20 x 30 (1 & 1 1/2) Thermal mass location

Started by Chuckca, March 10, 2008, 12:38:18 PM

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Chuckca

I' ve been playing around with the idea of adding a TM,  But, not sure what would be the BEST location.  d* Any ideas would be appreciated.

OPDATE:  Yes, we're back on track.  My building dreams/project came to a hault when I was diagnosed with (ALM) Leukemia in 07.  I'm now in remission and headed for a complete cure.  Had a complete Bone marrow transsplant on Thanksgiving day 2007.  So far, no rejection.  2007-2008 spent 280 days at UCSF Medical Center (six admissions).  [cool]

Thanks
Chuck

MountainDon

I my goodness; I'm glad to hear that things are looking up for you. That's an ordeal to go through.

Re the 20 x 30... what type of foundation.floor are you considering?
Just because something has been done and has not failed, doesn't mean it is good design.


Chuckca

If all goes well with our land purchase.....we'll be over a full basement.  For sure a blocked crawl space.  I'm also trying to work in a set of basement steps.  Flooring:  sub will be 1 1/8 glued and screwed.  Then Bella wood over the sub.  I also though about using John's Sunroom plans.... d*    [cool).

Hope thiss helps!

Thanks
Chuck

John Raabe

Chuck:

Glad to have you back on the forum... Here's to a quick and full recovery!

I think thermal mass is best when spread out and able to see the sun. An insulated floor slab works well.

So, as an exception to my own advice ;), I have a thermal air chamber in the middle of my house next to the woodstove chimney and that helps moderate the ups and downs of the daily swing. I can recirculate warm air from the ceiling down to the floor through it.
None of us are as smart as all of us.

glenn kangiser

Hadn't heard of your illness, Chuck but hope things keep looking better.
"Always work from the general to the specific." J. Raabe

Glenn's Underground Cabin  http://countryplans.com/smf/index.php?topic=151.0

Please put your area in your sig line so we can assist with location specific answers.


Bishopknight

John's right, insulated slabs are excellent for thermal mass.

I've been mulling over a thermal passive solar slab for a while now with more windows on the south facing side and less on the north. Then some rhodendrons / pine trees for the brutal northern winds.

Something I'm considering is taking the 20x30 plan here and going earth berm on 3 sides with surface bonded dry stack concrete block. Then with 2x6 or 2x8 stud on the south facing side. My goal is to have my house be heated and cooled by the sun and earth as much as possible.

Best of luck with your remission.


Sassy

Glad you are feeling better, Chuckca! :)    What an ordeal...
http://glennkathystroglodytecabin.blogspot.com/

You will know the truth & the truth will set you free

mvk

Chucka
Glad to hear things are looking up for you, I had a heart attack 6 years ago, sure gives you a different perspective huh. :) ;D

John "I have a thermal air chamber in the middle of my house"

John is this like an empty flue open at top, bottom? Masonry?  With fan?  Is it directly heated by the stove?  Would you do it again?  Change anything?

I've posted about my interest in masonry stoves but I have also thought about putting a wood stove inside a masonry box as a kind of hybrid. Let the heat move by convection through the box and out. I like working with stone and I thought that if I put in the footings for the future masonry and chimney and wood stove I would have heat and could go back later and build something. I think that if you had a glass fronted stove and then a stone box around it it could look nice and it would have the advantage of collecting a lot of the heat and transferring this slowly. I would put it inside the house and not on a outside wall Of course this would take time to heat up but this will be our full time house and I'm thinking that you could have a fan and damper to move the heat directly into the room if you left the house in winter and wanted to warm up faster when you returned. What's everybody think of this? Crazy?

Bishopknight

I would like to do what your planning not sure how though. Like to see what you come up with. FWIW this is what I think. In southern New Hampshire I don't need much south glass to heat a well insulated house on a sunny cold day 15 or 20 % of the south wall area. Masonry floors aren't the best way to store heat passively (don't know what is). If you put in enough glazing to directly heat it you will over heat the house when the sun shines and lose tons of heat the rest of the time. Also this limits the shape of the house and whatever is in it that covers or shades the floor also reduces the effectiveness of the heat storage.  At some point how much glass you have must offset adding more insulation (don't really know that either). I do know that I will want more glass then I should use to optimize my heat lose with 7500 degree days. Any mass you have is either heating you or your heating it. I built and lived with a high thermal mass greenhouse and also a direct heated tile floor with ½" cement grout base for 25 years.

Chucka

I think that if you are in a milder and sunny part of CA you will have more options as far as direct heated solar mass. If you are in the cloudy part I would really think about the mass thing.

Like to hear from anybody about passive solar, know that lots of you are doing part time cabins so you can throw another log in the stove and relax. :)

Mike