So, we’re going to use RFH heating in the addition (location, southern ontario), RF in the basement and 1st storey, and wall mounted radiators on the 2nd. (Avoiding cost of concrete second floor) So, not having a scorched air furnace (i’m learning by reading BT), now I need ductwork for the HRV. Found one system (Lifebreath) that uses insulated flexible ducts, looks like 4″. General contractor thinks maybe we should use galvanized duct work. He hasn’t done RFH before (I have another contractor to do the heating) so I’d appreciate your input. Something tells me running flexible duct is whole lot cheaper than running furnace ducts. If you have HRV, does that replace having kitchen and bathroom fans????
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We used a 4" flex system from Space Pack. This is a high velocity air system. The flex is only for the feeds to the room outlets. The main trunk lines were round fiberglass duct. The system works well, when designed and installed properly. Make sure your HVAC contractor has done this type before. The only down fall I've seen is the size of the return duct required. It's an awfully large grille, and can produce some noise. These can be a bit expensive, but your choices are probably limited. As far as the RFH, for the second floor. There are underfloor, and overfloor tubing systems that function very well, without a concrete floor. Check out Wirsbo's Quicktrack for one. Hrv's can replace bath fans, if ducted to intake from baths. Controls can be set up to switch from the bath, when needed. IMHO, kitchen should be exhausted seperately, at the cookspace. It wouldn't hurt to put an intake from the HRV in there also. But, what do I know, I just bend nails for a living. Good luck.
Brudoggie