Radiant and Hardwood Floors

Bob Eh?_2

Beauty floors! I guess when you get an artist that can do inlays like that you may be able to assume he will get the wood conditions right, the attachments right, and maybe even miss the tubing ;-)

You are absolutely correct that, in most instances, the install and humidity control have more bearing on the likelyhood of problems than any reasonable floor heat scheme. It slays me to see hardwood being delivered and banged down the next day. Never mind letting the building moisture stabilize due to the basement being poured the day before!

What track product is that? Warmboard? I am asking because it seems to come in 2x sheets instaed of 4x.

Chuck Shaw_4

Split or Seperated Floors

I have been talking with a homeowner, who has been convinced by her flooring contractor that her hardwood floors will seperate or split, if I install radiant heat. He has gone so far as to say, that he will not install hardwood if it has radiant heat. I have given her the RPA's flooring guide, and a number of names and phone numbers, of previous customers to check with, she still remains unconvinced. Are there any studies, or published papers that I could give to her to help change her mind?

To make matters worse, the person plumbing the house told her, he never would install radiant under a wood floor, and no matter what you do to the wood, no matter the moisture content it will still have problems down the line. Of course my answer to this was, "Isn't he the one who told you he didn't understand radiant, and that is why you called me?"

Any thoughts on changing her mind?

Chuck Shaw

Nron_13

Go to Robert beens sight

healthyheating.com there are lots of different sites there to choose from plus goto the Lagosteina hardwood floor web site they have some ther that are under test in all kins of aplications

Ken_8

Here's another way to prove

there's no real issues with wood floors and radiant:

Suppose you have a door with standard glass (or a door open) and the summer sun shines on the wood floor. The suns rays are about as warm and direct as a summer's day can generate. The sun's rays strike the floor almost dead on save the angle needed for that to happen - and not have a shadow from the door head-jam cast on the wood floor below. So in this example, the sun's rays are totally MAXED out!

Take an outdoor thermometer that also sits in that same direct summer sun. The temperature of the floor AND the thermometer both read 120° surface temperature; maybe 125° (It is 90+ degrees outside true temperature BTW for this worst case example)

What physical diference would there be between the sun shining on the wood floor making the surface temperature 125+... and the radiant tubing making the underside of the wood flooring 125° too?

If after years and years of summer-long sun beating on the flooring does not buckle, check, dmage the floor from the sun's radiant energy, how could the same radiant energy and temperature range harm the underside of the exact same piece of wood from a warm tube?

Duh!

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Chuck Shaw_4

Ken

I tried that arguement too...but the answer was the floor has ribs cut in it, and that is on the flip side of the ribs, the "heat" that does the dammage is on the "ribbed" side.

I understand the homeowners concerns and stress level, but when you have 10 uninformed, or under informed people telling you one thing, its hard to be the ONE on the other side. Also, they have been over to "some friends" homes, and "have seen what radiant can do to a hardwood floor". I tried to ask, if they had ever seen a hardwood floor that was not over radiant heat that had problems, but that just went over their heads.

Chuck

hr

Send them

to www.nwfa.org

www.nofma.org

www.hardwoodcouncil.com

www.hardwooddistributors.com

of for actual tests, photos, and results www.launstein.com

If this doesn't do it, guess what! You can lead a horse to water but....

hot rod

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Unknown

go for radiant ceiling and avoid the whole arguement. When they say "but heat rises" and you can debunk them, maybe they'll listen to you!

Chuck Shaw_4

Thanks

I knew if I didnt have what I wanted for information, I could find it here.

Chuck

Robert O'Connor_7

Why not....

Have them come by my home built in 1926 with its original wood floor. Sometimes people will not belive the wise man, but instead belive the salesman.

Love them warm floors!

Robert O'Connor/NJ

Mark Hunt

NRT makes a good point


but what if you showed the folks some HW floors that had radiant under them?

I would be more than happy to send you some pics with letters from the HO about rad and HW. You think the owner of a 3.5 million dollar house would have let a screwed up floor slide??? HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

There are so many Wallies out there that have installs 5, 10, 15 years old and NO issues have come up because they did it right. We can all send you pictures and testimonials Chuck. Want some phone numbers too for referrences??? Say it and I'll do it.

I chalk the "radiant and hardwood don't mix" myth right up there with "wear this garlic and the vampires will leave you alone".

HO's never heard of the RPA. Why send them there???? Send them to other people, not organizations! HELL!!!!! SEND THEM HERE!!!!!!!!!

If they still choose to believe the Neanderthals, bid them good-bye and good luck. Have fun in your cave, cuz' that's EXACTLY what you're letting the other guy design for you.

NICE CAVE!!

Mark H

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Andrew Hagen (ALH)

Education

It's a shame when the wrong person gets to the homeowner first.

-Andrew

Moses

Split Or Seperated Floors

The problem is in the installation of the hardwood, not in the radiant heat. I show my customers pictures of houses were they installed "Scorched Air" and there is a gap up to a 1/4". I will post some pictures of some of my jobs.
Pic. #65 is before and pic.#64 is after, Pic.# 30 is before and pic.#313,316 is after, Pic.#62 is before and pic.# 311 is after.

Moses

Warm floors

The product is "Therma-Boards", they come pre-grooved. Each board is 4'x18". Some rooms they installed the hardwood on top of the boards, and in some rooms they installed 1/2" plywood on the boards, and then the hardwood.

Moses

Andrew Hagen (ALH)

Lay out

to fit the room. Tubing is 1/2", plywood is 3/4". The aluminum is .050" extruded. To my knowledge, hardwood guys have never complained about this versus gyp.

-Andrew