building in maine (Mount Vernon: house, water heater, buying)

[hock1]

Building a house in Mount Vernon Maine this summer. About 1200 sq feet, small budget. I have been debating what would be the most economic heating system to install. I know baseboard oil is the most common but with the prices the way the are I am trying to find an alternative. I would like to do solar hotwater and am leaning towards radiant propane but am worried about the installation cost. Any suggestions?

[Northern Maine Land Man]

The most cost effective heating system in Maine today is the pellet stove. If you are going to be away you need a backup system. The second most efficient is a Monitor heater. It is direct vent also so you are not using air you paid to heat as combustion air. These assume you are buying your fuel.

Of course the absolute cheapest way to go is to heat with wood you cut on your own land.

[hock1]

Thanks for the advice. I know it flucuates but what would be the most economical fuel to use with a moniotor ? How many would i need to heat a 1200 sq ft 2 bedroom, 2 story house with a daylight basement? Thanks again.

[forest beekeeper]

A pellet stove is a handy system for making heat, as is an outdoor wood furnace.

However from my research, I must disagree with previous posters. A radiant system of heated flooring is technically more efficient, in the context of using less heat to more efficiently provide heat to a home.

Keep in mind that you can heat said water using a pellet stove, or outdoor furnace, or propane, or coal, or oil, or propane, or to a limited extent solar.

I am in the process of building our home.

I have installed a radiant floor loop, it is heated by various methods. I plumbed it in a manner which allows me to select heat sources.

I can heat the water using propane by way of a propane water-heater.
I can heat the water using our stove, burning either wood or peat or coal.
I can also heat the water using our electric water heater.

I think that you would be best served by designing a heating system which is not dependant on grid supplied electricity, and which can be fueled using multiple fuels.

Best regards,

[mainelydave]

You need to re-think things. Focus more on making your home as energy efficient as possible. Consider building a super-tight, super-insulated building, with controlled ventilation. If possible, orient to the South, and place more windows on the South than the North side. Spend more money on significant air sealing and additional insulation.

After that, heating system types and fuel choices are less important. Having a choice is a good idea in my book. Monitor type heaters are inexpensive to install and don't require a chimney. They use kerosene, but are highly efficient. (in the 90% range, I believe) Wood Pellet stoves are also a good bargain, and again, don't require a chimney. Maybe the best answer is one of each. You could heat primarily with a pellet stove, but if you're out of town, fall back on the monitor.

Forced hot water systems are comfortable, that's why they've been used here. A steady heat. But expensive, when you factor in cost of boiler, cooper piping, fuel tank, and so on. They take up valuable space in the house.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Radiant heat floors are great until they crack. Then you need to buy another heating system. If you take the gamble and go with a radiant floor, absolutely insist that the installer put at least 2 inches of foam down before the pour or you will be trying to heat the State of Maine all the way down to bedrock.

You really need to be a true believer to want to go out in the dead of winter to stoke your outdoor boiler. I figure it's better to have your stove where it's warm and stoke it at your convenience. Many manufacturers make claims that their stoves meet all manner of codes. Those claims are usually based on the codes where the stove is manufactured. Before buying any primary heat source, make sure it is allowed in the town where you'll be. Not many towns in Maine have natural gas for example.

[hock1]

Wow. Thanks everyone. Looks like I have some research to do.

[forest beekeeper]

Originally Posted by Northern Maine Land Man

Radiant heat floors are great until they crack. ....

Thank you.

I had not heard of Radiant floors cracking before.

I will have to research that a bit.

From everything else that I have heard about them they have sounded very good, thus I built such into our home.

Where have you seen them crack?

I will keep an eye on my floor joists and sub flooring to ensure that neither cracks, thank you.

[Bydand]

Originally Posted by forest beekeeper

Thank you.

I had not heard of Radiant floors cracking before.

It was a problem right when they started doing them a lot way back. With the new materials, I haven't seen a leak or crack in any of them installed correctly in the last 25 years. The newest stuff they use is unbelievable, it will outlast any of us more than likely. My brother does this for a living and he swears up and down by radiant floor heat.

[forest beekeeper]

I used O2-barrier PEX tubing from Canada, attached with aluminum flashing to the underneath of our subflooring. It is not nearly as expensive as I had expected it to be.