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| 06/14/2006 3:08 PM |
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Hi,
This may be a question someone has already asked, but I could not find the answer.
We want to using radiant in floor heat in our new home. Our preference would be to have acid stained concrete floors over a wood subfloor (2 stories) with the radiant embedded in the concrete. My questions are as follows:
Can this be done?
What type of concrete is recommended over a subfloor?
What thickness of concrete?
What type of reinforcement should be used to minimize cracking?
Also, just for the concrete installation, what type of cost should I expect?
In a well insulated home (SIP or ICF construction) in a mild climate like Seattle, what size of pex at what spacing would be typically used?
My wife and I both like the look of acid stained concrete, we figure in will also hold up better with our kids since the hardwood floors seem to get trashed pretty easily (especially once we get a dog). Also, if acid stained concrete is used, then the cost should be less because we don't have any additional flooring material, just the acid staining. And we had an acquaintance who did her own acid stained concrete rather inexpensively and it looked fantastic...
Your help and feedback would be appreciated!
Thanks
Brad
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NRT.Rob
Registered Users
Posts:360
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| 06/14/2006 3:49 PM |
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I can't comment on structural issues with confidence, but I believe this can be done. And, would be a fantastic radiant emitter. You can't beat your emitter being your finish floor!
You would have to keep your pipes fairly tight though (9" o.c. or tighter) to avoid heat striping, and it would be pretty important to use appropriate water temperatures to keep it running consistently.
-=Northeast Radiant Technology, LLC=-
www.NRTradiant.com |
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-=Northeast Radiant Technology=-
NRTradiant.com |
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Unregistered
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Posts:2321
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| 06/15/2006 12:40 PM |
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Thanks for the information...
I thought using concrete eliminate striping... Is there a better solution for a radiant floor so it does not have striping?
Thanks
Brad
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NRT.Rob
Registered Users
Posts:360
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| 06/15/2006 2:10 PM |
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Depends on the thickness. You can run 12" o.c. in a full 4" slab and the heat will spread laterally enough by the time it hits the surface that you won't notice striping.
However if the concrete is only 1.5" deep as it usually is on a deck, then you've only got 1" of concrete over the pipe.. pipe heats up, and heat transfers to the surface of the concrete above it noticeably faster than the points between the pipes. So a tighter tubing spacing can eliminate that effect by reducing lateral distances between pipes.
this would be most noticeable with polished/stained concrete floors; it's still noticeable with wood and tile at least though especially during start up conditions (anytime the slab is turning on from a cold or cooler state, like after a sunny day).
Pipe is not that expensive, so I would not consider this a big deal, just a detail that should be addressed. As a nice side benefit your water temperatures will be a bit lower too, flow rates per foot of pipe reduced.. all good stuff.
-=Northeast Radiant Technology, LLC=-
www.NRTradiant.com |
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-=Northeast Radiant Technology=-
NRTradiant.com |
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Unregistered
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Posts:2321
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| 06/16/2006 8:47 AM |
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Look at Gigafloor www.gigacrete.com
1/2 the weight of gypcrete but can be finished and left as the final floor. takes stain very well. has no moisture issues like gypcrete.
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NRT.Rob
Registered Users
Posts:360
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| 06/16/2006 10:50 AM |
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interesting, I wonder how its conductivity is?
-=Northeast Radiant Technology, LLC=-
www.NRTradiant.com |
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-=Northeast Radiant Technology=-
NRTradiant.com |
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Unregistered
Registered Users
Posts:2321
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| 06/16/2006 11:57 AM |
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Think "Room Temperature Ceramic"
If you would like a sample I could arrainge that.
702-643-6363
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