[TheForge] Re: WAAAAAAAAY OT (while we're talking about buildingsand heat)

[Jerry Frost]

Justin:

Yeah, both are good in cold climates.

2" of high density blue board is equivalent to 4' of soil, I forget the 
actual R value. As far as I've heard it doesn't hurt floor strength as long 
as the slab's properly reinforced.

In floor heat has come a LONG way since it got a bad rap in the 40-50's. 
It's no longer acceptible to use iron or copper for the heat loops. Standard 
today is oxygen barrier PEX tubing, the two major manufacturers being PEX 
and Wirsbo.

Laying PEX is easy enough following simple guidelines. I laid two 300' loops 
in my shop slab in an easy day using plastic wire ties to fix it to the 
rebar. The toughest part was figuring out how get the ends to stand nice and 
straight where it comes out of the floor. I bought the 3/4" PEX at my local 
Home Depot for $149.95/300' roll or $0.50/ft. This is dirt cheap compared to 
metal, especially considering installation and fittings.

When you pour the slab you MUST pressurize it or the normal heat / cool 
cycle will damage the concrete. PEX tubing failures are very rare and 
reasonably easy to repair with an IR camera to track the leak. Of course if 
it does leak it'll be under the heaviest most immobile object in your shop 
so do what I did. I didn't put any there. <grin>

You'll want an accurate map of the tubing's locations so you can drill 
anchor holes in the floor without too much sweat. Or you can rent the IR 
camera to locate it in the area you want to drill. The vast majority of PEX 
tubing failures are the result of hitting them with a drill or masonry nail. 
this is probably why leaks are usually under something heavy. <grin>

There are guys up here using infloor hydronics to heat well insulated 40' x 
60' shops with a water heater.

Frosty
-------------------------------
If it ain't forged
it ain't real.
Wrought iron is.
The FrostWorks

Meadow Lakes, AK.

http://www.artmetalradio.com/

From: "Justin Fellenz" <sunironworks at yahoo.com>


> Another shop build question: does anyone in a colder climate have
> experience with insulated concrete floors? I'm building my shop this
> spring in Kamloops, BC, where it gets a little cold--not like Maine,
> but cold. Someobody suggested I lay 2 1/2" of polystyrene hard foam
> under the slab. It's about another 4000 CAD to do it...I'm wndering if
> it's worth the money and whether it decreases the structural stability
> of the slab.
>
> Another person suggested radiant heat (insulation with or without).
> That's about another 5k and if it breaks it would be a nightmare to
> fix. But people say it's pretty cool to have nice warm floors. Thoughts
> on that welcome as well.
>
> Thanks,
>
> JRF
>