So it turns out, the way you heat your house is a big deal. Not only that, but when you build a super insulated home, you should have an efficient system that doesn't give you more than you need. The most efficient and most comfortable way to heat a home is with in-floor radiant.
Our lovely mountain town has harsh winters - it snows a lot and temperatures regularly fall below freezing. Therefore, it's particularly important to stay toasty. Conventional construction usually defaults to a forced air system. This has its advantages: first, there is only one set of ducts and you can run warm air or cool air through them depending on the season; second (which is related to the firsts since you save on materials and labor), they're the cheapest.
We are, if you haven't already realized this, totally unconventional. And I think forced air sucks. It's not efficient and it's not comfortable. It heats the air in a space but not the objects in a space. Have you ever stood in a room that's measuring 70 degrees by the thermostat, but still feels cold? Yeah. That's what forced air is like.
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| Radiant is just superior. Image courtesy of www.bobvila.com |
Green construction usually heats with radiant for a lot of good reasons. So that's what we're going to do. Yes, it's more money to install, but over time this type of heat saves money on utility bills.
We had the opportunity to demolish the slab and start again, using a blanket of both rigid and soft insulation with a total R-value of around 12. On top of that, the plumber lays polyethelene tubing which will be hooked up to pumps, manifolds, and a boiler:
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| No popsicle toes allowed! |
Oh - and I ordered a camera. It's a time-lapse construction camera that I'll be hanging up at the job site. Once the shell goes up, I'll be able to upload a quick movie and y'all will be able to see the thing take shape in minutes!
Greenly Yours,
Parker
Greenly Yours,
Parker
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