What Kind Of Thermostat Is Best For Your Radiant Floor Heating System?

When you are spending a few dollars to set up your new radiant floor heating system it makes sense that you would want to save a few bucks. 

You’re probably wondering if you can skip the new thermostat and use your old one and save money and hassle.

Well, the answer is that is a possibility, but it may not be.

My personal philosophy is to always use the right gear for its intended purpose. You’ll get more out of your system that way. 

In my opinion, you should use the right kind of thermostat for your radiant floor heating especially if it is hydronic.

In this article, I wrote up a detailed buyer’s guide to help you pick the right thermostat and then followed it up with the top 5 best thermostats for your needs.

Read on to learn the details but if you don’t have time check out the table below to compare them side by side.

Do you need a special thermostat for your radiant floor heating?

You really do need a special thermostat as the ones that work the best measure the temperature of the floor and in the air to make sure that the floor is not getting dangerously hot while it heats. If you only are measuring air temperature then the floor heating system could overshoot the temperature and be way too hot to the touch until it reaches the thermostat sensors.

With a smart thermostat, you have far more control than with a traditional thermostat. Radiant floor heating is not complicated, but since it is slow to heat it is best if you can program it with more accuracy. That’s what you get with the right thermostat for the job.

You can even use sensors to know when somebody leaves the room so it shuts off on its own. And you can also turn it on remotely through an app so it is warm when you get home if you come back when it isn’t normally scheduled to go on.

There are a lot of benefits including energy savings. It just makes sense to have one if you go for infloor heating.

Electric vs Hydronic

Hydronic floor heating simply means that it uses circulated hot water. The term can refer to baseboard heat or even a heat fan that has a pipe with hot water that radiates heat. In our case, it is a closed-loop system in which a boiler or water heater circulates the hot water through a series of PEX tubing underneath the flooring.

An electrical system uses heat conducting mats with coils that heat up by using electricity. They use resistance to produce the heat and are wrapped in a polymer for safety.

Usually, the mat and thermostat come together as they are part of the same system. If you are looking into an electric radiant floor heating system then half of your job is already done. You likely don’t need to use your old thermostat or buy a special one for the job.

Do smart thermostats work with radiant heat?

Most smart thermostats are designed for forced air heating and not for radiant hydronic systems.

Now that radiant floor heating is becoming more popular for its efficiency and effective house heating, they are starting to adjust to the demand.

What makes it difficult is that radiant floor heating systems take longer to heat up and sometimes require two stage heating. Even if the thermostat can control two stages, sometimes the boiler used doesn’t.

Houses with different zones also present a challenge and usually require multiple thermostats and sensors.

The best smart thermostats work with a floor sensor that can adjust the temperature more accurately and avoid overshooting the desired temperature. This is both safer and more efficient.

Best wifi thermostats for hydronic radiant floor heating

Best Overall – Honeywell Home T9 WIFI Smart Thermostat

You can see some of the key features in the box above, but here are some more details.

The T9 has multi room capability so you can set the temperature for each room individually. You can set different times for each room besides just the temperature.

If there is nobody on the upper floors during the daytime then there is no use in heating the floor there. Just add a sensor for each room that has the radiant heat to create a different setting for each. (NB: This only comes with one sensor so you will need to order more for each additional room!)

Geofencing can also be added so when you are home it is picked up by your phone entering the zone. The heat can kick on at that point so it doesn’t need to be turned on if you arrive at a time that hasn’t already been programmed. 

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Most Popular – Nest (T3007ES) Learning Thermostat 3rd Gen

Though this is not the best smart thermostat for radiant floor heating it is easily the most popular. This 3rd generation Nest does do a great job and is easy to use, but it doesn’t have quite the sensitivity and accuracy of the Honeywell T9 reviewed above.

This latest generation does have multi zone capability that was not available previously so that is a nice bonus. You can put sensors in different areas of the house and heat accordingly.

The AI algorithm will help you track your usage and actual movements to know when and where you need heat the most. The sensors can tell how much time you spend in each area of the house and will preemptively heat those areas at the times it feels it is needed. It does not monitor the temperature in those rooms however.

This saves you money as you aren’t overheating an area because it is taking too long to heat up. This is especially helpful when you have radiant floor heating as it can take a while to heat up.

You can check to see if it is going to work with your boiler or water heater by clicking here and going through the questionnaire. 

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H3 Best For Luxury – ecobee SmartThermostat with Voice Control

This is an expensive thermostat, no doubt about it. But it helps to have when you are using it for radiant heat in a few ways.

It is much more accurate and programmable than the Nest and is close in terms of the Honeywell T9.

I’ll get into the bells and whistles in a second, but first let me say why it works well with radiant floor heating. It supports 2 stage heaters like a boiler or heat pump so it can help you heat a room effectively without overcompensating.

If you have multiple heating systems in your house then this is essential for that as well.

Now, if you love having many different applications at your fingertips, or even the tip of your tongue with voice, then you will love how much you can do with your ecobee thermostat.

It works on both 2.4GHz and 5GHz Wi-Fi so if you are on a dual band router then you are all set there. Many smart homes are using these dual band routers so this is good even if you don’t think you need it as you may one day in the near future.

It uses Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri voice integrations to control but really excels with Alexa and even has an Alexa speaker if you want to listen to music or podcasts from it. It will only access the Alexa voice with the unit closest to where you are.

The remote sensor can detect whether you are home or away and can heat different zones of your home individually according to your needs. It will also go into smart mode and do it automatically without needing to set it. If it detects your presence in a room it will automatically turn on. Of course, since it takes a while to heat a radiant floor, you can also turn it on remotely from your smartphone on the way home.

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Best Budget Option – Emerson Sensi Touch Wi-Fi Smart Thermostat

You don’t have to spend as much as the other thermostats reviewed here to get quality. 

The Emerson Sensi is a great option for those on a budget that are installing a radiant floor heater as it works with gas, propane, oil and even electric HVAC systems. It can handle up to 4 stage heating with a heat pump and is the only one on this list that can. For conventional systems it works in 2 stages. 

The size and shape are around the same as a traditional thermostat. If you are replacing one then it is easy to have this fit right in without needing to repaint the area around it. It may not look as flashy as the others, but it gets the job done. 

It is limited compared to the ecobee when it comes to using sensors and automatic heating, but it does still have geofencing and flexible scheduling. 

It does give you detailed reports so you can set your schedule accordingly, but it won’t sense a person entering a room and turning the heat on. Nor does it offer much in the way of zoning unless you install several thermostats where you need them.

Installation takes less than 30 minutes, but you should know that you do need to connect it to the C-wire. It does have an adapter so it is very easy to do yourself.

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Best Compatibility – Bosch BCC100 Connected Control Smart Phone Wi-Fi Thermostat

If you are looking for a brand that has a history behind it then Bosch is definitely one you can trust.

They make the heaters that people have been relying on for years to heat their homes. In fact, I mention them several times on this site for their tankless water heaters.

Because of this, you get excellent compatibility across many different HVAC systems. As an added bonus it can also control whole house humidifiers and dehumidifiers. 

Out of all the thermostats reviewed on this list, this is the easiest one to use. In fact, you can use it without the app if you really want to keep things basic.

Of course, if you want to use the app, it is going to give you far more options for temperature control. It does not offer geofencing, however.

Though it doesn’t have the bells and whistles that the others on this list have, it does get the job done and is very reliable. 

If you are looking for lots of extras and something more intuitive then I would scroll back up and check out the others.

Otherwise, for the price it does do a good job and has the backing of a major brand behind it.

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Conclusion

The best thermostat for radiant floor heating is going to ensure that you get the most out of your infloor heating. It will pay for itself with the savings in energy since you can be so accurate with the settings and make sure it only works when you need it.

With the AI capabilities of appliances today, it just makes sense to use one.

If you have any questions about any of these thermostats, just drop a line in the box below and I will get back to you ASAP!