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ludwig88sta22 Dec 2019 20:32Hello everyone,
since I couldn’t find any thread under the keywords “basement envelope” in the title, I’m quickly creating one myself:
Current status: A single-family house of about 170 sqm (1,830 sq ft), two stories, is planned with 36 or 42 cm (14 or 17 inches) insulated bricks (probably with perlite). We have not yet carried out the heating load calculation according to the energy-saving regulation, but that will happen in the next few weeks. Nevertheless, at the moment, a ground loop heat pump with ring trench collector is the favorite heating system, along with the planned underfloor heating in all rooms on the ground floor and upper floor. Additionally, a central ventilation system with heat recovery is planned for all rooms on both floors.
Now to the main point. Originally, I had planned the ventilation system with heat recovery also for all basement rooms.
Since there are two home office spaces, a hobby room, and corresponding children’s rooms planned on the ground floor and upper floor, we cannot do without a basement that would include a guest room (also desired), heating and utilities, and storage spaces (please no “you don’t need a basement” discussions, just constructive contributions on whether the basement with the only partially used living space “guest room” should be within or outside the thermal envelope).
Now my question is whether the mostly uninhabited and only rarely used basement (actually only on a few days when the guest room with visitors is needed, but I don’t know exactly how many days per year on average) should be included in the thermal envelope or not. At first, my gut feeling says no, which would mean that the ground floor slab / basement ceiling should be insulated accordingly.
But then, for ecological reasons, I obviously cannot implement the ventilation system for the entire house (including basement). The question is also what kind of heating I should install in the basement guest room (underfloor heating outside the envelope is a no-go). Additionally, how strongly should the basement be insulated if it is outside the thermal envelope (perimeter insulation)?
Of course, in that case, I would have to insulate the basement entrance door accordingly to prevent heat loss or cold air infiltration.
Or is it more cost-effective and ecological to include the mostly uninhabited basement in the thermal envelope, connect it to the central ventilation system, and also install the underfloor heating circuits there? And then insulate the externally waterproofed concrete basement with perimeter insulation? What do you recommend here?
Best regards
ludwig88sta
since I couldn’t find any thread under the keywords “basement envelope” in the title, I’m quickly creating one myself:
Current status: A single-family house of about 170 sqm (1,830 sq ft), two stories, is planned with 36 or 42 cm (14 or 17 inches) insulated bricks (probably with perlite). We have not yet carried out the heating load calculation according to the energy-saving regulation, but that will happen in the next few weeks. Nevertheless, at the moment, a ground loop heat pump with ring trench collector is the favorite heating system, along with the planned underfloor heating in all rooms on the ground floor and upper floor. Additionally, a central ventilation system with heat recovery is planned for all rooms on both floors.
Now to the main point. Originally, I had planned the ventilation system with heat recovery also for all basement rooms.
Since there are two home office spaces, a hobby room, and corresponding children’s rooms planned on the ground floor and upper floor, we cannot do without a basement that would include a guest room (also desired), heating and utilities, and storage spaces (please no “you don’t need a basement” discussions, just constructive contributions on whether the basement with the only partially used living space “guest room” should be within or outside the thermal envelope).
Now my question is whether the mostly uninhabited and only rarely used basement (actually only on a few days when the guest room with visitors is needed, but I don’t know exactly how many days per year on average) should be included in the thermal envelope or not. At first, my gut feeling says no, which would mean that the ground floor slab / basement ceiling should be insulated accordingly.
But then, for ecological reasons, I obviously cannot implement the ventilation system for the entire house (including basement). The question is also what kind of heating I should install in the basement guest room (underfloor heating outside the envelope is a no-go). Additionally, how strongly should the basement be insulated if it is outside the thermal envelope (perimeter insulation)?
Of course, in that case, I would have to insulate the basement entrance door accordingly to prevent heat loss or cold air infiltration.
Or is it more cost-effective and ecological to include the mostly uninhabited basement in the thermal envelope, connect it to the central ventilation system, and also install the underfloor heating circuits there? And then insulate the externally waterproofed concrete basement with perimeter insulation? What do you recommend here?
Best regards
ludwig88sta
If money is the main limiting factor, then invest everything into the thermal envelope, install underfloor heating everywhere, and use controlled mechanical ventilation with heat recovery. We are building it this way as well—it simply improves comfort, and comfort does come at a price.
ludwig88sta schrieb:
Since two home office spaces, a hobby room, and appropriate children’s bedrooms are planned on the ground floor and first floor, we cannot do without a basement for an additionally desired guest room, heating system, and storage areas. Okay, the house is large and the basement will only be used for storage. So why convert the basement into living space? It’s simply too expensive.
ludwig88sta schrieb:
Now my question is whether the basement, which is mostly unoccupied and only rarely used Here you confirm that the basement is rarely used. Do you really have guests staying overnight? If so, how often?
If guests only come 2-3 times a year, they could sleep in one of the office or hobby rooms, or even in the living room. Alternatively, you could install an electric storage heater in the basement.
We are currently renovating and moving the basement outside the thermal envelope. It will have no heating or ventilation. The basement ceiling will be insulated, as will the walls of the basement stairs. Fortunately, the underside of the staircase above does not need to be insulated, but that could also be the case for you. The door to the basement stairs must be sealed and insulated.
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