ᐅ Is it practical to combine underfloor heating with a wood-burning stove?
Created on: 18 Jun 2020 22:46
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pagoni2020
We are currently planning our new house and are a bit stuck on one topic.
At the moment, we have a relatively new Monolith LX1 wood stove with an additional heat-retaining stone.
Our new house will have underfloor heating, and ideally, we wanted to keep the beautiful stove and use it occasionally for supplemental heating or just to enjoy a fire in the evenings when we feel like it.
The new heating system hasn’t been finalized yet, but it will likely be an air-to-water heat pump or geothermal heating.
I have read various technical notes, and depending on the type of underfloor heating, there seem to be different adjustment options that can make such a combination reasonably practical.
However, I am especially interested in personal experiences from people who have decided on this setup. Underfloor heating usually provides a comfortable temperature, so in the evenings you don’t end up in a room as cold as with radiator systems, which react much faster.
Additionally, due to large window fronts, the only possible spot for the stove would probably be in front of the fixed-glass section of the large sliding glass door to keep it somewhat central. This placement, directly in front of glass, could also be a drawback.
Thanks in advance for your honest opinions on this.
At the moment, we have a relatively new Monolith LX1 wood stove with an additional heat-retaining stone.
Our new house will have underfloor heating, and ideally, we wanted to keep the beautiful stove and use it occasionally for supplemental heating or just to enjoy a fire in the evenings when we feel like it.
The new heating system hasn’t been finalized yet, but it will likely be an air-to-water heat pump or geothermal heating.
I have read various technical notes, and depending on the type of underfloor heating, there seem to be different adjustment options that can make such a combination reasonably practical.
However, I am especially interested in personal experiences from people who have decided on this setup. Underfloor heating usually provides a comfortable temperature, so in the evenings you don’t end up in a room as cold as with radiator systems, which react much faster.
Additionally, due to large window fronts, the only possible spot for the stove would probably be in front of the fixed-glass section of the large sliding glass door to keep it somewhat central. This placement, directly in front of glass, could also be a drawback.
Thanks in advance for your honest opinions on this.
S
Silent01019 Jun 2020 10:37Nummer12 schrieb:
except for the dirt coming out of the chimney that people outside have to breathe in In my opinion, at least half of all homeowners use the wood stove as a "hobby" for special moments during autumn and winter.
Some fill up the car and go away for a wellness weekend – others spend the evening by the stove with a pot of tea and a game of Monopoly with the family.
You have to see everything in perspective. Burning wood is certainly not beneficial to health, which humans have been doing since 700,000 BCE. But in recent decades, we have probably committed worse offenses, such as burning crude oil on our beloved cruise ships.
But that’s true, @Nummer12, there are passions and hobbies that are less harmful to health.
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pagoni202019 Jun 2020 10:44ypg schrieb:
You definitely don’t need the fireplace, but it’s nice for atmosphere and coziness. In summer, the underfloor heating turns down, and during the transitional periods it struggles to get going and can’t decide whether to heat or not. Then we have the fireplace for when it feels like it should be a bit warmer – besides the main heat source (underfloor heating unfortunately doesn’t provide that), it’s also comforting for the soul.
Many say it’s unnecessary. You also tend to overheat, and then you have to open the window again.
I would rather consider a combination of a controlled mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery and a fireplace. I have never lived without a fireplace, but always deliberately without underfloor heating. This time, however, there will be underfloor heating. I know that technically it might not be necessary, but rather for the feeling and atmosphere (in case the campfire video isn’t playing) or for the transitional seasons. It’s good, though, to read the different opinions on this. In the end, you do what you want or you look for the supply water temperature. It’s also just a confirmation for your possibly unusual idea.
I’m not familiar with controlled mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, but I keep reading about it. How would the combination of a fireplace and controlled mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery you mentioned work?
pagoni2020 schrieb:
How would such a combination of a wood stove / controlled mechanical ventilation work, the one you mentioned?The fireplace must be certified as room air independent. The local chimney inspector may require additional measures. There are some good threads on this here: try searching in the top right corner. I would not build a modern, up-to-date house without controlled mechanical ventilation and underfloor heating. That is comfort; it should definitely be included.
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nordanney19 Jun 2020 11:18pagoni2020 schrieb:
I’m not familiar with controlled residential ventilation systems, but I keep reading about them.Briefly explained: Controlled residential ventilation = a system designed to continuously supply fresh air to a well-sealed house.
When used with a fireplace, the chimney inspector may require a differential pressure switch that can shut off the ventilation system when the fireplace is in use. Why? Because otherwise, the controlled ventilation system might draw exhaust gases from the fireplace into the house instead of fresh air from outside.
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pagoni202019 Jun 2020 11:30nordanney schrieb:
Briefly explained:
Mechanical ventilation with heat recovery = system designed to continuously supply fresh air to a well-sealed house.
In connection with a fireplace, the chimney inspector may require a differential pressure switch, so the ventilation can be switched off if the fireplace is in use. Why? Because otherwise, the mechanical ventilation might draw exhaust gases from the fireplace into the house instead of fresh air from outside. Ok, thanks for the information; so it’s similar to how a kitchen extractor fan works. I experienced that once in my old house. Suddenly, the living room filled with smoke…
pagoni2020 schrieb:
Ok, thanks for the information; so it’s similar to how the range hood operates. I once had that in my old house. Suddenly, the living room was filled with smoke...- That must not happen. The pressure monitor measures the pressure inside the home. When only the fireplace is running, everything is fine. But when the range hood is turned on, a negative pressure occurs, and the pressure monitor remotely switches off the range hood. Simply put, the range hood is connected to a remote-controlled outlet, which is controlled by the pressure monitor.
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