Anyone run basement furnace last nite to prevent pipe freeze?

[Tonyray]

My un-insulated basement[except for sills all around packed with paper backed Insulation] thermometer said 50 degrees but I have 1 of those Infared thermos and I was picking up high 30's in some corners below the upper floors..
All my heat and Domestic piping run thru the cellar here... have them wrapped in that black Foam...
Still, didn't like those cold corners..
Hell, haven't run the oil furnace all winter so far except for Hot water daily so didn't mind burning a few gallons.
wondering if anyone else ran furnaces that are in your non-living space basements or cellars.

 

[bill3rail]

I got in trouble for leaving it off last night because it takes 15 minutes to warm up before the wife can take her shower.
I believe she threatened to shoot me if I turn it off any winter night!

Bill

 

[skrypj]

I put my stove in my basement so now its the warmest place in the house

 

[Tonyray]

I put my stove in my basement so now its the warmest place in the house

Had a stove in my non-living basement years ago.. really did't warm up the 1st floor too well and that was on full throttle with basement door opened. ditched it and Put a Harman P61A on 1st floor.... 100% difference.

 

[skrypj]

Had a stove in my non-living basement years ago.. really did't warm up the 1st floor too well and that was on full throttle with basement door opened. ditched it and Put a Harman P61A on 1st floor.... 100% difference.

I got very lucky, mine is heating the house like a champ with no helper fans or anything. Most of the time its on lvl 2/5(1/5 doesnt run the convection blower) but I have turned it up to 3/5 when it drops below 5F or so outside. I was very surprised based on what I had read here about basement installs. I think i could make it a little more efficient with a strategically located fan or two, but it does the job on its own.

 

[Tonyray]

I got very lucky, mine is heating the house like a champ with no helper fans or anything. Most of the time its on lvl 2/5(1/5 doesnt run the convection blower) but I have turned it up to 3/5 when it drops below 5F or so outside. I was very surprised based on what I had read here about basement installs. I think i could make it a little more efficient with a strategically located fan or two, but it does the job on its own.

Good for you...
lot of basement stoves don't penetrate to the 1st floor to well.
Not sure why unless the basement ceilings are Insulated to the Max..

 

[chazcarr]

I run mine a bit just for the pipes. I also slush some toilets and run some sinks in the unused areas of the house to make sure water doesn't sit too long. One neighbor, even with the furnace on still had a pipe burst in their dishwasher.

 

[Tonyray]

I run mine a bit just for the pipes. I also slush some toilets and run some sinks in the unused areas of the house to make sure water doesn't sit too long. One neighbor, even with the furnace on still had a pipe burst in their dishwasher.

They claim u should open up bathroom/kitchen sink cabinets etc to let heat get into those pipes underneath if u can
during sub zero weather......can't imagine living in US areas close to Canada and having to deal with at a minimum, sub zero weather often.
Outside Phila here and this is not normal winter temps for us...not since 1994 have we had these numbers..

 

[BigJohnfromCT]

I keep my furnace thermostats set a few degrees below my stove thermos. On really cold days and nights, like we've been having lately, the furnace will run keeping my pipes safe. Also wife's exercise equipment is in the basement so it needs to be a little warmer than a meat locker.

 

[Tonyray]

I keep my furnace thermostats set a few degrees below my stove thermos. On really cold days and nights, like we've been having lately, the furnace will run keeping my pipes safe. Also wife's exercise equipment is in the basement so it needs to be a little warmer than a meat locker.

Big John,
if u keep your furnace set below the stove thermo, when does your furnace run if stove is higher in temperature?

 

[BigJohnfromCT]

Yeah, its complicated. Here's the short version. Stove is installed on a sun porch. It faces a sliding door into the house. On the other side of the door is the open stairway to the second floor. Ceiling is 16'. Both thermostats are down the hall. So the net is stove heats most of the house (MBR and bath, kitchen and sunroon and quite a bit of the second floor). The furnace thermos is on the wall behind the stairs that lead to the second floor. Stove heat never hits it. Stove is too small to heat entire house (3K sqft w/ 14 - 16' ceilings) and not really installed in the most ideal location BUT it's where my wife and I wanted it.

 

[Tonyray]

Yeah, its complicated. Here's the short version. Stove is installed on a sun porch. It faces a sliding door into the house. On the other side of the door is the open stairway to the second floor. Ceiling is 16'. Both thermostats are down the hall. So the net is stove heats most of the house (MBR and bath, kitchen and sunroon and quite a bit of the second floor). The furnace thermos is on the wall behind the stairs that lead to the second floor. Stove heat never hits it. Stove is too small to heat entire house (3K sqft w/ 14 - 16' ceilings) and not really installed in the most ideal location BUT it's where my wife and I wanted it.

ok... stove heat doesn't make it to or affect the other thermostat.
our downstairs thermostat is 12 feet away from stove which deff will affect it...
last nite was the 1st time we ran our oil heat upstairs and down due to 0 degrees and was nervous about basement pipes maybe giving us a problem.
Prob not but burned a few gallons of oil over nite for peace of mind..no biggie.. oil was paid for in September..lol still have well over half tank left.

 

[Big E]

I put my stove in my basement so now its the warmest place in the house

X 2

 

[lefty]

even up here, my pipes caught on the west side of the house, thought it was my zone valve, used the wife hair dryer, must cycle the furnace once in awhile on those cold maritime nights, my enviro mb 55insert works great now

 

[bbfarm]

Nope. The pipes always froze with the furnace on anyway because they are in an unheated crawl space 20 feet away from the basement

Will deal with the frozen pipe on FridayFriday

 

[Tonyray]

Nope. The pipes always froze with the furnace on anyway because they are in an unheated crawl space 20 feet away from the basement

Will deal with the frozen pipe on FridayFriday

why don't wrap the pipes in heat tape? just plug tape into electrical outlet and will come on at whatever temp u set it and will heat the pipes.

 

[BrotherBart]

I would have run the furnace last night. But there isn't one down there. Same fifty degree stuff and drafty sole plates but nothing froze.