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Choosing the Best Basement Heating Options for Your Home

Choosing the Best Basement Heating Options for Your Home

Basements are often seen as cold and dark spaces, but your home doesn’t have to live up to this cliché! If you want to add some heat to your home but aren’t sure where to start, these are the top tips for picking the best basement heating option for your home.

4 Reasons Why Radiant Floor Heating is the Best Solution for Basements

Since a basement is naturally cool in the summer, the next expense is providing the right heating solution to make the basement comfortable in the winter. You could add-on to your existing HVAC system or install electric baseboards, but neither of these solutions can provide the clean, quiet and efficient heat that an electric radiant floor heating system provides.

In addition to being easy to install and competitively priced with most heating options, radiant floor heating provides:

Low Long-Term Costs

Electric radiant floor heating systems with zone controlling thermostats are economical to operate because they heat the entire room quickly and evenly. You can control the heat in each room individually, so there is no wasted electricity by heating areas that are not being used. This translates into lower utility bills over the long-term.

Minimal Equipment

Everything needed to operate the system is below the floor. There are no large, noisy outside mechanical units required to produce the heat, and no fans or pumps running inside the basement to keep you awake at night.

No Maintenance

Once the system is installed, there are no parts that require upkeep.

Reliable and Consistent Heating Source

Electric radiant floor heat is almost as simple as set and forget. With the right programmable thermostat installed, the system operates by itself, turning off and on as needed, maintaining your desired temperature range 24/7.

What’s Your Budget?

What type of budget are you working with? Adding heat to a basement can cost from $1,000 to well over $15,000, depending on the size of your basement, how you heat it, and the company you work with. If this isn’t in your budget yet, it’s a good idea to set aside money for it or look for a company that offers a payment plan. Heating your basement will lower the cost of heating your entire home, so although it might be pricey upfront: it’s worth it to add more comfortable space.

Before You Make Changes

Before you add heating to your basement, it’s vital that you take steps to ensure the space is prepared to store heat. Look into waterproofing new basement walls and adding insulation so that they keep in as much moisture as possible. If your basement isn’t finished yet: you’ll want to finish it so the heat, you add will stay in your home instead of radiating out. Although this can be expensive, it’s worth it and will save you money on heating in the long run.

Ductless Heating or Extending Ductwork

If you don’t have duct-based eating in your home, you generally don’t want to add that to your basement because it can be expensive to add from scratch. A ductless heat pump can be energy efficient, working on heat loss with an indoor air handler that connects via a pipe to a heating unit on the outside of your home. These work great at stopping your pipes from freezing in the winter.

If your home does use duct heating, you can possibly get this extended into your basement! Before you start on this project, you should talk to a contractor or HVAC professional and check if the age and size of your current unit could handle having more space to heat. If not, you may need a separate heating unit or to upgrade the size and age of your current one for your entire home.

Heating the Floor

One of the best ways to heat basement spaces is to heat the floor. Since heat naturally rises, this will quickly warm an entire room and then permeate up through the floors above it.

Floor heating is great at removing excess moisture from a room, doesn’t risk blowing allergens back into the air, is noiseless, and doesn’t change the look of your basement. This is an ideal way to heat any space.

Basement Wall Heaters

Wall heaters are one of the more recognizable heating styles and can keep a basement very warm. With a choice between gas or electric, these units are permanently self-contained and recessed inside your wall. They’re great at heating up space by simply using the cold air in a room and heating it.

These don’t continue to heat a space once it’s turned off, unlike baseboard heaters: but if it’s a gas wall heater, you do leave yourself open to the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning. These are also noisy, even though they don’t take up any space.

Electric Space Heaters

If you want a mobile option, you can swap out whenever you decide to: electric space heaters could be your best choice. These are a fantastic way to add warmth to any space and to rearrange in an instant if you don’t like the spot, they’re in. Not only are these affordable, but they also come in many attractive options. Unfortunately, these aren’t energy efficient.

Baseboard Heaters

Baseboard heaters are a simple and straightforward option for homeowners who don’t want any external vents. There are two options for these, convection and hydronic, that each has unique ways of heating: but also, each has a risk if something goes wrong. These can be hardwired into your home’s electric system or simply plugged in, depending on which unit you purchase, but they can work extremely well if in the right space.

Stove Heaters and Fireplaces

If you want your basement to have a classic rustic look: consider going for a stove or fireplace look for your heating! You can burn wood pellets or get a gas heater and enjoy how energy efficient they are.

Unfortunately, these require you to spend time filling them with wood or fuel and need an external vent so they can remove the carbon monoxide that they produce while heating the space they’re in. These are gorgeous to look at but possibly not the best option for everyone.

Remember, Heat Rises!

Updating your basement heating isn’t going to just keep your basement warmer; it helps your entire home stay warm! Keep your basement warm and watch your entire home feel more comfortable.

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What do you use for the sub-level? A guide to basement flooring

Flooring usually goes by some rules but when it comes to basement flooring, most of those rules are thrown out of the windows. The reason for this is that basements usually are subject to completely new environmental threats. Even in spaces were weather isn’t an enemy, at least not in the usually way, basements can produce a rather moist environment where certain floors don’t prosper.

So what should be done in this situation? That’s what we’re here to help you with, as we will go over the fundamentals of basement flooring so that you have a better idea of what you should use for your own instance for example. Of course, each individual might have unique circumstances which would make the entire operation more complex for them. For example if you have a basement heating oil tank, you might have to consider other flooring options simply because of the potential leaking and whatnot. Although the best course of action in such a scenario would be to call some oil tank experts and maybe tway lifting to help you get it out so you can enjoy your basement properly.

What is the grade and what does it mean to be below or above it?

You might be confused if you talk to a constructor and they start talking about below grade or above grade materials. They are not referring to material quality and they aren’t suggestion that you should invest in cheaper or more expensive supplies. They are simply stating whether or not the material in question is designed for below or above ground level.
The former category isn’t safe from water vapors and similar threats whereas the latter, above ground level category can withstand such dangers.

Understanding the necessities of basement flooring

When you’re talking about below grade materials for your basement you have to abide by a different rule set if you’re going to get a long lasting job done. It’s important to keep these things in mind when proceeding with the flooring of your basement or otherwise you will most likely have to revisit it in the not so distant future.

Look for the hardest materials

The hardest materials prosper best in environments such as the basement. Tile will always outperform carpeting for the basement, but there are also other options out there such as concrete. It also depends on what your design or style plan may suggest, so that it’s not just efficient but also in tune with everything else in the basement.

What happens when there’s a flood?

Flooding is one of the permanent concerns that you will face regarding your basement, regardless of your flooring option. Yes, flooring helps one way or another but it won’t stop actual flooding from happening in the eventuality of there being one. When it comes to flooring, ceramics are great because they dry out in the eventuality of a flood.

You can also go for a laminate or wood approach but this implies a while other cause and effect. It is possible to install laminate flooring in the basement with the help of a foam underlayment, so if you really aren’t a fan of tiles or plain concrete, you can do that too.

Flooring your basement remains a tricky job simply because of how many things you have to keep in mind at the same time. However, it is far from impossible to pull off. It is however very important that you do it right the first time so you don’t have to come back and revisit the project every so often.

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Opting for DIY Home Improvement

DIY Home Improvement Ideas

Each one of us wants a prefect abode but delay our home improvement plans as the cost incurred is too high. Spending $50,000 just to remodel a kitchen does not seem to be a good move when your old kitchen furnishing is doing just fine.

Moreover, these home repair & renovation jobs are quite expensive and hiring a professional contractor further adds to the costs. However these days, you do not have to spend so much to enhance the aesthetic appeal of your home, especially if you are ready to put in some effort yourself. Do-It-Yourself or DIY task will allow you to save significant amount of money as you do not have to pay any professional for the job.

In order to improve your home you can paint the walls, update fixtures, or install energy saving solar panels, insulation or even flooring. Any of these will do wonders to improve the aesthetics of your home and increase its value. Installing floors is a great option to give a delightful visual effect to your abode. Further, tiling, grouting, carpentering are also other options for floor improvement.

Availability of highly effective do-it-yourself or DIY kits present in the market have made it all the more easy for homeowners to renovate their homes rather than seeking professional help. Homeowners who availed the services of expert professionals in the past are also opting for DIY home improvements nowadays. The reason for the surge of user-friendly DIY home improvement kits is that these are easy to use and come with detailed procedure description that allows even first time DIY enthusiasts to complete the task with ease.

This trend got tremendous boost due to easy availability of various government grants and refinance options. These finance options allow people to spend their savings on enhancing the look of their homes and get financial incentives that help in offsetting some of the cost incurred on the task.

Performing the DIY tasks is convenient, provided you have patience, skill and adequate tools to complete the task. One of the simplest DIY tasks is installing new floor as it can drastically change the overall look of the house. For installing new floor, you need to choose from the different flooring options available. Tile vinyl, laminate floor and epoxy are few alternatives that can be installed in no time. After you have decided what flooring option you want to install, you need to ensure that all the tools are working properly and have all other essential things that is required for doing the task. While installing new floor or doing any other task, make sure you follow all the instructions carefully, along with following safety tips.

Doing task on your own and seeing the outcome, you realize that all the effort was worth as it adds to the aesthetic appeal of your home as well as increase its value. Moreover, opting for DIY home improvement helps save substantial amount of money as well as avoids dealing with annoying professionals. Furthermore, you gain immense satisfaction on seeing how all your efforts have improved the appearance of your home. Owing to all these factors, more and more people are opting for DIY home improvement.

Warm Home in Cold Winters with Radiant Floor Heating

Warm Home in Cold Winters with SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating

Solar heating technology has come a long way, with energy being tapped and utilized more effectively. There are innumerable uses of solar energy in households and commercial set-ups, which is conventionally converted to thermal energy and used for heating water, heating home or pool. However, solar heating activities depend on the amount of solar radiation received by the surface area and surface reflectance. Moreover, other factors such as surface emissivity, ambient temperature and thermal convection from wind also play significant part in solar heating.

SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating option is an excellent solution, worth consideration while planning for cold winter months. The method has several advantages, most notable being energy saver, reduced utility costs and clean energy. A radiant floor heating system is viable with solar energy, due to relatively low temperature of hot water that solar systems produce very efficiently. There are several radiant floor heating systems, such as masonry heater and gas boiler, which accept heat energy from sun.

The advanced dual-wire technology of SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating allows homeowners to install mats that end at preferred location. These mats are flexible option for heating, as mat can be positioned in various angles such as 90° and 180°. Entire section is heated thoroughly as wires can be fitted easily at any angle and into curves. However, open weave design of the wire mesh is recommended owing to strong bonding of the thinset to the surface, above as well as beneath the heating mat. For an ideal floor warming application, wire spacing limit is determined to be within 90°.

A heating cable, a foil radiator and a set of power leads for connection to the floor-sensing control are the integral components of the SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating Mats. The heating mats are Aramid reinforced and have ETFE high-temperature insulation along with oxygen-free copper alloys and XLPE (PEX) jacket. These heating mats are appreciated for easy installation, easy connection establishment, convenient management and safe usage.

To ascertain maximum safety, heating element mesh is woven beside the mat in a ring-like shielded jacket. The set-up facilitates power supply to the grounding wire within the junction box for the thermostat. Along with safety and intrinsic attributes, homeowners have appreciated SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating system for its aestheticism.

After continual research and development, solar floor heating systems have become immensely effective and efficient. Over the years, these systems have also provided architectural flexibility to the users and can be installed in any part of the house. Moreover, installation of SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating system reduces amount of air pollution by limiting greenhouse gases that are emitted using alternative fuels such as oil, propane and natural gas for heating. In case the solar system cannot meet heating requirements, back-up systems can be synchronized for heat supply.

For ensuring warm home in cold winters, one can choose SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating. However, planning the layout of the electrical floor heaters, budget and daily or yearly projections are some of the basics that need to be considered by homeowners before availing this solution.

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The Facts about SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating

SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating is an underfloor heating system that aids in keeping the indoors as well as outdoors warm. A type of electric radiant floor heating, this low temperature heating system emits radiant heat from under the floor surface that heats the air; subsequently making the house warm. The twin, multi-stranded and oxygen-free copper heating elements form the heart of this system, augmenting its utilization and longevity. Furthermore, the strong synthetic Aramid fibers reinforce these heating wires and add to their longitudinal strength.

The dual-wire technology of SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating allows user to initialize the mat at the thermostat and end at any of the desired locations. Another benefit of this heating system is that the mat can be flipped and turned at 90° and 180°, so as to fill in virtually any shape. The wire can thus be easily released and fitted into angles or curves, leaving no gap. Moreover, the open weave design of the wire mesh facilitates strong bonding of the thinset to the surfaces, both above and below the heating mat. Typically, wire spacing is determined not to exceed 90° C for ideal floor warming application.

For maximum safety, the heating elements are woven to the underside of the mat, and are ringed by a fully shielded grounding jacket. This set up further extends the power lead to the grounding wire in the junction box for the thermostat. Besides the benefits provided by intrinsic features of the SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating, the system has also won accolades for its aestheticism. Unlike heat pumps and vents, this system is laid beneath the floor surface and is thus, completely invisible. Moreover, efficient installation of the floor heating system also avoids the risk of direct contact with the heating element.

This system further delivers an even radiant heat across the whole floor surface; whilst, heating the home from the floor up. All one has to do is program the thermostat as per the lifestyle, and the rest is assured by the system itself. Optimization of energy costs due to rapid distribution of heat, easy regulation of temperature, and precise control of heating are other advantages of the system. Moreover, the uniform heat spread does not create heat droughts that lift up dust and allergens. Thus, the SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating enables user to achieve a uniformly heated home in a healthy way.

Owing to all these advantages, the SunTouch Radiant Floor Heating has rapidly replaced conventional heating systems like boilers and heat pumps, which are inefficient as well as expensive.

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Tag: under floor heating