Thomas
Epic Contributor
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2000
- Messages
- 29,793
- Location
- Lebanon,NH.
- Tractor
- Kubota B2650HSD w/Frontloader & CC LTX1046 & Craftman T2200 lawn mower.
Great very view :thumbsup: hope you'll add extra insulation.
New to America and Tractors
- Thread starter LondonVermont
- Start date
OP
LondonVermont
New member
It's a floating slab sitting on 13" of EPS.
The concrete finishers were a little shocked (we did the form, re-bar and PEX ourself) as they said 4" was the local standard.
We've also got 15" thick walls, the real weak spot is the glass, windows here aren't built to the same level as Europe but I figured I have solar gain during most days and I'll install honeycomb blinds in a track to compensate after sunset.
The concrete finishers were a little shocked (we did the form, re-bar and PEX ourself) as they said 4" was the local standard.
We've also got 15" thick walls, the real weak spot is the glass, windows here aren't built to the same level as Europe but I figured I have solar gain during most days and I'll install honeycomb blinds in a track to compensate after sunset.
coolconnection
Gold Member
Well you got me intrigued on windows, being an engineer I'm curious about these things. I did some research and found very little difference between North American windows and those offered in Europe. Of course different designs for different tastes but for ratings their almost the same. It is difficult to rate them as well because of the different tests on both sides. U Ratings and glass ratings. The biggest difference is iron in the glass on the European side and the spacing between the glass but I can't see the R values greatly rising because of it. All in all give every layer of glass an R value of one and the space between sometimes the same. For quality you get what you pay for..here and across the pond.
Since you are having a slab instead of a basement it doesn't hurt to put 2 inches of styrofoam around the perimeter of it. It will really help in keeping that floor warm on those cold days.
(Sorry who read my post earlier my phone quit on me and only half posted).
Last edited:
marrt
Platinum Member
Hello,
I currently own a 425, 1845 and a Kubota L3901. Bush hogging 15 acres is a lot. Plus, that particular activity is very hard on an all-hydraulic tractor. Depending on ambient temps, the hydraulic oil can go beyond the recommended operating range in less than an hour on steep slopes. Plus, the diesels will quickly draw a lot of chaff into the oil cooler, which will overheat the engine if you're not careful. I had to re-engineer the rear of my 1845 just to mow three acres of lawn in the summer without overheating. And this in on their dedicated slope mower.
Power Tracs are not a finely engineered machine, like some of the European multipurpose tractors (nor do they generally carry the associated asking price). Eighty percent is brilliant. But twenty percent of their engineering decisions will have you scratching your head...mostly around engine cooling and some attachments. There's NO way I would consider regularly using a 425, 1430 (or probably even my 1845) as the solution for 15 acres of bush hogging on steep terrain in the summer. Depending on the exact slopes and how you can approach the job, a conventional four wheel drive tractor may be a better choice.
I do love my PT's and wouldn't be without one. Maintenance of trails, general landscaping, bucket work, smallish yard mowing and bush hogging, etc...it's the best choice out there for a general utility machine in my view. But you've got to consider it's strong points and weak points together for your particular use.
I currently own a 425, 1845 and a Kubota L3901. Bush hogging 15 acres is a lot. Plus, that particular activity is very hard on an all-hydraulic tractor. Depending on ambient temps, the hydraulic oil can go beyond the recommended operating range in less than an hour on steep slopes. Plus, the diesels will quickly draw a lot of chaff into the oil cooler, which will overheat the engine if you're not careful. I had to re-engineer the rear of my 1845 just to mow three acres of lawn in the summer without overheating. And this in on their dedicated slope mower.
Power Tracs are not a finely engineered machine, like some of the European multipurpose tractors (nor do they generally carry the associated asking price). Eighty percent is brilliant. But twenty percent of their engineering decisions will have you scratching your head...mostly around engine cooling and some attachments. There's NO way I would consider regularly using a 425, 1430 (or probably even my 1845) as the solution for 15 acres of bush hogging on steep terrain in the summer. Depending on the exact slopes and how you can approach the job, a conventional four wheel drive tractor may be a better choice.
I do love my PT's and wouldn't be without one. Maintenance of trails, general landscaping, bucket work, smallish yard mowing and bush hogging, etc...it's the best choice out there for a general utility machine in my view. But you've got to consider it's strong points and weak points together for your particular use.
SpringHollow
Elite Member
Every tractor I have owned has issues with overheating when doing large amounts of brush hogging if there is a lot of pollen and seeds. I do not often mow large amounts of field with the 1850 but when I have mowed it while the fields were green, I did not have major overheating issues. I did blow out the oil radiator each day. I can see where adding screens would help.
Ken
Ken
SpringHollow
Elite Member
How deep is the gravel below the insulation? The normal concern with a floating slab would be differential heaving.
How do you handle your water supply? Will the ground be frozen where they come up through to the slab? Here, the ground can freeze to almost 5' deep.
Ken
How do you handle your water supply? Will the ground be frozen where they come up through to the slab? Here, the ground can freeze to almost 5' deep.
Ken
OP
LondonVermont
New member
Hi,
Going to have to disagree on this one.
Glass is one element as is the spacing and the gas used between the panes but where you'll find the major difference is in how the frames are constructed so as to have effective thermal bridges.
There are two American companies that now make windows to passive house standards but that is fairly recent and the price is so high that contractors will generally still order from Europe or Canada.
Going to have to disagree on this one.
Glass is one element as is the spacing and the gas used between the panes but where you'll find the major difference is in how the frames are constructed so as to have effective thermal bridges.
There are two American companies that now make windows to passive house standards but that is fairly recent and the price is so high that contractors will generally still order from Europe or Canada.
OP
LondonVermont
New member
As you say the slab still needs additional lagging, there's seven inches of EPS to cover the side and then a 4' wide 3.5" thick near horizontal skirt that sounds it all to act as a frost inhibitor.
OP
LondonVermont
New member
Hi Ken,
I've got 2' of gravel and just under a foot of crushed stone under the slab, the ground is also fairly sandy and dry up at the top of the hill where the site is, with the water supply running 6'+ underground and entering the building through the slab within the warm zone.
My concern at this point is that a high percentage, maybe 80%, of radon gas is believed to enter a building through the well water, so I'm looking at a vented airator within the utility cupboard.
We also have stone filled drainage ditches with pipes surrounding the house and a mono pitch roof the faces downhill and empties into a drainage channel, so I'm hoping there will be very little water under and around the slab.
I still have sleepless nights thinking what could go wrong and as my mother asks "what's to stop you just sliding down the hill?"
I've got 2' of gravel and just under a foot of crushed stone under the slab, the ground is also fairly sandy and dry up at the top of the hill where the site is, with the water supply running 6'+ underground and entering the building through the slab within the warm zone.
My concern at this point is that a high percentage, maybe 80%, of radon gas is believed to enter a building through the well water, so I'm looking at a vented airator within the utility cupboard.
We also have stone filled drainage ditches with pipes surrounding the house and a mono pitch roof the faces downhill and empties into a drainage channel, so I'm hoping there will be very little water under and around the slab.
I still have sleepless nights thinking what could go wrong and as my mother asks "what's to stop you just sliding down the hill?"
SpringHollow
Elite Member
I have radon in my water as well (and in well 
). I have a low yield well with a 450 gallon tank in the basement with the well pump controlled by interval and delay timers along with a float switch. It works real well but I do get high levels of radon. So I treated the tank as though it were a slab and installed a radon mitigation system. There is an air pump that goes through a 8" (i think) air diffuser that is a rubber bladder so by cutting off the air for a second, it flexes and self cleans. The air pump is an extremely efficient way of off-gassing and circulating the water. It really is a nice setup. I was not sure if it would work since I never saw anyone do it like this. But my radon levels would spike to as high as 50 in the basement air and so I needed to do something. I tend to trust my own designs if I think it through enough so I went ahead and with this system, I am usually around 1.15 PCi/L. It has worked very well now for a number of years. Feel free to PM me if you decide to go this route and I can look up part numbers etc for my detector, diffuser, and such. They make some commercial spray systems that are vented but these require regular maintenance/cleaning.
You can send the water out for testing but my water and air radon levels used to fluctuate quite a bit, from 4 on up. The very high levels were rare.
Ken
). I have a low yield well with a 450 gallon tank in the basement with the well pump controlled by interval and delay timers along with a float switch. It works real well but I do get high levels of radon. So I treated the tank as though it were a slab and installed a radon mitigation system. There is an air pump that goes through a 8" (i think) air diffuser that is a rubber bladder so by cutting off the air for a second, it flexes and self cleans. The air pump is an extremely efficient way of off-gassing and circulating the water. It really is a nice setup. I was not sure if it would work since I never saw anyone do it like this. But my radon levels would spike to as high as 50 in the basement air and so I needed to do something. I tend to trust my own designs if I think it through enough so I went ahead and with this system, I am usually around 1.15 PCi/L. It has worked very well now for a number of years. Feel free to PM me if you decide to go this route and I can look up part numbers etc for my detector, diffuser, and such. They make some commercial spray systems that are vented but these require regular maintenance/cleaning.You can send the water out for testing but my water and air radon levels used to fluctuate quite a bit, from 4 on up. The very high levels were rare.
Ken