M.K. asks from Boston, MA on April 23, 2009
Radiant Heat and Boilers
Our boiler is pretty ancient, and we need to decide whether to just replace the boiler or switch over to a completely different heating system. Right now we have radiant heat. We love it, but people keep telling us that at some point it with "die" and we'll have to switch to a different system.
Has anyone had their radiant heat die on them? Our radiant heat pipes are set into the concrete foundation (it's a single story ranch with no basement), which would make it hard to repair the system.
Also, any recommendations of who to go with (or avoid) for getting a new boiler?
More Answers
D.H. answers from Hartford on April 24, 2009
Hi-
We had a similar situation in our home. We ended up doing away with the radiant heating in our cement floor because it was old and we wouldn't have known that there was a problem until we saw damage from the leak. We ended up going with forced hot air when we replaced our boiler. We used Automatic TLC. They had the best price around for what we were trying to do.
I also wanted to add that the old radiant floor is not made of the plastic pex tubing that won't ever fail, but metal, that will rust and leak eventually.
1 mom found this helpful
H.R. answers from New London on April 24, 2009
Hi M.,
My name is H. and my husband, John Bruce, and I own Green Valley Plumbing, LLC in Norwich, CT. I don't know if you are in this area but John would be happy to talk to you and answer your heating questions. He loves to educate people on plumbing and heating, so even if you are not in our area, he would enjoy talking with you so you have the information you need to make the right decision for your home. Please give him a call at ###-###-####. If you get his voicemail, please leave a message and he will definitely call you back.
Thank you.
H.
1 mom found this helpful
C.M. answers from Lewiston on April 24, 2009
I do not have radiant heat, but I do work for a modular home company that installs radiant heat and have never heard that it will “die”. The pex tubing that is used is completely durable!!! As far as a boiler, I just wanted to share what I just had installed back in the fall. I bought an outdoor wood boiler. This thing is the best!!! It heats my whole house and my water. I have not used any oil since this was installed. Lovin that!!! And I love the heat I keep my thermostat at 80deg. And it doesn’t cost me any money. An Outdoor wood boiler does work with any type of system. It would do wonders for you with radiant heat.
Good luck
C.
1 mom found this helpful
A.B. answers from Boston on April 24, 2009
I am an interior designer and I work for an architectural firm. I would recommend looking into modern radiant heating (I would not use the ancient one in your slab). Radiant heating these days is not what it used to be, plus it is super efficient and leaves no cold spots in the house. It would be installed over your slab and under flooring. I would not recommend forced air, it is one of the most inefficient systems. Even radiant baseboard heat would be better than forced air. The radiant flooring manufacturer I recommend is Watts SunTouch:
www.wattsradiant.com
www.suntouch.com
Check out my article about radiant heating: http://anvdesign.blogspot.com/2009/01/eco-friendly-radian...
1 mom found this helpful
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