need some advice on heating my upstairs

[andrewj]

hi folks...I am working on a different kind of project - finishing my upstairs! was not intended in the original design, to be occupied space. It just worked out that I have put a stairwell up there and it looks great...it will have about 500 sq ft of living space.

I am looking for something more effecient than electric space heater/air conditioner combo. fuel oil heater appeals to me since i could use diesel from a large tank outside. (maybe i'm way off on this one...?!)

anyway, I know there are some real experts out there, and I sure could use the help! thanks.
AJ

 

[Farwell]

AJ
When I was a kid living in lower Michigan we did not have upstairs heat, we had a 24" by 24" grill in the upstairs floor that allowed the ceiling heat from downstairs heat the upstairs. I don't see why that would not work for you depending on how you heat your downstairs and how well your upstairs is insulated.
I now live in Mid Michigan in an old two story farm house that has forced air heat that is piped to the upstairs but I close and cover the vents because enough heat goes up the stairs to keep it warm up there.
If your need to keep your upstairs above 68 degrees then you may want to consider adding some type heat.
Lots of folks in Michigan are also using field corn to heat their homes and shops. If you live in an agricultural area you might want to consider this.
David

 

[tlbuser]

For just heat, hot water baseboards could be used. Then the "heater" could be placed wherever need be. For heat and a/c, how about heat pump with a "fossil fuel" furnace. Heat pumps work reasonably well down to 39 degrees F outside temp, then it would automatically switch to either gas or oil.
Of course, we can't leave out geothermal. Pricey but very energy efficient.

Depending on your existing set-up, you might just be able to extend the runs.

 

[fenneran]

AJ,
We have the same problem. When I finished our upstairs, I built four bedrooms, a bathroom and a central "library". Because we have an oil-fired forced-air furnace downstairs, I just ran two ducts to the main area. With the bedroom doors open, enough heat goes upstairs to keep it warm. In the bathroom, we have a small electric plug-in heater for first thing in the morning.

This past summer we installed an A/C unit in the attic to cool the upstairs (there is no A/C downstairs) and there was an option to add a heating unit to it, but our setup works pretty well so we opted to leave it jsut as A/C.

We also have a gas log in the livingroom which is at the bottom of the stairs going up, so if we loose power, it generates enough heat to keep most of the house at about 72 degrees.

 

[dknarnd]

No heat or insulation in the upstairs of my house, 4 bedrooms and 1 bath. It used to have a closed stariwell with a door at the bottom and a large open register for the heat to filter up. Now we opened the stairwell up and covered the register, in the winter we keep all the bedroom doors closed, unless they are being used, only leaving the bathroom door open all the time.

Since it is only bedrooms this works well and is not to cool, unless of course your are my wife! For the bathroom we use a small electric space heater to heat it up if someone desires. One of these days I will insulate the attic which will make a huge difference in the comfort of the house.

Just for the record this is an old double plank house with plaster and lathe so there is no insulation in the walls either. My mom still lives there and I hope to retire there someday but remodel the inside before doing so (otherwise my wife won't be living with me).

 

[Jerome]

How is the rest of the house heated? If you send me a email With as much info as you can, inulation direction of house etc. I'll let you know your options. This is what I do for a living. jerome.sidley@directenergy.com

 

[crb478]

Since you are in SC I would consider a small heat pump so you can have A/C also. The heat will rise and it will not be to hard to keep it heated if it is well insulated. Keeping it cool in the summer will be the challenge.

 

[sandman2234]

My house is two story, and my detached garage is also two story. Both really don't need heat upstairs, but AC is a must. If you are worried about it, installl double insulation and that will probably do the trick. To prevent stale air add a return air to the house's central unit if it has one, or just an exhaust fan to move the air back downstairs.
David from jax

 

[ehchvac]

this is what I would be trying to sell you, for that situation.

Halcyon Wall Mount Systems

 

[Dusty]

There are some very good propane wall units that you should consider and the expense of installation is not that bad. They vent out the wall and don't require a chimney.
Dusty