How to Install an Electric Floor Warmer in a Bathroom

Draw a floor plan for your electric floor warmer. You will have to run a heating cable under some of the tiles; determine where the cable will go and draw it on your plan. The cable should be at least six inches from the wax rings of your toilet and shouldn't go under or against your bathtub or cabinets.

Give the floor plan to your heating cable supplier so the supplier can provide the appropriate length of cable.

Remove all the tiles from your floor. First, uninstall the toilet and turn off the water supply to the bathroom. Put on safety goggles and thick gloves and break two or three tiles in the middle of the floor with a chisel. Examine the subfloor. If it's made out of mortar, continue chiseling until you get to the tar paper underneath and then pull up the mortar and tiles from the floor with a flat bar. If the subfloor is made out of plywood, remove one intersecting row and column of tiles, then use a reciprocating saw to cut through the plywood before using your flat bar.

Hire an electrician to make a new circuit for your electric floor warmer. "This Old House" magazine recommends hiring an outside contractor for this step because the circuit must be equipped to turn off in the event of a power surge.

Lay down the heating cable according to your plan and connect it to the new circuit.

Install new tiles over the heating cable. Ask the heating supplier for advice about the type of tiles to use. Use mortar to adhere the tiles to the cable and the subfloor.