RE: [GBlist] Heating backup and radiant floor heating

[Bill Dinklage <wdinklag@carleton.edu>]

Hi all,
  In response to Ralph's hesitation to put in a wood stove, one perspective 
on it is that the contribution to global carbon is a zero if you consider 
that by cutting down wood to burn you are creating space for a new tree 
which, in growing, will suck that carbon back up 1:1 within a human time 
scale.  Fossil fuels are not like that.  Burning them puts carbon into the 
atmosphere that will not get sucked out by the recreation of fossil fuels 
for thousands or millions of years.  But as for other pollutants...
  Also, in response to the origninal post and the question of soapstone 
countertops, as a geologist I would look at how hard they are and how 
resistant to scratching by metal.  Soapstone is a great carving stone 
because it is soft.  Its softness is caused mostly by the presence of 
minerals such as talc, chlorite, and serpentine, which are all either 
softer than or not very much harder than a fingernail.  There are other 
harder minerals in this kind of rock, too, but I would be curious if others 
on the list have experience with the scratch resistance of soapstone 
counters.
  Cheers,
-Bill Dinklage
 Carleton College, Geology
 Northfield, MN 55057

--On Wednesday, January 23, 2002 3:17 PM -0600 Ralph Bicknese 
<ralph.bicknese@christnerinc.com> wrote:

> Sacie:
>
> Radiant heating is probably the most comfortable form of heating.  It is
> also very effective if that radiant heat comes from  a broad expanse of
> floor because it provides heat closer to where it is needed most.  Heat
> delivered in that location offers the advantage of working with nature
> because heat rises naturally.  This helps reduce stratification problems
> associated with delivering the heat at another location such as from
> ceiling level.
>
> The system you described sounds like it has many advantages.  I would like
> to remind readers radiant heat can be provided by a number of means
> including simple direct gain passive solar whereby sunlight enters a room
> through a window and strikes and heats thermal mass on a floor (such as
> tile or stone on a mortar bed, concrete, etc).
>
> I appreciate your desire and efforts to reduce the need to burn fossil
> fuels to heat your house but I question whether using a wood stove to
> provide a significant quantity of heat is the right one.  Perhaps if used
> only very occasionally damage will be minimized. I myself have been faced
> with the moral dilemma of cutting a perfectly good "forest of trees" to
> burn and never did install the wood stove I intended too 12 years ago.  I
> love the ambiance a fire provides and I love the smell of wood smoke.
> But the mere fact that I smell the wood smoke of my neighbors reminds me
> they are not providing heat very efficiently and are creating air
> pollution.  Even efficient stoves still add more pollution than I care
> to.  I do not remember how efficient burning wood for heat is or how
> polluting it is compared to receiving heat from power provided from a
> coal fired power plant or from burning natural or propane gas. But
> regardless of how equal the pollution and energy content is, replacing
> one poor heating source with another may not be the right answer.
>
> Perhaps a better solution is to save the money you would have spent on a
> wood stove and put it toward a wind generator or photovoltaic system.
>
> Just "fuel" for thought.
>
> Cheers,
> Ralph Bicknese
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Sacie H Lambertson [mailto:dlambert@grasshoppernet.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, January 23, 2002 2:31 PM
> To: greenbuilding@crest.org
> Subject: Re: [GBlist] Heating backup and radiant floor heating
>
> As usual, in the most recent edition of EBN (Environmental Building News)
> there is an excellent lead article is about radiant floor heating (RFH);
> the jist of the article is a discussion on the pros and cons of this type
> of heating system and where its use is uneconomical or does not make
> sense.  In general, Alex Wilson suggests that tight, well insulated (super
> insulated) residences should not need this type of system for a variety of
> reasons, the high cost being a major factor.
>
> However he did not mention the DIY system sold by Radiantec in Vermont; we
> bought from them and saved ourselves a LOT of money by installing the
> tubes and manifolds ourselves.  And while Alex's argument is persuasive,
> I'm in the camp that this type of heat is the best one could have.
> (We're using it for back-up as well, since we have a forest of trees on
> our property to use in a good stove).
>                         Sacie Lambertson
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
> This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
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> ______________________________________________________________________
>
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
> This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
> Solstice http://www.crest.org, and BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of
> Environmental Building News and GreenSpec http://www.BuildingGreen.com
> ______________________________________________________________________
>





______________________________________________________________________
This greenbuilding dialogue is sponsored by REPP/CREST, creator of
Solstice http://www.crest.org, and BuildingGreen, Inc., publisher of
Environmental Building News and GreenSpec http://www.BuildingGreen.com
______________________________________________________________________