Six ways to deliver radiant warmth.

Almost every system we design uses more than one emitter type, and that is where good hydronic design either shines or quietly fails. Each emitter wants water at a different temperature. Underfloor loops run at 35–45 °C, ThermaSkirt at 45–55 °C and conventional panel radiators at 55–70 °C. Feed them all from one pipe at one temperature and something will be wrong: either the floors run too hot, which is bad news for engineered timber, or the radiators never get warm enough to heat the room.

How we make mixed systems work

• Separate temperature circuits. Underfloor zones get their own mixing valve and pump set at the manifold, so the heat source can run warmer for radiators while the floor stays in its band.
• Radiators sized for lower temperatures. If the heat source is a heat pump, we often specify larger radiators that cover the room's heat loss at around 45–55 °C. That keeps the whole network in the efficient range instead of forcing the heat pump to run hot for the sake of two bedrooms.
• Response time matched to room use. Slab underfloor is slow and steady, so it suits rooms occupied all day. Radiators, plinth heaters and fan convectors respond in minutes, so they suit bedrooms, studies and kitchens used in bursts.
• One controller, many zones. Each emitter group gets its own thermostat or schedule, but everything reports to one controller so the heat source only runs when a zone genuinely calls for heat.

Getting this wrong is expensive to undo, because mixing hardware and pipe sizes are chosen before the walls close up. Before you commit, read our underfloor vs radiators guide, look at the mixing valves and controls that hold each circuit at the right temperature, and, for established homes, see our Sydney radiator installation page. Every fixed-fee design we send includes a room-by-room emitter schedule, so you can see which type goes where and why.