I am currently struggling with the 'heated floors investment' issue, as well. I am certain that I want them, it just that I also want every OTHER new and cool product I've learned about, thanks to all of you wonderful posters on GW! :)) My budget is weeping... ever so gently. So I must choose the most cost-effective product with a reputation of good quality, especially when 'could-go-wrongs' during the installation procedure can be so scary to 'chicken' first timers like me. ladycfp, I agree that I would heat your entire open area; the rectangular size of a bath mat is negligible in the grand scheme of things. And what better than stepping out from the shower unto a dry bath mat, than to a WARM, dry bath mat, as the mat will become heated, as well? Not much of a question to me. But of course, I can ALWAYS figure out everyone else's dilemmas, it's mine I struggle with. lindawink, When I requested an estimate from the SunTouch distributor, WARM YOUR FLOOR, he sent me back an estimate that included mats in my open area, and a second estimate if I wanted to heat my shower floor. So I am certain that it is done, it's just that most people are a little 'leary' about electric mats in a shower, even if they are imbedded in thinset under tile. Most feel that turning on the water in the shower a little early will heat your floor sufficiently for you to step into it. I went to the link below which is the 'Frequently Asked Questions' page for SunTouch, but I did not find 'heating a shower' as one of the questions. I have found this page quite useful in general, for learning about radiant heat flooring, regardless of whose product you use. You might go to the 'Warm Your Floor' website and see if their FAQ's addresses heated showers. Here is a link that might be useful: SunTouch FAQ's

Based on my experience, I'd say that trying to divide an open area into two zones won't work. We built a 1000 sq ft addition of several rooms and and an open area - it has its own furnace and a new furnace was put into the existing structure at the same time. The connection between the areas is a wide-ish hallway. When both furnaces are on, the house is evenly warm. Without closing doors, it's not feasible to have the heat on on one side but not the other because the cold air mass on the "off" side keeps the "On" part of the house from warming up. The areas most distant from the border will get too warm as the system tries to compensate, and the areas near the border stay cold. Neither cold nor warm stays put because you want it to. In your plan, I think there would be a constant flow of warm air to the cold area along the ceiling and cold air to the warm area along the floor. Not a question that you asked, but your plan suggests you're going to have a very dark region by the dining room and stairs. You've got a long wall with no windows between the living room and the family room, and the fireplace will block light coming from the front. Good luck

We use the kind that go on the door hinge. You can adjust to how wide you want the door to swing. They are limited on what type of wood doors you have though. They will put a small dent in soft wood doors. Ours are birch and don't dent.

Was the BTU add into the home designed with the plan of putting wood on top of it? Or with concrete or tile floors being the unobstructed radiators ? Because wood is actually an insulator, averaging R-1 per inch. It retards heat radiation into the room, and the system has to be designed to overcome that from the beginning. How well was the slab isolated from the earth and insulated during construction? This isn’t a “decorating” decision. This has to do with the fundamental HVAC design calculations and the actual build out construction of the home. The big lag time response of the thermal mass with radiant makes it a poor choice where you have wide temperature fluctuations. You need something with more agility in response, or you’ll be opening windows at 9:00 am to cool the house off, and you’ll be freezing at 7:00 pm because it hasn’t ramped up yet. You need a steady state of exterior temperature to have it be at all efficient and comfortable.