ᐅ Is the electricity consumption and procedure for screed drying typical?
Created on: 21 May 2025 11:59
M
medow1982
Hi everyone,
I’m building with solid construction, and according to the site manager, a construction dryer is needed for the screed drying. So, for the past week, a 15 kW (kilowatt) heater has been running continuously, heating about 270 sqm (2,900 sq ft) at a supply temperature of 35°C (95°F). According to the protocol, you should start at 25°C (77°F), but nobody seems to care.
There is dripping from the walls, and the windows are always wet, like in a sauna.
Will this get better? At some point, all the moisture has to come out, right?
I ventilate twice a day, sometimes even three times, and always remove visible drops.
At 35°C (95°F), the energy consumption is 200 kWh per day. I calculated that over the planned 3 weeks, this will be over 4,000 kWh.
Does this sound about right, or could there be something wrong with the heater?
Moisture is also coming down from above through the precast ceilings—is this normal?
Unfortunately, my site manager is not very proactive, so I’m looking for advice here.
Best regards,
Felix
I’m building with solid construction, and according to the site manager, a construction dryer is needed for the screed drying. So, for the past week, a 15 kW (kilowatt) heater has been running continuously, heating about 270 sqm (2,900 sq ft) at a supply temperature of 35°C (95°F). According to the protocol, you should start at 25°C (77°F), but nobody seems to care.
There is dripping from the walls, and the windows are always wet, like in a sauna.
Will this get better? At some point, all the moisture has to come out, right?
I ventilate twice a day, sometimes even three times, and always remove visible drops.
At 35°C (95°F), the energy consumption is 200 kWh per day. I calculated that over the planned 3 weeks, this will be over 4,000 kWh.
Does this sound about right, or could there be something wrong with the heater?
Moisture is also coming down from above through the precast ceilings—is this normal?
Unfortunately, my site manager is not very proactive, so I’m looking for advice here.
Best regards,
Felix
N
nordanney23 May 2025 09:19hanghaus2023 schrieb:
For me, nothing was dripping wet. Keep the window tilted open. The heat and moisture have to escape.
15kW? My heat pump only has 3 kW. Tilted windows are not good. That has already been mentioned.
Whether it is wet or not also depends on the screed.
Regarding the 20kW dryer, which actually only consumes 8 kW. Your 3kW heat pump probably has a comparable output in this weather.
Tolentino schrieb:
Why is he using a heater instead of the intended heating system? Is it not installed yet? Why? Because the indoor units are often placed on the screed (bonded screed). Or the hot water storage tank. Most of this is done after the screed has been installed. It’s a planning and coordination issue.
With a monoblock system, it could be done differently. Not every heating system is as inefficient as my Vaillant.
Alternatively, the base for the interior could be poured beforehand.
In any case, this would significantly reduce consumption if the heating ratio is around 1:4 to 1:5 instead of 1:1 (0.9?).
But well, the installers usually don’t pay for it anyway.
Alternatively, the base for the interior could be poured beforehand.
In any case, this would significantly reduce consumption if the heating ratio is around 1:4 to 1:5 instead of 1:1 (0.9?).
But well, the installers usually don’t pay for it anyway.
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nordanney23 May 2025 09:26Tolentino schrieb:
Monoblock systems could be done differently as well.Monoblock units are more for DIY projects. A professional heating engineer prefers using a proper heat pump. That way, the heating engineer can also earn more.
Addendum: Meanwhile, monoblock systems are also available in two parts with an indoor unit, similar to Panasonic.
T
Teimo198823 May 2025 09:29Moisture is completely normal. Try to ventilate by opening windows fully as often as possible. I used a window vacuum cleaner like a Kärcher on the windows and ceiling to remove condensation. But during the first few weeks, you will have a lot of moisture, that's just how it is. I also bought a construction dehumidifier, which helped a lot. It removed up to 50 liters (13 gallons) of moisture per day.
During the first week, I also used a heater. Then I tiled one square meter (10.8 square feet) in the utility room and placed the heat pump/hot water tank’s indoor unit on it, switching the system to heat pump mode. It’s more efficient that way, but you won’t save more than a few hundred dollars. Plus, you run the risk of tiling over a screed that isn’t ready for covering yet. I did it, but a general contractor probably wouldn’t do that.
During the first week, I also used a heater. Then I tiled one square meter (10.8 square feet) in the utility room and placed the heat pump/hot water tank’s indoor unit on it, switching the system to heat pump mode. It’s more efficient that way, but you won’t save more than a few hundred dollars. Plus, you run the risk of tiling over a screed that isn’t ready for covering yet. I did it, but a general contractor probably wouldn’t do that.
H
hanghaus202323 May 2025 09:32nordanney schrieb:
Your 3kW heat pump probably has a comparable output in this weather.I thought we were talking about electricity consumption. My heat pump has a maximum power consumption of 3kW. It even turned on last night at 2°C (36°F). My old gas boiler was always off from May to September.
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nordanney23 May 2025 09:34hanghaus2023 schrieb:
I thought we were talking about electricity consumption. My heat pump uses a maximum of 3 kW of electricity. It even switched on last night when it was 2°C (36°F).
My old gas heater was always off from May to September.Yes, that's the point. Your heat pump uses less electricity for the same heating output. So it’s directly comparable, with only a small difference in costs.Similar topics