Radiant heat on top of existing concrete?
taft
12 years ago
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don92
12 years agotaft
12 years agoRelated Discussions
Corn burning Boiler and an existing in floor radiant heat system
Comments (7)RCMJR & misoilman, tnx for your replies. RCMJR: LDJ appears to have been in business since 1999. According to the LDJ website they claim the boiler is "Great for radiant floor heat systems". I'd be interested in talking to existing users to see how they are getting on with the the system. I took a closer look at their page about the corn boiler and they claim it's thermostat controlled, perhaps it's able to be dialed down. The picture of it looks like a water heater with a hopper sitting next to it. I'll post the url for the corn boiler. The capacity of the water heater portion is eighteen gallons. They also have an option that would allow the boiler to provide hot water for "domestic" use. So would be able to heat water for shower's, washing dishes etc. Right now the utility room has two gas fired water heaters sitting in it, one for the floor heat and one for domestic use, I think. We'd have to talk the heating and plumbing guy that took over from the H&P guy that had been maintaining the system for many years. The retired fellow is still in town and we might be able to talk him into coming over and orienting us with the systems. misoilman: Having the seller comfirm the moisture content of the corn would be the first thing I would insist on when purchasing the corn. I do know from talking with the folks at the elevator, they will not accept corn that is more than 15 percent moisture. I also need to check with the city to make sure there isn't an ordinance that would preclude me from having a small gravity box sitting next to the carport. If the gravity box is small enough, I'd even consider backing it into the carport. Alas, there is no basement on this dream house. Just a thick concrete slab...:-) So We'll probably use a couple of five gallon buckets for transfer of fuel from the box to the hopper. I'd just consider it a form of exercise...:) We're also a bit concerned about the age of the plumbing in the floor as it is original to the house. The impression I got from the house inspector was that the in floor plumbing was put in place then had the concrete poured over it. I'm going to have to have someone that has better eyes than me and know's what they're looking for, look at the blueprints and see if we can find out how thick the concrete is. Luckily, we've secured a "home warranty" from the seller for at least the first year (at their expense), and there is a possibility of extending it through the second year. I should also probably state that the corn boiler is not a done deal as we are still in the early part of the research stage. Although, a friend of ours has suggested we check the website of the Governor of Illinois and see if there are any grants or other incentives that we might be elgible for. Governor Blagojevich (Bla-goy-a-vich, what a mouthful) is very interested in promoting alternative fuels and energy use in Illinois. Here is a link that might be useful: LDJ's Corn Boiler page...See Moreengineered floors on concrete slab - radiant heat or no?
Comments (6)Electric floor warming systems are for floor warming only. They do not heat the room. If your slab is uninsulated, then in your cold environment your floors won't even really get warm as the heat will be sucked out through that slab into the outdoors. It'll be a waste of money. I'm really surprised that you actually have slab construction in such a cold climate. Slab requires footings to be dug down below the frost level so it won't heave, and in your area, that's down low enough that it's not that much further to do a basement. And to do a slab without insulating it is also strange. I would not put hard surface flooring in such a situation where you cannot install the sleepers and additional insulation. Your best bet for comfortable flooring will be for carpet. The padding will give a small amount of insulation between you and that freezing cold slab....See MoreInstalling radiant heating in the rain
Comments (1)Maybe you can tell us how this turned out. A few years ago I took a course in renovating heritage homes. A different professional, usually a professional engineer in that field, gave every lecture. A professor that was such a professional engineer with a specialty in cement and concrete gave the lecture on foundations, slabs and footings. When discussing the strength of cement he mentioned that the underground subway in our city that runs on rubber tires and cement tracks has those tracks cured completely under water for the expressed purpose of adding strength. My sister and brother-in-law recently had the cement docks in their rather sizable boathouse completely rebuilt with the new cement being poured directly into the water. It is also common to cover cement slabs with burlap and wet them down for a few days as they cure. I canâÂÂt say for sure because this is not my specialty but it may be completely fine. DonâÂÂt know if this is helpful at all⦠SR...See MorePenetrating a concrete floor...with radiant heat?
Comments (5)I have seen construction adhesive (Liquid Nails) fail. I am no longer impressed with it - but I do still use it, and another brand. Mechanical fasteners are required for a good wall. It would be EXTRMELY unwise to just fasten down the bottom plates, without knowing where the tubes are... Fixing the floor heat would be mucho dollars. See if you can find out who did the floor. Maybe they have pictures or a layout plan. Otherwise - your idea of an infrared imager seems excellent. Or possibly a plumber might be able to help you out... You think imaging is expensive... how much to fix the floor?? after you kill the heat? So your first inclination is best. Find out first where they are......See Moredon92
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