Staple up floor heat

[Grover59]

I didn't read this entire post. I have staple up, no aluminum. I use an infloor thermostat, we call them "slab-stats". Aim to use 140-145* water and keep the floor at 80*. An 80* floor will keep the air about 72. I have a switch in the kitchen to shut it off on sunny days as we get wicked solar gain & it'll override.

Where are you? I'm in Orrington...that's central Maine. Maybe you're next door.

I am in East Millinocket just a little up from you I guess you could call me in Northern Maine, but I still have the whole county above me, so I think it is central.
I could run my floor heat that same way, however the room thermostat seems to work well with the high limit on the floor.
I just need to get the kitchen and bathroom done now, so much junk in my basement I spend more time moving stuff around.

Steve

 

[oldmilwaukee]

Here's the jig I made for my plates. The material is very thin - they sell it as roof flashing at Lowes in bags that have 100 sheets for roughly $15. I have a better description of the process I used right here a better description My only concern would be whether the tubes will abrade or wear at the edges of the plates, due to movement during temperature swings. We'll see. I haven't hooked it up yet. My Tarm Solo 40 shipped yesterday.

 

[stephenmoore]

Hey Old Milwaukee, Nice work on the jig, very clever, I wish I had thought of that one. Is your Tarm a wood burner or pellet ?

 

[oldmilwaukee]

My brother-in-law built the first jig. I just modified it a bit from his original design. After about 100 or 200 plates, all the fun wore off of the jig, so I hired the neighbor's boy (stout high schooler) to make another 1,000 plates for spending change.

The Tarm is a wood burner. I plan to stack my wood on pallets, load it into my garage (garage is under the house in the basement), and then use a pallet jack to roll it to the wood boiler. Today I am ordering the tempering valve, zone valves, circulator pumps, etc. so I can get a running start when the system arrives. Tracking says it is scheduled for Monday delivery. I am very motivated to get this thing going - it's 46 degrees at my house site (inside) this morning as I type this next to my portable propane heater. Brrr. I ordered the Tarm unit back in August or July, but they have been polite so far about moving my shipping date back so far.

 

[barnartist]

I just finished my underfloor. Even though I bought flashing to make the plates, I ended up just stapling up the pex, and then I bought some double bubble wrap and stapled it for a reflector. Now, I only have half of the area bubbled, and can feel the difference as I walk through the rooms. I am happy with the install, but agree that the transfer plates would have to be a benifit, maybe a lower water temp, and faster floor reaction.
I am pumping this zone continuously right now and was about to install a simple everyday single stage thermostat, but I did not know there was thermostats with a 3 degree swing available. Seems like that is the way to go. I used to have radiant in a concrete slab, and when using a traditional thermostat, I could hear rhe pump cycling on/off allot, so it sounds like a smart move to use the updated thermostat model.

The other half of my house uses air exchange. 74 degrees feels so much colder on this side of the house than 70 does on the radiant side. I wish I could run my whole house radiant, but have a few basement rooms with drwall ceilings.

Additionally, I have a thick carpet on the radiant side and it still works well. Feels great!

 

[stephenmoore]

I used the transfer plates only for the perimeter of the house, and extending in three feet from the edge. Then I clipped the pex to the joists 1 and 1/2 inch from the floor and insulated it with bubble foil and R-12 Pink. It works great and keeps things very warm using Honeywell digital thermostats. So far my 50 year old birch floor has been fine as well. The biggest struggle was routing the pex in the joist bays by myself. All worth it though.

 

[Grover59]

I used the transfer plates only for the perimeter of the house, and extending in three feet from the edge. Then I clipped the pex to the joists 1 and 1/2 inch from the floor and insulated it with bubble foil and R-12 Pink. It works great and keeps things very warm using Honeywell digital thermostats. So far my 50 year old birch floor has been fine as well. The biggest struggle was routing the pex in the joist bays by myself. All worth it though.

I agree that the biggest problem was running the pex, I also ran it twice, I have two 1/2 inch pex in every bay about 8 inches apart, some say this is overkil but I wanted to get the most responsive floor possilbe. I am going to do the same on the other side of the house, as soon as I get my but in gear.

Steve

 

[stephenmoore]

Yeah I agree, i had two lines in each bay and the result is impressive. My issue was i tried (and suceeded) to make the bend for each bay, in the 14" space instead of drilling into the next one and picking it up on the other end. It gets pretty tight trying to do the bend when the joists are 16'" on center. I also had the rim joist for my main floor spray foamed. That keeps it nice and cozy.

 

[Grover59]

Hey long time no post, I have been busy living life, I finally finished my staple up on the other side of the house this fall. On this side I have no carpet and I can say it is much more responsive then the living room floor with the carpet. It is a separate zone so I will have to get another floor stat, because this side comes up to temp much faster then the other. I do love this floor heat, I must say it is a much more comfortable, the ambient air temp on the wall thermostat may show 66 deg. However you are still very comfortable.

Steve

 

[WoodNotOil]

Congrats Steve! I too really enjoy my staple up radiant. Nothing like warm toes to make a room feel much more comfortable. What did you end up using for a floor/room stat setup?

 

[Grover59]

I have one of these stats it will do both ambient control or just floor control, or both. I use it just for the floor, it comes with a probe.

Steve

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