Heating question

[USAFpj]

The home we currently rent is a 1600sqft home, built in the 70's (not very airtight), with a walk out basement. The owner has a separate HVAC system for the the basement apartment, and electricity/propane is used in the upstairs portion. She likes to keep the lower thermostat at a very low minimum just to keep the pipes from freezing (empty apartment), but has offered to increase the temperature downstairs, in an attempt to help out with the heating upstairs. Apparently, this has worked for tenants in the past, and all she asks is to split the bill for the season.

My question is this- does it work like that?, heat rising to supplement?, or am I just better off to increase the t-stat to our place by a degree or two? The flooring is 2" x 10"s, and because the home is not very airtight, we can feel air currents flowing from the lower apartment. Seems like more work, for little gain. Thanks for the education.

 

[mddorange]

Unless you have vents or holes in the floor, raising the temperature in the basement a couple of degrees will not help much with the temperature upstairs. What she may be talking about is that the more you raise the temperature below will make the floor feel less cold to bare feet.

 

[USAFpj]

I hear ya. Thanks again- we're just going to utilize our own space, and dress accordingly!

 

[RedNeckRacin]

What is the temperature differential between the two floors? Is the floor insulated?

 

[USAFpj]

Redneck, I would have to confirm again- but I don't think it is. The lower apartment has a drop ceiling, with tiles, and utilities exposed. Pretty sure that the floor is just carpeting covering rough sewn 2x6 pine. Kind of a 'good ol' boy radiant heating' system if I increase the temp downstairs.

 

[RedNeckRacin]

That's what I was thinking. If your floor is chilly because of the downstairs, a couple degRees bump in heat should make quite a difference in your liVing space.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

WE have a full semi finished basement with no ceiling. We have a 220 volt heater in the basement with a low/high switch and a thermostat. We put it on Low and the thermostat that will kick on at around 64 degrees. It really cuts our need for heat upstairs. It also helps with moisture. Not sure where it is "cost effective" but it is 'comfort effective'.

 

[MNBobcat]

Back when we had a mobile home, we used to supplement with a Kerosene heater. It worked well.

 

[quicksandfarmer]

Heating more space is not going to save you money.

That said, once you get beyond the point of preventing death by hypothermia, the purpose of heating is comfort. It's up to you to decide whether the additional comfort is worth the cost, and whether heating the basement is the most cost-effective way of increasing your comfort.

 

[Raspy]

The cost of the heat downstairs is paid by the landlord, so the cost of that heat does not affect the tenant upstairs.

I put in multi story radiant heat systems all the time and I'm always told they need little if any heat upstairs, if they run the downstairs heat. Yes, heating the lower area definitely reduces the heating load upstairs. In fact I recommend a large paddle fan, and closeable doors on the stairway, etc, to keep the upstairs cooler. But, if the lower area temperature is always lower than upstairs, it may have little if any affect.

One house I worked on had a basement added during the winter. It went from a crawl space to a very nice fully finished basement. During the construction, the radiant heat was left on in the main floor. All winter that upper floor kept the basement warm.