Radiant Vs Register Heating -What to Do?

 
snuffy
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Post by snuffy » Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 10:55 pm

Hi Guys,

I'm sitting on a damn fence and need to fall in some direction and it's either head first or ass first. I 'm getting a new heating system installed at my Mom's place and the difference in price for register hot water vs under floor radiant heat is about $4,000 for the under floor radiant system. At some point we could live in the home, or sell it later. I'm just not sure which system is the better way to go in terms of comfort or resale value. In my own home I have the traditional register heat and that has served me well but I'm very intrigued by the radiant systems.

I would certainly appreciate your thoughts or experience about under floor systems. Thanks for your thoughts.

Snuffy


 
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Post by franco b » Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 11:03 pm

Radiant is better which you already know. I do think it is more dependent on the expertise of the installer. I don't think it will raise resale value very much.

I also don't know how important saving 4000 is to you.

By registers I assume hot air which does not include domestic hot water.

Not much to go wrong with registers as opposed to a lot of buried or inaccessible plastic. The hot air is the more conservative approach.

 
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Post by snuffy » Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 11:19 pm

Franko.

Saving $4000 could go to another project in the home but I can't seem to find much information about how much better the under floor system would be. The pictures I see of the manifolds used in radiant seem much more complicated and a potential leak source.

If we decide to sell at some point, I'd rather point the extra savings at a partial kitchen remodel but if potential buyers would be more influenced by a warmer type of heat (as I would) then I'd keep it under the floor but as you can tell we don't know which way we'll go in the future in terms of living in the home or selling it. I should have mentioned that the home is a four bedroom rancher built in 1972 and is in pretty good shape just really need a new heating system. I'm also planning on 5 zones of which one would be a large radiator in the garage (I just love a warm car on a cold morning and need to do a lot of cold starts throughout the day.)

I can't believe how much I'm agonizing over this decision.

Snuffy
Last edited by snuffy on Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 11:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.

 
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Post by StokerDon » Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 11:32 pm

Snuffy,

As far as resale value is concerned, know one but us here on the forum gives two hoots about what kind of heating the house has as long as it works. If resale value is a big concern, take the $4,000 and remodel the kitchen, that will fetch you a higher sale price than radiant heat will.

-Don

 
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Post by franco b » Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 11:33 pm

Hot air tends to be uncomfortable because when the blower stops it feels cooler no matter how warm the room is.

Baseboard radiation also can feel that way too but to a much lesser degree.

A more attractive and better kitchen will raise resale more than a better heating system.

Maybe a baseboard system would be a good compromise and supply hot water as well. Easy to have multiple zones. Circulating cooler water longer is more comfortable but requires more radiation to cope with coldest weather.

 
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Post by Den034071 » Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 11:41 pm

Snuffy I built some new houses in my career .High end houses and some bi level starter houses .All the buyers were concerned as to open foyers large family rooms an large master bedrooms . Put the money in the nice kitchen remodel .jack

 
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Post by snuffy » Sat. Sep. 12, 2015 11:46 pm

Franko,

Ahh, OK, Circulating more water seems a little more inefficient especially in colder weather and this home sits on top of a hill so your last sentence is helping steer me on more technical criteria that I didn't think about especially if I'm using more expensive fuel like oil (I plan to install a new backup koker stove to replace a low CFM 90K older keystoker in the basement.)


 
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Post by plumberman » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 5:51 am

it's a more efficient heat, puts the heat where it counts on the floor not the ceiling. you can drop room temp a few degrees and actually feel warmer. maybe wrong but I would go boiler/radiant, its the plumber in me!

 
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Post by lsayre » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 5:56 am

My take is that the OP is mistaking the term "register" for "hot water baseboards" (or perhaps for cast iron type radiators).

 
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Post by blrman07 » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 7:01 am

I vote for save the 4k and put it in the kitchen.

 
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Post by Scottscoaled » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 7:25 am

Here is my take on the Radiant vs. baseboard. In a new house construction, a highly insulated house, radiant floor heat works very well. Because of the high quality insulating job, the spaces can be easily maintained at a comfortable level. There is less heat loss. There are fewer drafts.
An older home, one that is poorly insulated, has all kinds of drafts/cold spots inherent to its construction. It is hard to keep those evenly heated. The space cools too quickly to make a radiant floor system the best choice. Having warm floors can be great as long as the chair you sit in is warm too!
Most of the people I know, who have houses similar to yours, speak well of baseboard heat/registers. They all say their heat is steady and even.

 
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Post by Rob R. » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 8:17 am

The average home buyer will be much more impressed by the kitchen countertops than radiant heat. A good compromise might be radiant for the kitchen or bathroom, and fin-tube baseboard in the rest of the house.

 
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Post by McGiever » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 9:56 am

Rob R. wrote:The average home buyer will be much more impressed by the kitchen countertops than radiant heat. A good compromise might be radiant for the kitchen or bathroom, and fin-tube baseboard in the rest of the house.
Very clever *Rob R.*, it doesn't need to be all or nothing, does it? :)

 
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Post by oliver power » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 11:47 am

lsayre wrote:My take is that the OP is mistaking the term "register" for "hot water baseboards" (or perhaps for cast iron type radiators).
That is my take a well. Although they say in floor is the way to go, I installed finned baseboard in my own house, and like it very much. If something goes wrong, I can easily repair it.

 
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Post by lzaharis » Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 1:56 pm

snuffy wrote:Hi Guys,

I'm sitting on a damn fence and need to fall in some direction and it's either head first or ass first. I 'm getting a new heating system installed at my Mom's place and the difference in price for register hot water vs under floor radiant heat is about $4,000 for the under floor radiant system. At some point we could live in the home, or sell it later. I'm just not sure which system is the better way to go in terms of comfort or resale value. In my own home I have the traditional register heat and that has served me well but I'm very intrigued by the radiant systems.

I would certainly appreciate your thoughts or experience about under floor systems. Thanks for your thoughts.

Snuffy
==================================================================================================================================================================================================
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Dont waste your money, have a heat loss study done before anything else.

Dont forget that the in floor heating will affect the floor if improperly installed if its finished hardwood
flooring. the fools that did my fathers place made a royal mess of it and they did not install reflectors
to prevent heat loss to the basement area. My brother had to install reflective insulation board to the
exposed joists to hold the heat in the leaving space above the basement.

I absolutely despise my baseboard heating and I wish I had steam(1st) or gravity hot water(2nd)
as a personal preference.

Single pipe steam is very efficient as 2 pounds steam pressure is the maximum pressure to make heat.
Did you know that the Empire State Building is heated with 2 pounds of steam pressure??
You can control single pipe steam heat temperature with radiator mounted manual thermostat valves
in each room.

A two pipe gravity hot water system is also very simple and DUMB with no pumps .to worry about its
also a winner and as long as the plumbing is connected properly and the air vents are in good shape to
bleed it if needed the heat is very even like steam. you can also regulate the temperature at the hot
water radiator.

I would suggest you buy several of Don Holohans books, Pumping Away, Classic Hydronics ,
Greening Steam,The Lost Art Of Steam Heating, We Got Steam Heat, and Hydronic Radiant heating
to understand heating.

Doing this will help you understand heating systems and methods, the scientists and everyday people that were responsible for the breakthroughs in heating homes and businesses like Mr. Honeywell to name just one and also the pioneers that created the gas laws and thermodynamics of hot water and steam heat like Mr. Boyle.

He makes the reading fun while discussing the actual problems he was called on to solve for plumbers and home owners.

Mr. Holohan is honest and forthcoming with his past experience to the reader growing up as a plumbers
helper and technical rep that helped plumbers and home owners with heating issues.

He takes all the time you need to unerstand how your heating system works and also how well the old steam and gravity hot water heating systems worked and still work in older homes.

DO the above and spend money on these paperback books before you burn up four thousand dollars and you will be more knowlegeable about central heating and it will save you time money and aggravation.

SO much will depend on your heat loss study and how much grant money is a available for home improvements related to new windows, more insulation and even a better heating plant in ones home.

Also most boilers these days have steam stamps to begin with and make plenty of heat whether for steam heat which requires no pumps for single pipe systems and for hot water gravity heating systems which depend on gravity to do all the work for the home owner.

Also do not fall into the trap of full perimeter base board installations as it is wasted material as Don will tell you in his books. The other thing is that most boilers are oversized by installers for heat loss sake as he explains in his books Pumping Away and Classic Hydronics. The web site that he maintains is called http://www.heatinghelp.com and is a huge leap for the layperson in understanding heating and air conditioning in residential and commercial heating systems of all types.

Get your heat loss study done first!!!!!!!!!
Last edited by lzaharis on Sun. Sep. 13, 2015 11:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.


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