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Basements Heating & Air Conditioning

heat in basement

2 months ago

I live in the northeast, and have an unfinished basement which seems to have a comfortable temperature with no hvac today - winter, summer, you name it. About 6 feet below grade. It does have a furnace, boiler, air handler, and washer and dryer but the hvac elements are servicing other parts of the house.

We intend to finish it, replace the furnace and boiler with a tankless combi boiler, and open some registers from the existing forced air ducts to allow some AC or fan airflow from the first floor air conditioning (which does not include heat - first floor has hydronic radiant floor).

My question, some are telling us that we absolutely need heat in the basement. It sounds like a waste of space and money to me since the basement is comfortable today. I can even run the air handler fan in the winter which would pull some of the air from the first floor down if the heating need is very slight. Replacing the boiler and furnace might lower the temp in the basement, although we’re also adding insulation. Should I be very concerned with the idea of not having heat? Or is there something I’m missing?

Thanks

Joe

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Comments (4)

mike_home
2 months ago
Basements below grade have small heat loads and almost zero cooling loads. Some of the heat loss from the current boiler and furance may be enough to keep the basement comfortable. If you install more efficient equipment if may change the basement's ambient temperature.

I don't think you need to spend a lot of money to heat the fihished area. You could add electric baseboard heating to add some heat on very cold nights. Even a portable space heater may be sufficient for your needs.

Another option is to use the combi boiler with hydronic baseboard radiators. It will cost more but the operating costs will be lower.
fnmroberts
last month
When you insulate and finish the basement, the characteristics will change. The heat-sink from the exposed foundation will lessen meaning less temperature fluxiation.

Since you have a boiler, air exchange will be slight without using your air handler.

You should use a dehumidifier and maintain <45% humidity when necessary. Our basement only needs auxulary heat spring/fall when the house doesn’t require heat. We installed an electric fireplace.
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A specific answer for your specific situation may be elusive. Given that snow melting electric cables are available for burying in outdoor pavement, it is definitely technically feasible. Using conventional radiant floor mats could be another matter. Why not contact some of the manufacturers of such mats? All the possible variables are too much for me to type here. My bathroom floor heat has GFCI built into the thermostat. If you choose not to get advice from the manufacturers or if you get the impression that they are afraid to offer advice, the option exists to install the mats you choose in your basement, being sure to use GFCI protection. If it works, fine. If the GFCI trips out and will not stay in the reset position, then you have an unheated tile floor.
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I don't think he literally meant it was freezing! Call me nuts but I run our dehumidifier in the basement almost all year long. I find the extra heat put out by it is enough to temper the air to a comfortable level. In the summer the basement will stay in the mid 60's with no AC down there but of course we need to run the dehumidifer in the summer. With it running the temp will hover in the upper 60's and its very comfortable. If I were to try to dehumidify the basement using our AC it would be way too cold to be comfortable. In the winter we heat the basement with duct work from our furnace. Again, with heat from the furnace I can keep the basement in the mid 60's which is not too bad, but we also have a whole house humidifier which we really need for the portion of the house above the basement. The extra moisture from the humidifier will condense on our basement glass block windows (and I can imagine it would do the same behind the studwalls too on the concrete walls) to counter this I run the dehumidifer in the basement during the winter. Besides keeping the humidity to a reasonable level it also adds a little heat and will keep it in the upper 60's. You may be able to tap into existing ductwork for added heat and add returns as well. Adding insulation will help too if it isn't already there.
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Heaters placed high on the wall or in ceilings are good ceiling heaters as you have discovered. If you are forced to stay with electric in the bathroom, an electric heater low in the wall will work a lot better. If you have the wall space, a radiant panel might work well. Explain what are "large door vents". I do not understand. What is your climate? Do you cool the house with the same forced-air system? Is there a return in the basement? Where are the return air registers? Are there dampers on the ducts? How is the duct that supplies the basement related to the rest of the ducts in the house? Is there a home run to the attic for that? I'd advise you to move this discussion over to the heating and air conditioning forum with the additional information and clarification that I asked for. I am no HVAC guy, but it seems like adding a small heating system just for the 2 rooms plus bath in the basement might be your best bet for an economical plan for the long term. I would be tempted to go with hydronic heat unless you have excess capacity in the furnace and a good way to get the air all the way to the basement. An answer to the latter question will require a description or examination of the duct system.
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PRO
Charles Ross Homes
last month
Hi, Joe,

Conditioning basements can be challenging because the heating and cooling loads tend to be small and outdoor air exchange tends to be less compared with above-grade living areas. We typically install a dedicated, ducted mini-split heat pump for conditioning basements because of the system's turndown capability and the ability to integrate a dehumidifier. You should also consider fresh air ventilation requirements for basement living areas. A properly sized heat-recovery ventilator (HRV) or energy-recovery ventilator (ERV) would be good candidates.
mtvhike
last month
For what are you going to use the finished basement?

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