinset over it so you don't nick it or pull it out of place.

I just did a online quote from Warmly Yours, OUCH Is that the price to the GC?? Bathroom was $1000 and Kitchen/Nook was $3500 and that does not inculde installation. Very easy site to use btw. Interesting on the quote for the kitchen it quoted 240V versus 120V for the bathroom.

Check out ThermoSoft. They have a continuous sale, and if you hit it right, you can get 30% off. 60 sq ft with a programmable thermostat will cost you about $500. I have it in my kitchen/half bath and will be installing it in the new master bath soon.

Don't skimp on coverage. The heat only spreads an inch or so beyond the wiring, and you will know exactly where it ends. I stopped a few inches short of the toilet and barefoot standees are treated to cold toes.

You are right that you ONLY put it where you're going to stand. I have used Suntouch extensively in my house. It is not designed to heat the whole room, but only where you're standing to warm the "tootsies". Everyone whose experienced it here LOVES it.

That being said, you are right, only where you will stand. I'll never be right up against our walls. So it made no sense to spend extra money to put those heat mats there.

Also, Codnuggets made a good point -- it does NOT spread. I had a contractor several years ago who thought we could spread the mats further apart than the manufacturer recommended and have the heat spread. I told him time and again that it would not but he ignored me. Since he was cheap (very cheap) he did it anyways, and it does NOT spread. If you want heat to be continuous under your feet, don't expect it to spread more than an inch or two.

We're also looking into putting it into our bathroom. Has anyone use the one that Costco sells? It's listed as Premier Underfloor Heating system.

Here is a link that might be useful: costco product

Our radiant heat does make the room warmer. We've got it in both our master bath and our kitchen. But the others are right: it doesn't spread out horizontally. However, we did have some leftover wire, so we retaped a portion of our bath floor and moved the lines from 3" spacing to 2" spacing. That section of the floor is now a bit warmer than the rest, and fortunately for us, it's in front of the vanity, so it's perfect!

Make sure the heat extends under the toekick of your vanity - mine doesn't and of course that's where I stand!
Noticeably colder than the rest of the room.

I am looking at ThermoSoft for my bathroom. Is it best to go with their programmable thermostat at $148, or can I just buy one myself? Also, do users with radiant heating adjust the temperature, or do they just turn it on or off? Would I be okay with buying a programmable wall control?

Whichever system you choose to install, you should use the thermostat made for that system. God forbid there's a problem with the system, and you use parts from two different manufacturers. Neither will back it up.

Can these types of radiant heat be used under all types of tiles (i.e., marble, limestone, ceramic, etc)? Also, we have a problem with a toilet that is extremely "sweaty" on those extremely humid days of summer. We are trying to get that fixed, but if they don't completely, will that extra moisture that drips down seep into the tiles and ruin the wires? Thanks, because I'm clueless.

Yes they can be used with all kinds of ceramic and stone tiles, and no the added moisture won't ruin the wires. :-) However, if this is woodframe and not concrete slab, you might think about waterproofing the floor BEFORE you install the heating system, because that sweaty toilet, if it's as bad as you say, over time, could end up rotting the subfloor.