Getting Upstairs Warmer?

Post Reply
 
User avatar
Mikey394
New Member
Posts: 12
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 9:23 pm
Location: Red Lion, Pa.

Post by Mikey394 » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 3:05 pm

I have a 200 yr old farm house.
Old heat was hot water baseboard.
I replaced all the 1st floor windows and the house is sealed up pretty good.
I need some suggestions on moving hot air to try to get the upstairs a little warmer.
I would like to put a vent from the living room through the wall to the Rec room and a floor vent to Bedroom #1 (my Dad's room)

Attachments

105CIRCLELAYOUT.jpg
.JPG | 150.1KB | 105CIRCLELAYOUT.jpg

 
User avatar
LsFarm
Member
Posts: 7383
Joined: Sun. Nov. 20, 2005 8:02 pm
Location: Michigan
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Self-built 'Big Bertha' SS Boiler
Baseburners & Antiques: Keystone 11, Art Garland

Post by LsFarm » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 3:25 pm

A lot of the old houses had floor vents, that was how any heat got upstairs, I'd think that the floor vent above the stove would do a very good job heating your Dad's room.

If you decide to put a vent through the wall to the rec room, look around and see if you can find a fan powered vent that fits between the wall studs, the fan may come in handy when the outside weather and wind make the rec room extra chilly.

I'd put the vent up against the ceiling, where the air is the hottest, it will be much more effective up there.

There is someone on the forum who uses a 9" fan in the upper corner of a doorway and is very satisfied with the amount of air it moves. I can't remember who it is though.

200 years, 1805 or so?? Hand made nails and pegs for construction? Mine is young by comparison. 1849 for my place.

Take care. Greg L

Attachments

Front window3.jpg
.JPG | 132.7KB | Front window3.jpg

 
User avatar
LsFarm
Member
Posts: 7383
Joined: Sun. Nov. 20, 2005 8:02 pm
Location: Michigan
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Self-built 'Big Bertha' SS Boiler
Baseburners & Antiques: Keystone 11, Art Garland

Post by LsFarm » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 3:26 pm

I meant to ask, is the hot water baseboard heat still there and functional? If so keep an eye on ebay for a used coal boiler. You'll love heating the whole house with coal.

Greg L

 
Jerry & Karen
Member
Posts: 381
Joined: Mon. Jan. 23, 2006 7:30 pm
Location: Berwick, pa
Contact:

Post by Jerry & Karen » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 4:41 pm

Mike,
Remember one thing on any heating system, to get hot air up, cold must come back down. All the floor vents in the world won't help unless you exchange air. If you have an open stairway, that will work.
Jerry


 
User avatar
WNY
Member
Posts: 6307
Joined: Mon. Nov. 14, 2005 8:40 am
Location: Cuba, NY
Hot Air Coal Stoker Stove: Keystoker 90K, Leisure Line Hyfire I
Coal Size/Type: Rice
Contact:

Post by WNY » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 6:09 pm

I cut a hole above the lowered ceiling and boxed in a channel to the bedroom, then put a fan with a DUCT-STAT Thermostat control (Home depot) which is the Orange Box the fan plugs into and mounted it towards the ceiling. It turns on around 65-68 degrees when the stove starts getting hotter. Seems to work great! :)

Our new house (1890) only has 2 ceiling/floor grates for heat upstairs, we will see how well it works :( may be getting a bigger stove!

Attachments

coal_fan.jpg
.JPG | 78.9KB | coal_fan.jpg

 
User avatar
LsFarm
Member
Posts: 7383
Joined: Sun. Nov. 20, 2005 8:02 pm
Location: Michigan
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Self-built 'Big Bertha' SS Boiler
Baseburners & Antiques: Keystone 11, Art Garland

Post by LsFarm » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 6:32 pm

Good point Jerry, The floor plan shows a back stairwell that should provide a good cold air return to the downstairs.

The floor plan also shows the bedroom with the proposed floor vent is accessed through another bedroom, so both should benifit from the hot air vent provided the doors are kept open for air flow.

One drawback it that sounds from each room will be carried through the vent as well as heat. Could be an issue.

Let us know how well it works.

Greg L

 
User avatar
Mikey394
New Member
Posts: 12
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 9:23 pm
Location: Red Lion, Pa.

Post by Mikey394 » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 8:37 pm

thanks all for the great ideas.
Greg, the oil fired, hot water baseboard heat works fine and is a good backup. Just costs too much. 3300 last year.
House was built in the late 1700's that makes it about 230 years old. I just got into the habit of saying 200 years old.

I added 8" vent fans in the floor vents and the stairs seems like a good return.

My Dad's room is bedroom #1, he is 71 and moved in with me a few years ago, from Fla. He likes the room 80*.....Bedroom #1 & 2 have baseboard electric heat. Bedroom #2 is just storage and I cracked the window open in there for some more air flow. Air is flowing out of that window.

I have ceiling fans in all the rooms on the first floor and the master bedroom.

right now outside temp is 33*
Living room 78*
Kitchen 75*
Rec 67* hard room to heat?
Upstairs is 65* to 68* and 78* at the kitchen vent
My Dad is using the electric in his room so he's happy.
Still Much, much cheaper than oil......

Attachments

12252002.JPG
.JPG | 293.7KB | 12252002.JPG

 
User avatar
LsFarm
Member
Posts: 7383
Joined: Sun. Nov. 20, 2005 8:02 pm
Location: Michigan
Stoker Coal Boiler: Axeman Anderson 260
Hand Fed Coal Boiler: Self-built 'Big Bertha' SS Boiler
Baseburners & Antiques: Keystone 11, Art Garland

Post by LsFarm » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 9:08 pm

Which way do the floor joists run under bedrooms 1+2 ??

If they run left/right in the floor plan you show you could be in luck. You might be able to put a ceiling vent into an airspace between two joists. Then cut a floor vent into the floor in bedroom #1. You would be using the joist space as an air duct.

If you don't have the joists running that way, can you put a box along the top of the recreation room/kitchen wall?? You could hide a duct in the box and have a vent into the rec room and up through the floor of Dad's bedroom. The box may not be very appealing, but it will work very well.

Just a few more ideas. Greg L


 
ktm rider
Member
Posts: 321
Joined: Thu. Jan. 12, 2006 12:27 am
Location: Western Md.

Post by ktm rider » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 10:18 pm

I'm with LsFarm on this one. If the water baseboard is still in good working order, I would bite the bullet and get a coal boiler. If it cost you $3,300 to heat the house then it would pay itself back in just 3-5 years at the most and that includes the price of the coal. You then wouldn't need to cut holes for vents... And you could keep the oil as a backup.

If you put the baseboard in your dads room on a zone valve he could crank the heat as high as he wanted without roasting the rest of the family out of the house. Just a thought.

Shawn,

 
User avatar
Mikey394
New Member
Posts: 12
Joined: Fri. Oct. 27, 2006 9:23 pm
Location: Red Lion, Pa.

Post by Mikey394 » Sat. Nov. 04, 2006 10:28 pm

Greg,
The Master BR and Living RM is an addition to the brick part of the home, added in the 1950's I think.
There is a doorway, between the LR and Rec room, might have been the back door to the old part of the house.
I was thinking of running a vent from the LR though the door way (currently covered by some real wood paneling, still looks great) to the Rec room along the north wall ceiling, bottom of drawing, than up to BR #1.
That will be my next project after building a coal shed next to my garage.
The coal shed will be build out of cinder block with a cement floor. I'm thinking about 8' long, 6' wide and 5~7' high with a wooden roof. It will be out of sight but right next to driveway for easy delivery.

I can't believe all the great feedback, thanks
Mike in Pa.

 
snooze913
Member
Posts: 75
Joined: Thu. May. 22, 2008 9:52 pm
Location: Northeast PA.

Post by snooze913 » Fri. Oct. 31, 2008 12:51 pm

WNY wrote:I cut a hole above the lowered ceiling and boxed in a channel to the bedroom, then put a fan with a DUCT-STAT Thermostat control (Home depot) which is the Orange Box the fan plugs into and mounted it towards the ceiling. It turns on around 65-68 degrees when the stove starts getting hotter. Seems to work great! :)

Our new house (1890) only has 2 ceiling/floor grates for heat upstairs, we will see how well it works :( may be getting a bigger stove!
WNY how did the fan with thermostat work out for you?

Post Reply

Return to “Coal Bins, Chimneys, CO Detectors & Thermostats”