Yes to both, but they are different jobs. Rigid click LVT is stiff enough to float straight over the Ribbon. Sheet vinyl is thinner and more flexible, so it normally goes into a levelling compound over the Ribbon, or onto a dry overlay board in a domestic room. How much traffic the floor takes is what decides it.
LVT and vinyl are not the same product
This is the distinction that gets missed, and it is the one that matters.
LVT is about 5mm and rigid, so it goes over a dry overlay board, or floats straight over the Ribbon. Rigid click LVT is installed as a floating floor, so many good quality products lay directly over the Ribbon. Some manufacturers specify a thin low resistance underlay, so follow what the flooring maker says.
Sheet vinyl is a different animal. It is a safety floor, it is thinner and it is flexible, and you are sticking it down rather than floating it. Sheet vinyl is about 2mm and flexible, so it normally goes into a levelling compound over the Ribbon. In a domestic room it can go on a dry overlay board instead. Which one you use depends on how much traffic the floor takes
The thinner and floppier the product, the more it needs a solid, smooth surface underneath it, otherwise you get movement, distortion or joint failure as the floor heats and cools.
Glue-down LVT sits with sheet vinyl rather than with click LVT: it needs the smooth surface, and the adhesive has to be approved for use with underfloor heating.
Which build-up you need
| Rigid click LVT, around 5mm | Floats straight over the Ribbon. Some makers ask for a thin low-resistance underlay. |
| Sheet vinyl, around 2mm | Levelling compound over the Ribbon, or a dry overlay board in a low-traffic domestic room. |
| Glue-down LVT | As sheet vinyl, and the adhesive must be underfloor heating approved. |
| What decides it | How much traffic the floor takes. |
| Heating | The Ribbon at 1.8mm, taped down with EkoBuild's own high-tech tape |
| Insulation | 6mm Therm-All, which is acoustic, thermal and a 1000-gauge DPM in one |
| Warm-up through the floor | 15 to 20 minutes |
The honest bit about cost
If your LVT is thin and floppy enough to need an overlay board, you are adding a layer, a cost and a job. At that point laminate is often the cheaper floor for the same heated result, and it floats straight over the Ribbon with nothing in between.
That is not us talking you out of LVT. It is worth knowing before you buy the flooring, because the flooring decision drives the heating build-up and not the other way round.
Temperature limits
Vinyl and LVT manufacturers set a maximum floor surface temperature. No floor surface should exceed 27 to 28°C.
The Ribbon operates at 27 to 28°C, averaging about 27°C and the floor surface settles at 24 to 25°C, because it cools as the heat passes up through the floor finish. That sits inside the limit rather than against it.
Set the figure from your product datasheet as the cap on the thermostat's floor probe and the floor cannot exceed it.
Can it be the room's main heating?
Yes. The Ribbon runs at 150W per m², and with at least 70% of the floor covered in a suitable room it is designed as the primary heat source rather than a warm surface.
Below 70% it is a supplementary heat source, and we spec an infrared panel to make up the gap
Not sure which build-up yours needs?
Tell us the product and the room and we will tell you straight. Or map the room in the free Room Designer for the layout and price.
Underfloor heating under LVT and vinyl FAQs
Can you put underfloor heating under LVT?
Yes. LVT is about 5mm and rigid, so it goes over a dry overlay board, or floats straight over the Ribbon. Some manufacturers specify a thin low-resistance underlay, so check the product.
Can you put underfloor heating under sheet vinyl?
Yes. Sheet vinyl is about 2mm and flexible, so it normally goes into a levelling compound over the Ribbon. In a domestic room it can go on a dry overlay board instead. Which one you use depends on how much traffic the floor takes
What is the difference between LVT and vinyl for underfloor heating?
Thickness and rigidity. LVT is around five millimetres and stiff enough to float over the Ribbon. Sheet vinyl is around two millimetres and flexible, so it needs a smooth solid surface beneath it.
What temperature can vinyl take?
No floor surface should exceed 27 to 28°C. The Ribbon runs at 27 to 28°C, averaging about 27°C with 24 to 25°C at the surface, so it sits inside that. Set your product's figure as the floor probe cap.
How long does it take to warm up?
The Ribbon is producing heat in about 3 minutes, and warmth comes through in 15 to 20 minutes.