Radiant Cooling

GMcD

Of course it's possible and legal. Do a google search on "radiant cooling" and see the info available. While radiant "floor" cooling can be made to work, it is best to use a radiant ceiling heating/cooling system, in my opinion based on all the data. The three pillars of human comfort are radiant temperature comfort, ventilation air supply, and humidity control (perspiration rate). The issue of "sweating radiant cooling systems" is just a poorly engineered application - you need to control all three human comfort aspects. The key issue is to spend the time and $$ to design the building envelope properly so you don't need very cool radiant cooling fluid temperatures in the first place (and conversely, cooler radiant heating fluid temperatures too). It all starts with the building envelope, especially glass selection and solar/shading control.

Carl_11

Is it possible?

Is it possible to have cold water flow through a radiant floor system? Well i'm sure its possible but would it keep the room cool and would it be legal. Just curious.

Bob Gagnon plumbing and heating

possible, legal, and

very comfortable. Bob

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dennis02

soda can

its possible but the cold water running through the tubes will sweat unless there is some kind of system to control the humidity in the building. otherwise it will sweat like a soda can on a hot day where the tubes run

grindog

radiant cooling

check out the demonstration at www.naturalcooling.com. Determining on the area you live in, you may need some suplimental air also and there is the humidity factor

Kal Row

not only possable...

but also the wave of the future.... when energy costs will be imposable - you will see geothermal heat liquid chiller/heater heat pumps driving the whole show - with a little boost from solar for heating and the pool for cooling, as for humidity control, a very low tonnage good old fashioned forced air system will take car of it - and if you wan to get fancy - the Germans use air over/through desiccant wheels and conveyors to dry out the air and use solar or the hot side of the heat pump to dry out the desiccant,

two thing – radiant is more effective from the ceiling – both heating and cooling – since it more exposed (no, heat doesn’t rise, it ray-dee-8’s and conducts in all directions equally, and even hot air/water doesn’t rise – but rather gets gravity displaced by cooler and thus heavier air/water – a better model to keep in your head when designing systems)

the other thing, you always want a full force air heating and cooling system, for one, as a backup, and the other: as stage 2, i.e. if the temp in the house drops below 65 winter and above 78 summer – the forced air system gets you by until the hydronics sorts itself out

don’t be tempted to go with electric grid radiant – 1: because you cant cool with it, 2:you never know what the least expensive heat source will be – if electricity is cheapest, you can still heat the water with it, but if you put in an electric gird and electric goes through the roof you are SOL

John R. Hall

Wetstock topic

Radiant cooling was a roundtable discussion at The Last Waltz. Look for a tidbit about it in a future copy of The News.

Bob Gagnon plumbing and heating

I agree with Geoff

my radiant cooling system dosen't sweat because I simply pump the cool well water first, through a large fan coil with a drip pan underneath. This provides supplemental cooling and removes humidity, just like a standard air conditioner. Then the cool water cools all my radiant panels, WITHOUT a seperate supplemental cooling system. Bob

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