Energy efficient Baseboards

[MasterPlumbersKeymaster]

I have seen a previous This Old House show that installed a forced hot water baseboard system that would give off 30% more heat than a typical finned baseboard, without raising the temperature of your furnace. The baseboard did not use the conventional fins inside, but some kind of circular wire mesh around the copper tubing that was used to radiate the heat. Can someone tell me who makes this, and where can I purchase it? I have tried to write the This Old House show, but they are swamped with other questions and cannot answer me at this time. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

[GuestParticipant]

Spirotherm made this wire-wrapped baseboard. I can no longer find it on the web. Perhaps you can call them to see if they still make it. http://www.spirotherm.com/english/reps/
It was more expensive than fin tube baseboard. Commercial or high-output baseboard from other manufacturers will do the same; the difference is the additional surface and number of fins.

[kenny bParticipant]

bottom line: a btu is a btu.
it dosn’t matter how it gets in the room its still a btu.
you make it sound as if the 30% more output is going to save you money.
kenny b

[GuestParticipant]

To Kenny B

I am not trying to save money. I do not have the 19 feet of wall space to install conventional baseboard. I only have 15 feet available. I need 19,500 BTU’s to heat the room and I was hoping that a higher output baseboard could achieve this. I’m sorry if my question offended you.

[kenny bParticipant]

I’m sorry I misunderstood your question. sounds like you could be in the market for a kick space heater or small convector.

[GuestParticipant]

The Slant-Fin Multipak 90 and R series flat-top baseboard covers can take commercial fin-tube that will exceed the output from an 18-foot space. The 90-14 cover with the C340 element will give the required output. The cover is 14″ high with a sloped top, so it might be less attractive than standard baseboard small size but it will do the job. The 95-10 with the C340 element is ten inches high with a flat top that might be a choice. You require about 1100 btu per linear foot at 180F, so this is a large-capacity requirement. Other manufacturers make commercial baseboard as well.

[GuestParticipant]

Your heat loss estimate of 19,500 btuh for the room indicates that you have a room that is either:

a. 20 12 feet if uninsulated as done before 1960.

b. 20 25 feet if insulated to 1970’s standards

c. 20 40 feet if insulated to today’s standards.

If this baseboard is going to heat an uninsulated room as in a above, you will save a bundle of money and can fit standard baseboard in if you blow in insulation and can add batts to the ceiling and floor. This is the greatest money saver. If this is an insulated room, then this must be the banquet room.

[GuestParticipant]

I have two rooms that were made into one large kitchen area. Originally I had a 14 ft 14 ft kitchen and a 12ft 20 ft family room. These two rooms are now one very large kitchen. As a result of this modification I had to remove one 6 ft baseboard that was on a dividing wall. I think that I am going to try the higher output slant fin baseboard and raise my temperature to 200 degrees. This will also be placed on its own zone. We are also going to change the furnace to a new cast iron boiler. The house was built in 1989 and the boiler has a steel tank. Do you think that this will work?

[GuestParticipant]

It should work.

[GuestParticipant]

Thanks to all of you for your help. If this doesn’t work, I can always install a kick space heater as Kenny B mentioned under one of my kitchen cabinets.

[Author]

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