radiant heat over existing slab

Tom Kane

is relatively flat, and not buckeled, Rehau Raupanel works very well in this installation. 3/8 tubing snapped into extruded aluminum plates that are 5/8" high. The air gap under the plate will provide some insulation and you will have approx 80% aluminum as a souce of heat transfer. Very high outputs, the data to back up the output claims are avaialble for your review.

monroe

upgrading heat on a two story split level with a poured slab

currently have a home with electric baseboard. home is a mid 1970 split-level the groung floor is just that, no basement underneath just a poured slab that the main living room, garage and a hallway with a half bath sit on. i was thinking of removing the baseboard electric on the groung floor and the split level with the basement under it too radiant floor heat. now with access to half the house throught the basement i can just do a staple up but my queston is what can be done with the poured slab?cutting the floor? i was thinking of laying a sub floor but then though about the problems of building up the floor. because it is the main floor with both the front entrance and a sliding door in the living room.the final question to all this is the second floor if i do go through everythiing on the lower floors should i remove the electtric baseboard upstairs they are just bedrooms and my though is the zoning of electric is a benifit up there, plus there is no access to do a staple up with out ripping out drywall. any help or thought would be a great help.
thanks Monroe

monroe

upgrading heat on a two story split level with a poured slab

currently have a home with electric baseboard. home is a mid 1970 split-level. the ground floor is just that, no basement underneath just a poured slab, that the main living room, garage and a hallway with a half bath sit on. i was thinking of removing the baseboard electric on the ground floor and on the split level with the basement under it to radiant floor heat. now with access to half the house throught the basement i can just do a staple up but my queston is what can be done with the poured slab?cutting the floor? i was thinking of laying a sub floor but then thought about the problems of building up the floor. because it is the main floor with both the front entrance and a sliding door in the living room.the final question to all this is the second floor if i do go through everythiing on the lower floors should i remove the electtric baseboard upstairs they are just bedrooms and my though is the zoning of electric is a benifit up there, plus there is no access to do a staple up with out ripping out drywall. any help or thought would be a great help.
thanks Monroe

hot_rod

Choices are limited

for slab radiant retrofit if you can't build up the floor. Ideally you want an insulation thermal break first, then tube, then finished floor. It will add at the very least 1" for a good thermal break and tube.

There are some thinner over slab products 1/2" thickness like the Viega or Uponor products. But they don't offer much thermal break.

Consider a hot water panel radiator system in the slab areas and staple up in the framed areas?

Or all panel radiators with a modulating condensing boiler and TRVs on each radiator.

Why the change from electric baseboard? Operating cost, looks, insuffecient heat?

The very first step to reducing operating cost would be to tighten up and increase building insulation. A blower door test would be a good first step to find the leakage. Lower the building heat loss as much as possible before changing the heating and cooling system. By far this is the best payback.

I see more and more energy audit companies doing infared scans of the structure to find insulation problems. Many brand new homes look questionable when viewed through an IR camera.

hr

Don Regan

Crete-Heat...

is also a popular option

monroe

was thinking of the upgrade for two reasons one inefficient heat and second more options, my brother in law has an oilburner but it is only secondary heat, has a jacketed wood stove that provides most of the heat in winter to his hotwater baseboard system. but i never thought of the inefficient heat being the houses fault which it probable is so spending my money first to "tighten" the house up first would be a smarter approach. thanks

Simply Rad_4

Roth panel

It works well over existing concrete, because it has a thermal break built in it with the 3/4" high density foam. It too is covered with aluminum for great conduction. Finish flooring is the only issue. It works best with a floating floor. My 2 cents
Jeffrey