Replies

1. 
   rez | Feb 16, 2005 02:58am | #1

   bump

   "Live Free,
         not Die"

1. 
   ruffmike | Feb 16, 2005 04:03am | #2

   There are special wires made that are about 16"long that friction fit between the joists to hold insulation in place.A good building supply house would have them.They are very stiff,maybe made of sping wire.I am surprised someone hasn't commented about your method(I see nothing wrong)maybe post under the heating catagory.

                                                   

1. 
   gdavis62 | Feb 16, 2005 04:32am | #3

   OK.  I think I've seen the wires.

   For doing 48" long batts, how many per?

   For doing this stuff if it comes in rolls, what kind of spacing for the wires?

1. 
   joeh | Feb 16, 2005 04:39am | #4

   Gene, they come in bundles or boxes of a zillion.

   They are sharp on the ends, you grab it in the middle and put it across the bay.

   As you push in, it bends and pops in. Takes about one second per & their cheap. Don't scrimp, but don't push so far you crush you FG down to nothing.

   You might conside ratwire too if you aren't covering it with drywall or something else.

   Joe H

    

2. 
   ckib | Feb 16, 2005 04:51am | #5

   Gene,

   I just had radiant heating installed in my house, stapled up on the basement ceiling.  The tubing was installed under the joists (not through small holes drilled in the joists), so insulation was more challenging than it needed to be.  I insulated all the pex that wouldn't be covered by the R19 with foam pipe insulation, then the R19 was installed.  I have attached a few photos, one showing the metal rods that hold the insulation up. 

   -- C

    

1. 
   f1fan100 | Feb 16, 2005 05:48am | #6

   how did it work?

1. 
   ckib | Feb 16, 2005 04:26pm | #7

   TK,

   Do you mean how does the heating system work?  It works great!  On the first floor we have wood floors in all rooms except the bathroom which has a tile floor.  The first floor has radiant stapled up under the subfloor.  The upstairs bathroom has radiant tubing in the subfloor (separate zone from first floor) with a tile floor.  The remainder of the 2nd floor, all bedrooms, have FHW heat, which I love because I like to turn the heat down at night, which you can't do very well with radiant.  However, it took 2 months to get the system regulated for two reasons ...

   1) Neither my GC or the plumber told me that the radiant had to be insulated, so that was not in the plan.  It wasn't until the system was installed that I found out it had to be done.  Then when I had the insulation contractor over, he gave me the news that he'd never seen an installation done like that (with the tubes dropping down under the joists) and that it would be best to insulate any tubing that would be exposed after the R19 was installed.  This is all happening while both bathrooms in the house were getting demolished and remodeled!  So, eventually I got around to installing the foam pipe insulation and calling the insulation contractor back to get the R19 installed.

   2) There was a bad wire to the thermostat on the first floor.  This caused the radiant to call for heat all the time, so even though my thermostat was set to 66, it was over 70 almost all the time, sometimes it was so warm in here that I had to open the windows in the middle of winter!  And this was before the insulation was installed.  So, no problem generating enough heat!  It took a while to diagnose the problem, but now everything is working great.  I especially love the warm tile floor in the bathrooms!

   I hope this answers your questions, but if not, let me know.

   -- Cynthia

    

    

    

1. 
   gdavis62 | Feb 16, 2005 05:18pm | #8

   So, why do some runs of tubing, fastened right up tight to the deck, have no extruded aluminum plates between deck and tube, while some do?

    

1. 
   ckib | Feb 16, 2005 05:35pm | #9

   The plumber claimed that the analysis indicated that the plates were necessary 16" on center.  It was suggested to me by another good breaktime soul that I add more plates (another discussion), but I was too involved in everything else going on here and I didn't end up adding any more plates.  We are definitely getting good heat, but it may have made the system more efficient with more plates.

3. 
   DgH | Feb 18, 2005 09:38am | #10

   "We'll want to do R-19 foilfaced fiberglass, foil up, in the 2x10 joist bays that get hydronic staple-up tubing.

   From your experience, what is the quickest and easiest method of installation?

   It looks to me from product literature that this stuff comes in pieces, not rolls, and the pieces are 15" wide by 48" long, by about 6-1/2" thick.

   I haven't seen it yet, but if the stuff came foilfaced one side, and kraftfaced the other, with the kraft facing having extra width for staple fastening, it might make for easy installation."

   You can get stuff that comes in rolls though. Try this website;

   http://www.poly-techradiant.com/polytech_en.asp?no=15247

   These guys offer a great range of different versions of the foilfaced insulation. I have one of their hot-water heater blankets around my water heater. Makes a big difference.

   You can get single bubble, single foil//double bubble, single or double foil all kinds of variations.

   If you explore their site you can find plans explaining how to install their product effectively in a wide range of places. If one of them does not strike you as similar enough, their product reps were very good at returning my e-mails. They sent me plans that weren't on their website. They even have some installation videos. Go figure...

   This company is serious about selling this stuff.

   Last year I didn't know what any of this stuff meant.