radiant heat in existing basement
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Hi all,
I’m planning a major remodel soon and I plan on switching to radiant hydronic heat. The first and second floors, I plan to remove all the flooring and use subflooring with the grooves cut for the tubing. For the basement however, I’m unsure what I should do. Do I staple the tubing to the soon to be bare concrete floor and cover with the lightweight gypsum based cement products, or do I breakup the floor and pour the new one over the radiant tubing, or perhaps lay down a vapor barrier some sleepers and raise the flooran inch or so and put the tubing under that?
The problem is, the house is late 50’s-early60’s vintage, with no pressure treated sill- or seal under the sill plate, and insulation wasn’t used as a thermal break under or around the floors perimeter as is customary today. Thats why I ask this question. Will putting tubing in the basement just be a colossal waste of energy–doing more to heat the soil than the rooms themselves? I’m im the midwest-brought up on cast iron radiators and forced air furnacess so I’m new the the concept.
Any expert avdive would be appreciated…..Mike
Replies
Why not put a vapor barrier and thin foam insulation on the cement floor and install the same stuff you're going to put on the main floors? I think that I've seen an ad with insulation installed on that material. Otherwise you're making a BIG heat sink.
Mike, heat will conduct to the path of least resistance, and an uninsulated slab is a big heat sink. Do you have enough ceiling height to allow foil faced foam board between sleepers, with radiant piping suspended between them (not in contact with the insulation) and then deck the sleepers? Or, as you sugested, sleepers with insulation and the grooved foil surface for the tube, and flooring over the "heating" board.
Paul
The cieling is about 7'9" from the floor to the bottom of the floor joists. I have a suspended cieling that makes it closer to 7' 6-7" but I was planning to drywall the cielings at a later date. I know the sleeper idea will make the cieling seem really low. My plans are in the concept stage right now, and a friend of mine actually broke his floor out, dug down 6", and re-cemented over his radiant tubing. Thanks to all for the replies, I have a lot of thinking to do. I at least know that tubing over the existing floor is a waste of time and energy and thats what I am most trying to aviod. I'm an amateur when it comes to a lot of things, but one mantra I've always tried to live by is do it once, the right way- or don't do it at all.
Thanks again everybody.
Mike