heating and hot water requirements for added space

Jim_109

What heating and hot water factors should I consider when converting the second floor of a 2 car detached garage into a year round apartment? One peson would live there full time.

I am considering replacing my (old) oil boiler in my home with a 3 or 4 section 3 pass boiler and 40 gallon indirect.

Rather than invest in a seperate heating unit for the new space, I am thinking of adding a third zone to my a new boiler. Dig a trench below the frost line from the home to garage, which is about 6 feet away, route the pipes through the trench. Can I use PEX? How shoud I insulate the trench?

What heat emitters do you recommend in the garage space? Cast iron, Slant finn type, radiant etc.

I would insulate the walls with celluse.

Guy Woollard

trench

If you are set on the trench route, I would suggest using a heat exchanger on the garage side. You could anti-freeze that zone, and it would be self isolating if something should happen.

Guy Woollard
N.E. Regional Sales Mgr
Triangle Tube Corp.

Ken_40

Sounds as if you

are NOT an experienced landlord. With that in mind, how committed are you to having someone live there, 10 feet away? If it's your mother, daughter or family member, that's one thing. If it is prely business, quite another.

If money is the basis of the switch, think electric. It is the least expensive way to heat the space and a small 10-gallon electric water heater would be fine. Have the utility install a new meter and have it put in the tenant's name. If they like 80 in winter, they pay the bills.

Super easy to install, super cheap as well. Costs of operation depend on your local costs per KW. If under a dime/KW, the electric will not be that much, especially if you insulate like mad.

Lower or raise the "target" rent in proportion to what you are directly paying for.

If you're in Georgia, it's no biggy. If in Vermont, things could get ugly.

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hot_rod

I'd agree with a seperate

system. Trenching and insulating hot water lines always costs you some "loss' possiblay a lot if not sealed and waterproffed.

I'd stick as much $$ as possible in the insulation package for the proposed space. Then run some heat load calcs.

You ought to be able to heat 600 square feet of well insulated space with under 20k BTU.

Electric may be a good match or a product like the Bradford White Combi2 water heater with a coil inside for radiant or hydronic air handler.

hot rod

Big-D

Electric options

Jim,

I have an electric solution for this application that comes in a small package and a smaller price.