Amazing Radiant Floor Heat | One Year Update & System Costs

Here’s our long awaited one year radiant floor update!
Our pole barn house is 32x32x12 and the total cost for our DIY radiant floor install (not including foam board slab insulation) is around $1650. In the video we also discuss the cost to run the system in the winter.
And here is a link to the first video we uploaded just after finishing the installation:
• DIY Radiant Floor Heat...
Amazon Affiliate Links for our radiant heat system:
Ecosmart 18 Electric Tankless Water Heater amzn.to/3oDwqQf
Hot Water Drain/Fill Valves amzn.to/2MKMbrq
Amtrol EX15 Expansion Tank amzn.to/3r5QPyW
Honeywell Air Eliminator amzn.to/3cwFuE7
Grundfos UP 15-42 Circulation Pump amzn.to/2Ld6e1g
Y-Strainer amzn.to/3alB4gJ
Additional links for parts also found at supplyhouse.com
Pressure Gauge www.supplyhous...
Bluefin Radiant Manifold www.supplyhous...
Thermostat www.supplyhous...
Pump Switch Relay www.supplyhous...
Floor Sensor www.supplyhous...
Buy our awesome Little Mountain Life shirts here:
www.bonfire.co...
Music: 'Are You Having Fun' by Josh Woodward Free download at www.joshwoodward.com additional music from www.epidemicsound.com

[@WhyDoIevenBotherCommenting]

I think it would be really helpful for people to know your winter kWh/month consumption more-so than the cost. Cost changes with time, anyone interested in doing hydronic radiant with tankless is going to care about electricity consumption, as that's the originator of cost.

[@supernova8962]

you did great !!! I think you should do this for all your family.. for a DIYer ...I bow to you ...

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks! 🙂

[@danhusband6154]

I just purchased a newer (7yr old) home with hydronic heated slab in the basement and heated slab in detached 700 sq foot garage. Living in Eastern Canada, our winters are long and can be rather ‘harsh’... I’ve only been in the house for 2 months now but absolutely love this type of heat. We also have electric heated floors in the kitchen and a forced air system as we are approximately 4100 sq feet over 3 levels.. so although the radiant heat does raise, the forced air is still required for the bedrooms on the top level... plus the a/c ducting was required for our hot/humid summers. I love going into my garage that is a constant 17 degrees and getting into my warm vehicle especially as we are currently sitting at -30 degrees with the wind chill. The cost of running the system is almost irrelevant to me given the benefits. I do have the boiler system with a hot water holding tank for household use... so all in one is great!

[@ZAPATTUBE]

That's nice.

[@billsmith5166]

Just a couple of ideas. You might want to consider installing a couple of ceiling fans if you haven't already. Heat will stratify even though you have floor radiant. It would be better to get that heat back down to where you live, even though you are comfortable now. It would allow you to turn you floor heat down a bit. I'm not sure I understand why you aren't just running a standard thermostat, but I'm sure that you have your reasons. You should seriously think about replacing your electric water heaters with a wall mount 95% condensing boiler. Your home looks well insulated, and I think you could easily save $100 a month net for heating your home in the middle of winter. You may be a bit afraid of the venting, but that's the easiest part (believe it or not). Just run it out an exterior wall and leave the exhaust higher than the intake and at least 12 inches away so the air intake doesn't suck in the exhaust. Depending on the length, you may be able to use 2" but for certain you could use 3". I'd recommend a Laars FT 100,000 BTU. They are about $1,800 through Supply House, and if you've gotten this far, you're smart enough to do a boiler. You could get a combi and get your hot water from it, but that's up to you. Being a bit long winded here, but you're thinking is backwards on the split duct heat pumps. They are BY FAR the best way to heat your home at least to 30 degrees. Just a guess, but using 14 cents as you cost for electricity, you may be able to heat for $70 a month at 30 degrees and $120 at 10 degrees with a 19-21 seer heat pump. You could probably get by easily with one 24,000 BTU or 2 12,000 BTU heat pumps, and there are very likely rebates available. Depending on your income, you may be able to get them for free or half price because of the Inflation Reduction Act (that program will probably be available in April at the earliest, keep your eyes open). Don't think twice, get split duct heat pumps, even if you love your radiant. Oh, they're easy to put in too. Forgive me if I'm telling you stuff you already know. Good luck! Thanks for the video!

[@NdxtremePro]

I wish they made a heat pump for ceilings. It would be perfect for their use case. They would do well to get a water tank setup attached to a heat pump to lower their bills. Then some radiators for the inside coming off the same system.

[@NoRoads2AllRoads]

you seem knowledgeable enough and I am entertaining the idea of installing something like this in my apartment in Europe. Ive lived in the US and love how everyone is DIY and I did a fair share of DIY in the US as well... an apartment in Europe things get trickier because, well apartments so logistics is so much different and all the constraints. Anyways, im moving to my own apartment in June and sinnce its the last floor and I have 600 sq ft terrace I can do thinngs at my own pace and entertain some DIY. Since it's a rooftop, I have also space above on the roof and was thinking... is it possible to have this radiant system but instead of a boiler, to have a Solar Panel? Solar Panels with a tank are standard here in this country for Water heating purposes, so I was thinking if a panel would make sense and how much different would the installation be? Seems it would be straighforward no? There are 330 sunny days without a single cloud and in the winter, houses are cold because construction here sucks (all concrete and barely no insulation if any). I do inntend to insulate as most I can but given temperatures at most drop to 40F with sunny day, would such a solar system work? Seems like pretty cheap and great savings given electricity prices here are 30 cents per kWh

[@YoarickColon]

The Ecosmart will adjust the temperature that is coming out of the heater, is controlled by the sensors and the computer of the water heaters. Don't need to turn off the breakers for the water heaters. The system look awesome.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks! Yeah I’ve realized that the sensor helps regulate the required energy to heat the water 👍🙂

[@J..O..D]

Thanks for the info guys. Absolute bargain in my opinion. I come from a place where underfloor heating is basically non existent so this info is greatly appreciated!

[@mrsmith2475]

Little suggestion. Tie your other two zones in just incase the seal leaks one day. You can also open one of the unused zones to incase your cold supply tenp. Increasing the cold water supply temp might increase the boiler efficiency. If you can find a ECOsmart efficiency graph you can dial in the boiler to run at its most efficient operating area. Great video👍

[@AshPagelsdorf42]

not expert.... dude you are way better than many other videos i have seen and your setup is beautiful! thanks for information and the level of detail you gave!

[@daveray6335]

I, too, live in northern Virginia and my primary HVAC stem is an electric heat pump with back-up resistance heating coils. My conditioned space is 4,400 sqft (9 ft ceilings). My budget electricity plan (12 month moving average) is $205 per month. I keep my house at 70degF in the winter and 74degF in the summer. The heating is much more expensive than the cooling. I have thought of installing radiant heating, but, at this point, I cannot justify they cost. Regardless, I appreciate and like your KZbin channel!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Cool! Thanks for watching!

[@kaneo1]

At a tankless fair demo 10 years ago, I asked about merging into a radiant flooring system. The rep said 'Oh, yeah, NO, don't use a tankless. You will be running the burner so randomly and so often, you will burn it out much faster than normal use.' So do research and get multiple opinions. Here in quake country, tanked is the way to go anyway, as it's an additional 30+ gallons of water available in case a pipe breaks.

[@edwardsaldana2879]

Dang you 2 people seem evenly yoked congratulations on meeting each other 💕god bless your lives

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you! :)

[@imwteach]

I have virtually the same system in my home (3200 ftsq). The system has been running for 12 years and the only issue has been the flow sense wheel in the Eco is really noisy. The Eco 24 also causes my lights to flicker. I will be replacing the Eco this summer with a heat pump to lower my electrical load.

[@kennethrea79]

Like your system. I have been working to put together a system for my house. My house was built 60 years ago before these systems came out. I worked at a shop that my boss in stall one of these systems. The main building we in stall a heat exchanger in the duck work and work shop had the plex pipe in stall in the floor. It worked fine. The only problem was he had a wood burning boiler. Where I lived I cannot in stall that kind of boiler. I have been looking at these on demand boiler and did not know if they would work. After seeing your video I am going to go buy one. So I can finish setting up my heating system and cut my gas bill for my furnace.

[@ChadAmI80]

Thanks for the price breakdown. We bought a 1940 colonial last year. It has a boiler and cast-iron radiators all on 1 zone. I'm planning to zone out the first floor and second floor of the house, and then run radiant tubing in the basement ceiling to heat the first floor. Your video has been very helpful in seeing the components and pricing.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Glad the video was helpful!

[@emolatur]

So regarding... the... control via multiple breakers... You're most likely not saving much by switching one off. Yes, the instantaneous draw is halved, but the unit will run twice as long to reach the same temperature. Half of the power, for twice as long, is actually the same amount of energy. You halve the kilowatts but double the hours, so the same number of kilowatthours. As to the others, talking about your costs being high... I don't think that has anything to do with it being a radiant floor. Your costs are high, but I suspect that's entirely because your energy source is electric, which comes with an associated high rate. There are direct-vent hydrocarbon-fired on-demand water heaters available, which ... listen, no responsible person would ever go on record calling any gas-fired appliance "DIY-friendly," but it's been done many times and if you follow the darn instructions they're really not that difficult. *Technically* the fuel efficiency is actually less, BUT the fuel is considerably cheaper, so your monetary efficiency would be higher. There are also heat-pump-based water heaters which I've encountered a few of - they're tank-type, and don't achieve nearly the heat output you would need to warm your place up from a cold start, but it might be worth looking at for just maintaining temperature. Disclaimer: I have not done *any* math on that, the idea literally just popped into my head as I'm writing this, so if you check it out and it turns out to be totally impractical, well, it was just a thought so don't set me on fire. Others have mentioned zone valves. If you're not having problems keeping even heat throughout the house, and you're okay with "all or nothing" heating, then great, there's no pressing need to add additional copmlexity... on the other hand, depending on lifestyle, you may be able to save a bit more money by lowering the temperature in parts of the house...

[@tealkerberus748]

I think he was saying they use both circuits to get the slab up to the preferred temperature, then shut one off if they just want to maintain that temperature and it's not excessively cold outside.

[@francoiscadieux738]

Thank you for showing your setup, gave me the push I needed to change my oil burning boiler for the Ecosmart and saved a ton of money on my heating bill. I chose to leave the circulator pump on 24/7 and modulate the output temperature when needed depending on the weather. Works great and cost is way down. Thanks for the help !

[@oldfirm8408]

Have you considered using an air-to-water heat-pump in combination with a large accumulator tank to heat your floor-heating water? A heat-pump with a COP of 3+ is not all that expensive and would reduce your heating-related power bill considerably. Your circulation pump would then draw its water from the accumulator tank. I set up such a system here on the west-coast of Norway about 12 years ago and it works wonderfully. I even use the heat pump to draw air from the house's ventilation thus ensuring that wonderful combo of fresh and warm indoor climate. If your accumulator has an extra heating coil you may even use it to preheat the cold inlet water that you feed into your consumption hot water tank.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Sounds like a great setup you have! We have extremely limited space in our utility room and the small wall mounted electric tankless is perfect. Heat pumps are the more efficient option for most people for sure.

[@tubetigeerr]

i really like the way you use the white tube between the connection. this makes future much easy to change tings, not need to ask a plumber. it can be easily done by ourselves.

[@vapurade]

Directly using electricity for heat is highly inefficient in most areas. The mini splits heating function will likely save you 1/3 to 1/2 on power usage. Possibly more depending on your climate and COP of the units you get.

[@truthseekerKJV]

And a natural gas heat system would be even less than that.

[@vapurade]

@@truthseekerKJV Yeah that’s the cheapest for sure. Doubt he has access to it. My house in freezing Northern Michigan is nearly 4k s/f and costs $200 heating to 71 with natural gas.

[@helmutreviews7204]

HVAC manufacturers really need to get on the stick and make Air to Water Heat pumps commonplace in the US. They are becoming the go-to in Europe. We already know how efficient air to air heat pumps are, but having air to water would make radiant heat very efficient and very affordable. Would even give natural gas a run for its money.

[@vapurade]

@@helmutreviews7204 I totally agree with that. The cheaper cooling cost would even help offset the heating cost difference between NG. In my area a geo install costs about 30k. That’s hard to justify. Those new Well-Connect systems that strip water of its heat and dump it in the septic are sorta a step in the right direction coming in a 5-6k for a install. But It’s only supplemental, and only time will tell the adverse effects running 2gpm of water through your well and septic constantly.

[@Archangel0804]

@@helmutreviews7204 Air to Air, HP totally suck in the dead of winter. If you own an excavator and have some land, you can put in a Geothermal pretty reasonably and they save a ton of money. Another great option is a wood boiler, especially if you have a wooded lot and don't mind processing some firewood. The new boilers are super efficient, and use half as much wood as they did just 10 yrs ago

[@sonycrack1]

Nice place 👍. FYI - a key selling point of the Ecosmart water heaters is their computer control that “ calculates the incoming temperature & flow rate to determine the appropriate power output to reach the the set temperature point “. Ecosmart also specifies their elements are Triac controlled meaning they are variable wattage.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks! I’ll have to look into that more! I didn’t realize it used variable wattage. Appreciate the tip!

[@averageliving4Life]

You guys are amazing! These videos are exceptional and will help millions of people thinking about diying their houses!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you for saying that. You rock!

[@John-tq4bf]

I am surprised it is costing 250/mnth for heat. I can only surmise you are still pretty leaky with the envelope. Any way was nice to see who and how you sourced the bits and pieces and it gives me a better idea of what to expect in Canada with our low cad/usa dollar conversion. All good information.

[@markdeane1503]

His cost per KW might be HIGH, making $250 reasonable compared to other forms of electric resistance heating methods.

[@younglee4666]

You are the man of true DIY Sprit! Thanks for sharing all the information.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks for watching!

[@alexmorgan7017]

Awesome video! I live in rural alaska. I have a 1100 sq house with a attached garage (including the sq footaged) i have a hot water on demand and two toyostove. One in the shop and another in the house. I burn 300 gallons of diesel every 4 to 5 months ($1300) for the diesel. Plus $280 for electric a month. So hope that wood stove will work. Im planning on building a shop with floor heating. That why i watched your video. Thanks again.

[@pmerritt4456]

Anyone deciding to dyi a radiant slab job should make sure to insulate the sides of your slab with twice the insulation thickness as what is under the floor. Outdoor temps are colder up shallow near the slab edges in winter than directly under the slab and much of your heat will exit where heat loss is greatest. Think about it, the natural ground is say 50 degrees F, but at the edges near the surface the ground temps could be well below 32F. Install "edge" insulation to extend to at least 18" below the surface. Just some solid advice......

[@aaronvallejo8220]

With high insulation grid powered thermal mass heating is a good idea because the grid is transitioning to renewables. I did the same strategy in my 100 year old house. I installed R100 in the attic and R35 under the floor boards and then I installed an electric coil thermal mass tiled floor slab under my bed and desk. Works great providing the best heat!

[@TheElevenBravo]

Just one thing: I would put the circulator to pull the water into the heating unit and NOT pulling from it. It just makes the life easier on the circulator as this method prolongs its life as it gets the water that is not as hot as the water exits the heating unit. That's all. Other than that, I really loved your system. In fact, I'm using it as the model that I'm building my own system based upon.

[@scottwebber652]

I haven’t really had a heat bill in 15 years, I m using an od wb .tho I have some electric cost the rest is basically free after initial install. Tho not as slick of a system it is extremely comparable in the comfort aspect. I’ve saved $30k in propane costs n gotta say “love it “!!!! 3500 square feet too !!

[@deadcell85]

Kudos on the diy! You might want to get a flow switch or a low water cutoff to cut the power on the electric boiler in the event of low water/zero pressure. Most local codes require it.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks! The electric tankless turns off when the flow of the water stops.

[@bossrosco2738]

18 KW?!!! Holy #$%@$! That's some serious power requirements. I'll take air source heat pumps any day of the week thank you.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Everyone has their own way of doing things. 🙂 thanks for watching

[@markdeane1503]

His system is more comfortable than any AIR system would be. A wood boiler will help.

[@MountainRoots]

If I could go back and do it again, I'd install a radiant floor heat system tied into our boiler setup. Nicely done👍

[@LittleMountainLife]

Yeah it’s pretty great! Thanks man!

[@SonniesPlace]

I need to go back and watch your installation video. I wasn’t following you guys yet. We’d love to install radiant heat in our basement.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Well this is a better video so be nice 🤣

[@SonniesPlace]

@@LittleMountainLife I’ll keep that in mind. 😂

[@Dana5775]

I have installed a single zone radiant heat system for a separate AUD ,430 sqf. I chose electric for some of the same reasons stated here. There is another reason, PV panels. (If the system used gas I could not take advantage of the solar regarding heat.). The heater I chose strongly recommended copper pipe coming in and out of the tankless water heater minimum 3’ from the unit. (Not PVC) and the convert to the pex at the floor. I love the shark bite, pex ,pvc plumbing system and it would have been way easier as well as making repairs or adjustments to the system. So I went with copper but made sure all components could be removed and serviced without desoldering copper joints. So far I love the soft heat ,virtually silent. It comes on in the early morning for a couple hours and it’s good all day and most of the night. ( 18 inches of thermal mass). You can have doors and windows open during the day(COVID) for business clients without losing the heat investment. ( I am in California) You’re not heating the air but the thermal mass. I went with an open system so the same heater supplies two sinks and a shower. The warm floor acts as a water tank (average of 98 degrees in the cold season) this makes it easier for the small tankless heater because the water is prewarmed before entering the heater and the fixtures provide a much quicker access to hot water ( saving waisted water.and energy).

[@natalcomunidad2862]

Hi, Dana, can you share more details about the system you used? Brands costs, etc? I share the same weather and are looking to build several ADU type setups.

[@imwteach]

Electric slab hydronic heat is the only way to go. Dont forget when you go from slab radiant heat to wood stove or mini split you are reverting to convection heat. Convection is totally different as humidity will be drastically effected. I would advise a air to water heat pump with an external wood boiler as back up or go solar with battery back up. My house with about 60 tons of concrete slab can withstand a day without power without loosing alot of heat.

[@rogerwhiting9310]

The only issue is the cost. The electric heaters must be CRAZY price to run. I would like to know what a years electric bill is.

[@larrymullins3853]

You should install a geo thermal unit . I am from Ireland who where the ground freezes in winter . I have worked on alot of houses that have it. It takes heat from 6- 12 foot under the ground and pumps it in to the underfloor heating via a heat exchanger . It has an initial cost but after that you are paying to run a pump only . Boilers are installed as a back up but rarely needed depending on how hot you want the floors ..

[@LittleMountainLife]

Solar heat will happen soon 👍

[@rogerg4916]

I put in the same type system in my pole barn house in the 80's It has worked well. I don't think you need a 140 degree water temperature. I run mine at around 100 degrees which was what was recommended at the time. If you lower the temperature of course the pump will run at longer intervals but overall I think it might be more efficient.

[@VTdarkangel]

It would definitely be more efficient because it takes less energy to move the water than it does to heat it. That pump's energy consumption is nothing compared to those heaters.

[@zachrich2487]

Not quite accurate, electric heat produces 3412 BTU per 1 kWH consumed at 100% efficiency. If you dial down your water temperature it will just take longer to output the required BTU's (all the while running your circulator pump longer, using more electricity). Given current energy prices, electric heat is in almost all cases NEVER more efficient than other options. Electric heat pump (air/air, hot water, etc.) is almost ALWAYS more efficient than other options besides wood.

[@320ceman]

I have installed modulating boilers and ,they are better for heating and hot water with the turn down ratio when not heating and just needed for domestic hot water

[@arthurperrea3714]

Hello nice video. I build a 1200 Sq ft slab on grade double wall construction which I s supper insulated I put in a open radiant floor system where I use two 50 gallon heat pump electric hot water tanks .this supply my heat and hot water .I keep my heat at 74 degrees for 8 months a year and it's cost me me about $750. A year at $00.10 AKH I live in upstate northern NY so it does get cold here.

[@mxm650]

You have a lovely little home! I really appreciate you sharing this information. I just started researching hydronic heating systems. I am thinking about adding a solar-powered system in my condo's basement as a supplement to the forced-air system it has. I'm off to watch your first video now!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you!

[@yagermon10]

Happy 2 year anniversary.

[@jeff8664]

Like the Redlegs hat ⚾️ !

[@rogerhuber3133]

Great explanation of the system. I'm glad it's working so well for you guys. I have a 14x16 building and had a Mitsubishi mini split installed. It's wonderful! Very economic and reliable and keeps the temp within 1* either cooling or heating. Also it's whisper quiet which is nice.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Awesome! Thanks for watching!

[@BobLobsiger]

so I did mini splits in my shop 28x40. I also did radiant tubes just in case and for resale. After being in my neighbor's shop who did radiant....I'm thinking strongly about adding it. His shop "felt" so much better than my shop. If you live a Menards they sell everything needed and they (via Nebco) will do the tube layout for you.

[@theinternets7516]

Basically a different type of masonry heater. Very cool.

[@goruby2]

Thanks, looking to build a small retirement home and do this.

[@graanco3446]

You should run multiple zones with thermostats in each section of your zones that is the whole reason for that manifold. The way you got it you dont even need a manifold.

[@LittleMountainLife]

The manifold allows us to turn off individual zones. For instance I usually keep the bedroom zone off because I don’t like to sleep in the heat.

[@oby-1607]

Very interesting. I wouldn't go electric as where I am at it is very expensive but if it works for you, hey its ok. It would be a great test if one could add in a propane tankless heater to compare costs. The more remote one is, the less options are out there.

[@LittleMountainLife]

For sure a test to compare would be good to see. Yeah we just aren't interested in relying on propane delivery up the mountain. Last winter a propane truck got stuck up here for several days and the people needing it were out of luck...

[@odthegreatest]

Thank you for the video and the information shared. Most amazing part was the ceiling height and little to no effect of this to the heating cost. Interesting. Thanks again.

[@richdobbs6595]

That pump brings back fond memories. I installed a radiant heating system when I finished off the basement in my last house. It featured radiant heating above the slab and below the ceramic tile flooring as well as underfloor heating for the kitchen tile floor. It didn't need to provide that much heat - just the comfort of having warm, rather than cold, tile floors. I used a side loop off of my existing water heater. Three separate temperature controlled loops, so I had three of those pumps that you have.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Here's the link to the first install video kzbin.info/www/bejne/inPQiXZunb2BgbM

[@Off-Grid]

Watched your setup back when Natalie and I was setting up our radiant floor sustem. Good to see it still working good.

[@trevorsmith9835]

Probably a redundant comment but you could probably go with a heat pump water heater to save a bunch on the radiant heat. Many of the utilities incentivize that as well although in my area they force you to use an installer who just marks up their cost with the incentive...

[@LittleMountainLife]

We will eventually have solar setup and that’ll help with running costs big time. Thanks 👍

[@t-shirtdudes212]

Awesome video. You talk about monthly costs. What’s your kw/hr cost in your area for hydro? We have a similar size house and are thinking about installing a similar system.

[@BillyBob-fd5ht]

I have a geothermal system with all the valves ,pumps air bleeders, I tossed it all have a sub pump in a bucket in and out flow no pressure just what the pump pushes simple no air traps.in a closed loop system

[@johnmattu7262]

What the heck, A young strong couple like yourselves should have a wood boiler system w/ electric back-up, I know you guys could easily cut enough wood to keep your butts toasty all winter. Nice system, I'm getting ready to install one in my barndominium, thanks for all the tips!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Haha. Thanks A wood boiler is a possibility but we have plans for a full solar electric setup sooner than that.

[@stevepailet8258]

Thanks for the update. What it has show me is that I sure dont want to use electric resistance to power my system. Even with the fluctuation in prices for propane going with a storage tank and a few solar panels, will be a much better way for me. Am thinking that the upfront cost might be a bit more, but the back end costs will be a lot more $$$ efficient. I live in zone 4 almost to zone three, so my heating needs are a great deal less than yours. I am using 7/8 inch pex al pex so I can go up to 500 foot per loop. What this means is just three loops. Really not a lot of reason to have balancing valves like yours. Three full port valves for me will be fine. I am looking to do 2 12k btu mini split heat pumps. They will not draw as much current as I am looking at 240 vac models.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Sure thing. Sounds like you have a solid plan!

[@JasonYouTube]

Right now Natural gas and propane would be a cheaper heating option over electric. Save over 1/2 to 1/3 price if they could use that or get access for it.

[@stevepailet8258]

@@JasonKZbin ​ electricity / resistance heating will always be the most expensive way to heat water.

[@JasonYouTube]

@@stevepailet8258 If he did a thermal mass build and then hooked up to off peak electricity rates , he could be pretty close to ng/propane rates. Off peak runs about 3 cents per kw and around 29.5 kw equals 1 therm. So around $.90 per therm for using electricity, off peak. Also electricity is 100 percent efficient where ng depends on boiler efficiency . So off peak might be better in some areas due to delivery charges

[@stevepailet8258]

@@JasonKZbin dont know what state he is in.. so cannot comment. Dont know about his thermal mass or inches of insulation nor what kind of air and moisture barriers he used. Lots of things to be considered. I know one thing in Canada they are looking at such things and the bottom line is they are building in a colder climate and using only enough power that they can heat the house with what is equivalent to a hair drier. 1500 watts and that is a base board heater.

[@hermanmunster8677]

$200 is just a little too much you may want to look into another way of heating your water. There are so many options like solar hot water along with propane or something. Electric would have been my last choice. And you did say you are not completely closed yet so I would say with some tweaking and finishing off you will see improvement. Its all good. You guys have done a great job! Love your videos! God bless.

[@LittleMountainLife]

We aren’t doing propane up on the mountain but solar is a possible option in the future. Thanks for watching!

[@saitam740]

Compression manifolds blow Copper manifolds with honey well zone valves are the way too go. Wouldn't need balance valves if you balances your loop size upon square footage off the zone or snow melt area

[@tealkerberus748]

Underfloor insulation is part of the cost of building a house. It doesn't matter for that how you're planning to heat it - without insulation you'll have higher heating bills and still have cold feet anyway!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Agreed!

[@rogerwhiting9310]

I think that system would be great with hybrid water heaters

[@mr.grotto]

So you have two more loops available for a year round green house. Nice setup

[@Gcrilla]

If it's having to run longer because of the lose of power(breakers turned off) it's pointless to turn breakers. Off you're paying for kw/hr. So it's still pretty much the same. They have boiler houses you can install outside, that are totally self-contained. Just put pellets or logs it and it manages itself. You could remove electricity totally from the system and have your fire outside the house

[@ljrodrig1]

Have a link to such a system?

[@masterdebater8757]

Newer air source heat pumps or ground source heat pumps are way more efficient than fuels or electric resistive heating by up to 5x in some cases. With the system your running or if you modify to use what i just mentioned and your systems is closed loop, you should consider a propylene glycol antifreeze with inhibitors designed to make your system components last a long time. That PG antifreeze should be mixed 50/50 with DISTILLED water. Doing this will reduce the risks of build up or material deterioration drastically if your using regular water at this time. It would be interesting if someone was to get one of those dual zone air source VRF units and run 2 large AO-Smith tanks without the heat exchanger on them and couple those tanks to to the dual zone air source heat pump. I am guessing you wont get much over 120F temps but the efficiency of the entire package goes way up.

[@kirkyorg7654]

slab house in a cold climate i would have put more than 2 inches of insulation minimum of 3 inches i would have in U k we put 4 inches under my brothers screed slab the under floor heat was awesome

[@davidhopkins7570]

You need a pressure relief valve on the isolation valves on the hot side coming out of you boiler, You currently have them plugged off.

[@LittleMountainLife]

We added the valve back after this video, thanks!

[@modernhousewright5335]

Great job again! Thank you for the cost analysis!! Well done video

[@LittleMountainLife]

Haha, thanks again! 🙃 appreciate you!

[@squeekhobby4571]

Great job and update. I remember the last video on radiant floor😎

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you!

[@pulporock]

Looks like a great setup. Your energy usage is very low, well insulated. $250/30 days= $8.33 a day. If your KWh rate is $0.12 (total guess) you are using 69.5kw a day. Cheers from Oz

[@JasonYouTube]

Electricity isn't that cost effective if you are basing against natural gas. Once natural gas gets around $1.44 a therm , then electricity will be better option. My 40 x 80 x 12ft garage shop costs me under $100 a month to heat in Minnesota . So less then $3 a day and most months its around $2 a day to heat. Have videos showing usage on KZbin.

[@priusskipper]

You both are awesome. Thank you for sharing.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks for watching!

[@emiljanolumaj4213]

Good job hope you’re enjoy it guys 👍

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you!

[@JohnComeOnMan]

Really appreciate you sharing all the details of your installation costs. 😎👍

[@davidmcg6940]

No one seems to talk about this, but now that you've been using it, how often, and for how long does your floor heating kick on for to keep your home at a comfortable temperature in the winter in a given 24-hour period?

[@seangreenhalgh7102]

I work for a contractor who specializes in radiant heat for 30 years and I have it in my shop 4400 sqf. You should never exceed 120 degrees loop temp A.you can crack your floor and B you loose efficiency above 120. A buddy ran his floor at 140 and by dropping it to 120 he cut his bill by a third and still very warm

[@LittleMountainLife]

We've been keeping the floor at 90 for cool days and 115 on super cold days.

[@evanross1582]

Awesome video, folks. Thank you!

[@Lucas-lov-plumbing]

Great job. You work with what you have.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you!

[@malcolmjaques9764]

Enjoyed your video. Suggestion regarding cooling(although probably a bit late) you could very efficiently run cool water through the same set of circuits and make a switch via a chiller and heat exchanger between winter/summer modes. Very effective and much more eco friendly than using Aircon. The cooling effect from the floor is very comfortable like the radiant effect with heating but in reverse( your bodies give up heat to the floor in cooling mode).

[@EdA-bz3bu]

Need to say what is the cost of your KW for reference because it could vary. I pay about $.1 KW but couple towns over they pay $.04 KW. Need to post the actual KW used for heating take the average summer month KW used for living and multiply that by 12 month (that’s your regular living electric usage) and minus that from your total year electric and what you have left is electric for heating. Keep up the good work. Others are learning from your wins and loses👍👍

[@roberto.peterson9917]

Have you considered setting water heaters lead lag so that they see somewhat of equal use ( lead lag takes turns being first on last off )

[@travismcvey]

That is insanely high for all the bigger your house is! My house is 1100/1200sf, built in the early 1900s with almost no insulation in the walls or attic, and most of the windows are single pane wooden. It's heated with an 80% forced air furnace, and with the temperatures in the low 30s during the day, and mid/low teens at night my heating bill gets up into the hight 100s, and will only occasionally break $200. Oh, and my water heater is gas too so around $35 of that is heating water. You've either seriously mis calculated what you're spending on heating, or seriously need to swap those electric hot water heaters out with gas ones. Electric is the most expensive way to heat.

[@stevecrawford6958]

"electric is the most expensive way to heat"- are you joking? depends on the cost of a kw in your area vs cost of natural gas, propane etc. one size doesn't fit all.

[@beardedguardian71]

Man that looks confusing but actually quite simple. You remind me of the actor Sean Astin from 50 first dates. Lol.

[@scottschuett7765]

Fantastic video, very well explained and a smart set-up to heat your house.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you!

[@timothywork160]

Thanks and have a wonderful life

[@user-cw3ik5gw2f]

Awesome . Respect! Thank you!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks for watching!

[@veeravatjamavan7422]

Amazing. Just saw this. Planning to do small addition to my house in long island NY. Would love to see all your video of your project. Please let me know where to find them. Thank you

[@controlfreq9346]

That monthly cost of 200-250 seems high to me. A Heat Pump Water Heater is much more efficient than that tankless. Have you looked into those? Yes, they cost much more than the tankless, but if you can save $100/mon you will recover the additional cost in 1-2 yrs. What temp do you run your water at? What temperature is your floor? An energy monitor would really help you trim cost to operate. When you put in your mini split, consider using your radiant for foot comfort and the mini split to even out the air temp. Thats my plan anyway, radiant sytem not up yet, but our central heat pump cost about 60/month to heat 2400sqft. Im just trying to warm the floor.

[@LittleMountainLife]

We have been keeping the heater set at 110 for the coldest days and it feels nice in the house. Sometimes we turn on the mini split heat at night just to knock down the chill for optimum comfort. Heat pump would certainly be more efficient but it takes up so much more space than the small electric tankless heaters require, and space is a premium in our small home. The running costs will be easier to swallow once we have a full solar panel setup.

[@samsegars8047]

Running 2 heaters does use 2x the power but doesn't consume 2x the energy. The heaters only run until they reach the setpoint. Doesn't make much of a difference running 1 or 2 it's going to take about the same amount of energy to get the floor hot. In the video you made if sound as if running 1 is more efficient. The only way running 1 over the other or both would be more efficient is if there was a difference is the efficiency of the units.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Yes I was incorrect about running the one element instead of two. I hadn't realized that the heater was smart enough to only draw the necessary energy and not extra.

[@groovyjazzbeats61]

AMAZING VIDEO and to top that...great host, excellent list of components I am so greatful for finding this video...all the best! 20 out 10 *****

[@nieldcreek2098]

$200 - $250 sure seems high for a 1500 sq ft house, even with the high ceilings.

[@tomwright3390]

Nice job - appreciate all of the details - best of luck to you!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you!

[@blakelarson3996]

For your mini splits, upsize the compressors and get heat exchangers (hydronic) then run your floor heating off that in the winter, instead of the electric tanklesses. Should be way less ongoing cost and more environmentally friendly!

[@Darnellp87]

Except there is no such thing as an A2W mini split, and an air source heat pump will be less efficient under about 20 degrees than the electric resistance they already have.... So there's that

[@blakelarson3996]

@@Darnellp87 Though I haven't researched it much, there most certainly appear to be hydronic units you can attach to a heat pump (search "air to water heat pump" in Google). I'm sure they could be attached to the same loops as the ductless indoor heads. You don't technically need to "upsize" the compressor since the loops would be run in opposite seasons, it likely just needs to be appropriately sized for your application and maybe have some valves installed Break even for most appears to be down around 0F as well, not sure where you got the 20 degrees number from...

[@cynthiaarmstrong7972]

Thank you for the great detail!

[@Karjis]

If you need to interact with the heating control due indoor being too toasty the setup relly does not work. It is easy as anything to get heat running, challenge is to keep indoor temp within half a degree all heating season. Floor heating is slightly slow so if outdoor temperature is changing fast the system needs to react already to heat change, not only indoor temperature. For example if outdoor temperature changes from -30 to -15 in a one day system needs to react to that before house gets too warm. Lack of too thermostats in loops seem strange to european, I have 12 loops in with automatic balancing in roughly 1500sqft and it is nowhere overkill. Usually you want two loops in bigger room with one loop close to windows and one for rest of the room to balance effect of window side being slightly cooler. Circulation pump control by heat seems strange, control the water temp so it stays as cold as possible and run the pump all season at low speed (pressure difference control is best for floor). Also good to have automatic start for pump at least once a month even during summer months. I had similar grundfos pump from early 2000's and it will get stuck if it is not run few times during summer. Actually with new pump I will not shut it down at all as it draws like 7 watts during summer as thermostats are mostly closing the loops and thus having really little flow. Btw heating of 1500sqft even with european high electricity prices is at worst roughly $150 when heating the water with sensible control. Now 10F outdoors and house is 72F (like always, 71-72) and system draws about 1,7kW from grid on average. As water is heated with air to water heat pump now power to water is around 4-5kW. But some days direct electric (9kW but controlled according to water heat so that water temp keeps within two degrees from setpoint that is calculated from outdoor temp) is used as our heat pump will shut itself down at around -13F (-25C) ambient temp, but for the region it is okay as those days are usually maximum few weeks during a winter, last winter none and this winter 3 days so far. Slightly different heat source but otherwise system is not that different in any other point than heating control.

[@casycasy5199]

nice job.would love to see video on how you flush the heaters.youll love the mini splits i use mine in the early and late heating season instead of my wood boiler and it works great

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you! Yeah I’ll have to do a flush video in a bit.

[@danf2588]

Nice system. Just a cautionary note. I would recommend you do not flush your system because it introduces oxygen rich fresh water that will cause corrosion to components of the system particularly the circulator. Also flushing the system adds more minerals which actuality builds up on the electric elements.

[@LittleMountainLife]

@@danf2588 by flush I was referring to just flushing the electric heater. Totally understand what you’re saying though. Thanks!

[@casycasy5199]

@@danf2588 thanks

[@vanloogoats]

@@LittleMountainLife don't need to flush heater if you use glycol and distilled water. They actually don't recommend it.

[@georgewettig1860]

thank you Don , awesome video! I love the hat too!!

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks! 👍🙂

[@maestrovso]

This is the second time YT recommended this video. I just notice you chose a resistive electric boiler which is the most expensive and inefficient source of heat. I hate to know what your heating bill is. If you are in the countries, I would consider mini split heat pump and if you must have hydronic floor heat, use a propane based boiler and only use it as a supplemental to the heat pump.

[@GENECARP]

It’s beautifully done, congrats

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thanks!

[@mygreenmtns1749]

Excellent video. I like the idea of those tankless water heaters as they would pair nicely with a substantial solar pv array. The cost for your system seems very doable. Very cool system and great explanation of the overall system and components. Thanks very much.

[@LittleMountainLife]

Thank you!

[@jetah50]

just have to add a solar roof and some battery backup! let me suggest a Rocket Mass heater as an alternative to the wood stove.

[@WontSeeReplies]

Very well and considerately explained.

[@calmeilles]

Did you consider using a heat pump? Either air source or - more expensive but more efficient - ground source? The investment cost is considerable, but the with coefficient of performance from 2.5 at the coldest outside to 4.0 - which means every KW of electricity put in you get at least 2.5 KW of heat out - that monthly $250 could be $100 or even less and you'd be looking at a payback period of about 5 years.

[@SmartEasyDIYer]

Hey good to see your setup again! Man your electric must be higher than mine. My building you probably remember is 2300 sq ft and my bill is usually $200 avg. it was $250 one month when we had a lot of below zero weather but that was crazy cold. Also that includes all my electric usage not just heat. Curious what your cost is per kWh?. Thanks for the update.

[@mondavou9408]

$250 seems so cheap to me out in Northern California! I'm curious what YOU pay per kWh?