Welcome! Here are the website rules, as well as some tips for using this forum.
Need to contact us? Visit https://heatinghelp.com/contact-us/.
Click here to Find a Contractor in your area.

Hydronic baseboard and furniture

Options
exheatingguy
exheatingguy Member Posts: 9
in THE MAIN WALL
Hello all, Google searched, searched on this site and can’t find an answer. Maybe I’m not wording it correctly. Getting new furniture and would like to know how close can furniture, etc. be to hydronic baseboard. Do not want to disrupt airflow.

Comments

  • Jamie Hall
    Jamie Hall Member Posts: 23,353
    Options
    Depends. Is the furniture skirted? That's a problem. Does the furniture have a back which rests against the wall even if the legs are kept away by the baseboard? That's a problem. But if you have a few inches below the furniture for incoming air to flow freely, and a couple of inches between the furniture and the opening at the upper side of the baseboard, you should be fine.
    Br. Jamie, osb
    Building superintendent/caretaker, 7200 sq. ft. historic house museum with dependencies in New England
  • EdTheHeaterMan
    EdTheHeaterMan Member Posts: 7,887
    Options
    Think about air flow. There is a damper on baseboard that will block off the 1" or so airway built into baseboard that will virtually stop all convection air currents. I remember being told as a young burner service technician that 15% of the heat given off by a Baseboard Radiator is Radiant Heat. The rest of the heat from that type radiator (85%) is from convection air currents. Now I'm sure that this was a generalization and that each different brand and/or model of baseboard radiator has different characteristics, so don't take this as an absolute fact. My point being that all it takes is a 1" air space to be blocked to make the darn thing mostly useless. So make sure there is at least 1" of air flow space at the bottom of the furniture and 1" at the wall. But like any other "Choke Point" in an air flow system, making it bigger can only help increase flow

    Edward Young Retired

    After you make that expensive repair and you still have the same problem, What will you check next?

  • EBEBRATT-Ed
    EBEBRATT-Ed Member Posts: 15,551
    Options
    As long as you don't jamb the furniture up against the baseboard your probably fine.

    If you have a sofa in front of the baseboard it pull it out 6-8". As long as air can get in and out of the baseboard it will work.

  • hot_rod
    hot_rod Member Posts: 22,185
    Options
    Carpet to close to the bottom and drapes that block the upper opening are buzz kills for convectors.
    Bob "hot rod" Rohr
    trainer for Caleffi NA
    Living the hydronic dream
  • exheatingguy
    exheatingguy Member Posts: 9
    Options
    ok, thanks guys

Categories