Hydronic floor installation

scottystepp

I have a 20x20 garage/shop that needs heat other than electrical. I really can't raise the height of the floor so I would need to install the pex into the exsisting (uninsulated) concrete slab by cutting/chisilling out the grooves. I can't afford to have the slab completely removed and insulate/re-pore. So would it be worth installing in the current slab from a heat loss perspective? I know I would be loosing heat downward but would it be more economical than heating the garage with an electric heater 4 months out of the year? (Ca.$100 a month in heating cost)
Thanks you.

Dave H_2

How about a radiant wall(s)?

I installed one at a family members house with quik-trak on top of the sheetrock and left it that way. The area of the garage was also where the workbench and toolbox was kept. If he wanted to install hooks or anything on the wall, he knew exactly where the pipe was with no worries of a puncture.

Dave H.

Rich_49

or radiant ceiling . Even better than walls

Zman

I like the ceiling and wall ideas. Radiant gas heaters would be another good choice.
Every few months someone has the same idea with the grooves in the concrete. Unless you own a concrete coring business and you have a bunch of guys looking for work, If you can't afford to jackhammer it out, you can't afford the grooves.

Gordy

Agree with others. Roughly 400 feet of grooves in not so optimal slab detail conditions. I assume no gas?

How high are the ceilings?

I like ceilings because it's the plane with the least radiant output blocking objects in a garage / shop space.

steamedchicago

Gordy said:

I like ceilings because it's the plane with the least radiant output blocking objects in a garage / shop space.

I used to work in a shop with ceiling mounted radiant heaters (not hydronic, but gas fired ones). It was miserable. The shop was only kept to about 50 (which was reasonable, hard to keep it warm when cars go in and out all day). You'd bring a cold, snow covered car in, put it on the lift, and get under it. so it was cold, between you and the heat, and then the snow would melt and drip on you.

that's probably not a problem in home shops, but for commercial ones, it's something to think about.

Gordy

We are talking a 20x20 garage. A tight two car. Slab in place not a lot of good options

giceman1337

I have a 3 car garage in the frigid winters of Mn. I installed a Reverbay HL3 radiant tube heater https://www.reverberray.com/products/commercial-industrial/low-intensity-infrared-radiant-tube-heaters/hl3-series/

It kept the garage as warm as I wanted it. I kept is 50F (even when it was -20F outside), as that is all I really needed. This product seems to keep the floor and other materials at a decent temperature compared to other forced air heaters I have seen.

hot_rod

These are another option. Fast recovery, small footprint, easy to install, less $$ than a radiant system perhaps.