Question for the radiant guru's

Paul Mitchell

Looikng at a job that is being partially done by a home-owner. He ordered some radiant on line and laid it in a concrete slab on first level...secondary heat source per him. I have some specs but need to know btu load so I can size the boilr for these "future radiant loops." He was going to install a hot water heater for the radiant, per the co. he bought it from. But my take is it will be more efficient off the boiler, since the boiler will be operating for domestic hot water and baseboard zones. Here is the info I have from the co. he ordered the stuff from:
Zone 1 2204 sqft,4 loops 400' 7/8 pex 16"cntr,130 degree 8gpm.
Zone 2 900 sq ft, 2 loops 300' 7/8 pex 18"cntr, 130 degree 3gpm
Zone 3 1200 sqft, 3 loops 300' 7/8 pex 16"cntr, 130 degree 4.5gpm
Any help will be appreciated
Paul

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don_12

Dont

do it Paul.Start fresh and do your own load calc and design.Thats what they hoping for so if it does'nt work
then its your problem and not there.

Beware you are walking on thin ice!!

Paul Mitchell

Good point Don...But

He has already laid the radiant tube in the slab. I just want to install a boiler that if he ever hooks it up it will be sized correctly...Do you suggest I just do a calc on the area and go from there? Example if it calls for 40,000 Btus add that to my boiler and let the radiant do what it can do.?

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don_12

yes

that all you can do at this point.I wish you well my
friend.Hopefully he insulate around perimeter.

Mad Dog

Make sure you get a sign off on his work

make it crystal clear. All that radiant off of a water heater? I wouldn't do it. Mad Dog

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Earthfire

radiant load

Did he insulate under and around the slab? If not insulated I'd forget about it. Do a heat load for the house with baseboard. Whether the heat source is baseboard or radiant doesn't make that much difference. The structure needs X btuh. If the btu come from baseboard or floor a boiler sized to the building load will handle it, the radiant load is not additional to the baseboard load. Make sure you isolate that tubing from your boiler with a heat exchanger and use non ferrous compenents for the floor loops. That tubing is probable non barrier. good luck.

Mike Norgan_3

I Agree

With Mad Dog.

Mike Norgan

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