Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when
carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat. The
basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could pour
another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in the floor
for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options (besides wearing
slippers).

Chris

I meant to ask whether it would help if I ducted the heating vents
(currently in the ceiling), down the walls so that the air entered just
above the floor.

Chris


"C. Bailey" wrote in message
news:t2YFe.106994$wr.102404@clgrps12...
Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when
carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat. The
basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could pour
another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in the
floor for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options (besides
wearing slippers).

Chris

On Wed 27 Jul 2005 08:12:25p, C. Bailey wrote in alt.home.repair:

Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when
carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat. The
basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could
pour another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in
the floor for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options
(besides wearing slippers).

Chris

Electric socks. Available at most sporting goods stores.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
____________________________________________

Give me a smart idiot over a stupid genius any day.
Sam Goldwyn, 1882-1974


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I doubt that you could arrange for the air to flow over enough area to
give you a warm floor.
I should think a radiant floor would be your best bet.
TB

On Thu, 28 Jul 2005 03:12:25 GMT, in alt.home.repair How to have
warm feet without in-floor heat? "C. Bailey"
wrote:

Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when
carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat. The
basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could pour
another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in the floor
for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options (besides wearing
slippers).

Instead of another 3" of concrete, how about a wood floor laid over
2"x4"s with the heat plumbing laid in there?

--
To reply to me directly, remove the CLUTTER from my email address.

"C. Bailey" wrote:

Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when
carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat. The
basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could pour
another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in the floor
for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options (besides wearing
slippers).

Chris

If this is an issue in a very small area (like a desk or workbench) then be
aware that there are rubber electrically heated mats made for just this issue.
Try a Staples or such.

Lou

In alt.home.repair on Thu, 28 Jul 2005 03:12:25 GMT "C. Bailey"
posted:

Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when

Because that's the way it is supposed to be.

carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat. The
basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could pour
another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in the floor
for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options (besides wearing
slippers).

Chris

I have no experience, but I would think trying to heat the cement
would also end up trying to heat the dirt and mud below the cement,
and that could take endless heat. It never occurred to me before
about other homes built on slabs with heat in the floor.

Do they use something to insulate the slab from the moist dirt?

Or is the dirt less moist when it is at ground level, than it would be
below a basement? Yes, I think that is it. The wet soil 4 to 6 feet
down is never going to be heated unless you set fire to the basement.

Regardless, energy prices are going to continue to rise, and fuel
prices are going to continue to get us into wars. Wear socks, wear
slippers, weara slipper socks. My parents would never have considered
trying to heat a *basement* floor.


Meirman
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or not you are posting the same letter.
Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

"C. Bailey" wrote
Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when
carpeted).
but I am curious if there are simpler options (besides wearing
slippers).

The only other option simpler than putting slippers on, would be, not to go
into the basement at all.

"meirman" wrote in message
news
In alt.home.repair on Thu, 28 Jul 2005 03:12:25 GMT "C. Bailey"
posted:

Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even when

Because that's the way it is supposed to be.

carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat. The
basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could pour
another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in the
floor
for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options (besides wearing
slippers).

Chris

I have no experience, but I would think trying to heat the cement
would also end up trying to heat the dirt and mud below the cement,
and that could take endless heat. It never occurred to me before
about other homes built on slabs with heat in the floor.

Do they use something to insulate the slab from the moist dirt?

Or is the dirt less moist when it is at ground level, than it would be
below a basement? Yes, I think that is it. The wet soil 4 to 6 feet
down is never going to be heated unless you set fire to the basement.

Regardless, energy prices are going to continue to rise, and fuel
prices are going to continue to get us into wars. Wear socks, wear
slippers, weara slipper socks. My parents would never have considered
trying to heat a *basement* floor.


For what it's worth, forced air is sometimes calcluated at 65 BTU's per
square foot and radiant is calculated at 25 BTU's per square foot.

Besides, a 3/4" piece of pipe can carry the same amout of BTU's that 8X12
duct can carry.



Meirman
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If emailing, please let me know whether
or not you are posting the same letter.
Change domain to erols.com, if necessary.

Every house I have ever owned had cold floors in the basement (even
when carpeted). The last house we bought does not have in-floor heat.
The basement is unfinished with the exception of being framed. We could
pour another 3" of concrete on the floor and put the right plumbing in
the floor for heat, but I am curious if there are simpler options

It sounds like you have a little extra headroom, so why not build an
insulated floor on top of the slab?

You could lay down a 6 mil plastic vapor barrier to keep ground moisture
from coming up into the floor. Then install 2x4 floor joists, install
insulation between them, and top them with plywood. You can then add
whatever floor covering you wish. If it were me, I would use pressure
treated lumber for the floor joists. No need to attach the joists to the
slab, just let the floor "float".

If headroom is a concern, you could switch to 2x2's as the floor joists, or
lay the 2x4's on their sides, and use rigid foam insulation between them.
In fact, you might be able to skip the joists entirely, and use adhesives
to stick the foam insulation to the slab, and then stick the plywood to the
foam.

Of course, this method won't heat the room, but it will provide a warmer
floor if you provide another heat source (electric wall heaters maybe).

This also assumes your basement is dry, with no water seepage.

If you are tiling the floor, another option is electric floor warming mats.
They get set right in the thinset when the tile is installed. Minimal
thickness, and it's a source of heat too.

Anthony