Hey All, This is my first post on this site, so please be gentle:yes:
I Stumbled upon this forum while doing some research on a brainchild project I have in mind.
For starters A little background info:
I live in 120yr Old Farmhouse that my wife and I have renovated/are still renovating. One of our first projects we completed on the house was to install a hvac system as ALL of the 25 radiators in the house had blown up one winter while it was abandoned before we bought it. Along with that, the oil tank in the basement was wrecked (had holes in it) and the boiler was beyond repair.
Needing heat and also wanting AC we opted for a heat pump/AC unit with electric strip backup heat (our first choice was hydronic coil backup but as just mentioned the dead boiler put a damper on that)
anyways...Im sure some of you know where I'm coming from here with a drafty ol' farmhouse...they sure do look cool but MAN do they cost a fortune to heat!!! We recently installed some woodstoves and that seems to help a lot, however the layout of the house and fact that we aren't home for a lot of the day doesn't really help maintain the heat, which Finally leads me to my crazy idea...
I was looking at installing a wood fired boiler in our basement, and installing a hot water coil in the air handler plenum (or maybe return air side??) I want to still keep the electric backup heat though on the chance that I have to be away from the house for several days, however I want the hot water coil to be the main backup when the heatpump can't do it's thing.
A few of my comments/questions:
- Would most likely need glycol in the lines as the air handler is in the attic
- Is having a second backup system feasible/possible?
- Anyone have a setup similar to what Im describing?
- Any thoughts on controls? Would I need a second thermostat to control the wood boiler's circ pump and air handler blower and set the existing thermostat maybe 2-3 degrees lower so that it doesn't kick on while wood boilers going?
- Am I COMPLETELY Crazy!?! I do tend to get a little nuts with my ideas but love when I can get them to work...
Any input/info/help is GREATLY appreciated....I haven't done anything with this idea yet except try and lay it out in my mind
Thank you in advance
Dan
I Stumbled upon this forum while doing some research on a brainchild project I have in mind.
For starters A little background info:
I live in 120yr Old Farmhouse that my wife and I have renovated/are still renovating. One of our first projects we completed on the house was to install a hvac system as ALL of the 25 radiators in the house had blown up one winter while it was abandoned before we bought it. Along with that, the oil tank in the basement was wrecked (had holes in it) and the boiler was beyond repair.
Needing heat and also wanting AC we opted for a heat pump/AC unit with electric strip backup heat (our first choice was hydronic coil backup but as just mentioned the dead boiler put a damper on that)
anyways...Im sure some of you know where I'm coming from here with a drafty ol' farmhouse...they sure do look cool but MAN do they cost a fortune to heat!!! We recently installed some woodstoves and that seems to help a lot, however the layout of the house and fact that we aren't home for a lot of the day doesn't really help maintain the heat, which Finally leads me to my crazy idea...
I was looking at installing a wood fired boiler in our basement, and installing a hot water coil in the air handler plenum (or maybe return air side??) I want to still keep the electric backup heat though on the chance that I have to be away from the house for several days, however I want the hot water coil to be the main backup when the heatpump can't do it's thing.
A few of my comments/questions:
- Would most likely need glycol in the lines as the air handler is in the attic
- Is having a second backup system feasible/possible?
- Anyone have a setup similar to what Im describing?
- Any thoughts on controls? Would I need a second thermostat to control the wood boiler's circ pump and air handler blower and set the existing thermostat maybe 2-3 degrees lower so that it doesn't kick on while wood boilers going?
- Am I COMPLETELY Crazy!?! I do tend to get a little nuts with my ideas but love when I can get them to work...
Any input/info/help is GREATLY appreciated....I haven't done anything with this idea yet except try and lay it out in my mind
Thank you in advance
Dan