Replies

1. 
   Stephen_Powell | Apr 17, 2000 09:35pm | #1

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   Can anyone tell me whether radiant floor heating systems work with a large amount of passive solar gain. I have a friend who felt it did not, that the house heated up too much, was too slow to cool down or heat up. I've also heard it depends on strategically using and placing your thermostat.

2. 
   Guest_ | Apr 17, 2000 11:43pm | #2

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   Stephen,

   I built my house 11 yrs. ago with the sun in mind and heat it with hw radiant in the concrete floor. The heat in the slab from a nite of radiant is maintained or helped by the sun's rays during the day. The location of the glass allows the sun to come in and wash most of the floor as it moves. In the fall and in the spring, we will turn off the main zones which collect the suns heat. We use a masonry heater to augment the passive solar. This way, when the outside temp usually rises into the high 40's or low 50's we don't end up with a great heat gain during the day in addition to the heat that was called for at nite. Sure, if it's a sunny day and it goes to 70 deg. then maybe you might open the window. You get used to thinking a little more with this type of combo. Plan ahead or get curtains and close 'em.

   Thermo location is important but not too hard to figure. Out of the sun and air movement from the ceiling fan I think you will want. Zoning would be a place to concentrate some of your time. Usually there is something in the layout that changes the idea that you just lay the hose and go. Consult someone who does good installations.

   Another important area is the summer sun to contend with. We live in the woods with a bunch of locust trees. With the slight deviation to the s.e. we collect sun in the winter and limit what comes in, in the summer. A cpl ft ohang on the 2nd fl hip roof and the 40-60 ft trees shade what they have to quite well. Well insulated and built into the hillside at the back, we are more than satisfied with the radiant in the great room, kit, big utility rm, and sep. zones for floor heat in the 2nd fl baths and a 6 ft section of hw basebd in the two remote bedrooms. Total gas usage to heat the 2700 sf house, dom. water, dryer and range, in nw ohio $ 475.00. Break out everything and the heat is about $250.00. Don't know much, but that seems pretty good to me.

   And if you've got a view, why not use it.

   Best of luck

1. 
   Guest_ | Apr 18, 2000 02:00am | #3

   *My friend with similar home is enjoying opening windows when I never can....fresh air on cool days is delightful....go for it...my next home will be as such.near the stream,aj

3. 
   Thor_Jebing | Apr 20, 2000 07:30pm | #4

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   A good way to control a radiant slab that gets a lot of sun on some days, is to run the heating tube circuit on continuous circulation with an outdoor reset; embed a slab sensor in the slab(1" below the surface)and wire it to the room temperature unit (RTU) in that room and have a relay, wired to the RTU to close the zone valve for this room. The slab sensor acts as an override on the RTU to shut off heat delivery to the slab, when the sun is loading the floor with heat. Tekmar controls make's a room temperature unit to handle just this sort of thing - RTU 063.

4. 
   Stephen_Powell | Apr 20, 2000 07:30pm | #5

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   Can anyone tell me whether radiant floor heating systems work with a large
   amount of passive solar gain. i have a friend who felt it did not, that the
   house heated up too much, was too slow to cool down or heat up. i've also
   heard it depends on strategically using and placing your thermost