Any HVAC peeps here? I need some help.

[PurpleChicken]

So your master bedroom is directly over your living room?

Our place is only 860 sq ft. It half a duplex. Our stairway is in
the living room so when the stove turns on the heat rushes up
the stairs. Our stove is on a thermostat and I only keep the
living room between 60 and 70 so we dont' bake ourselves.


Air flow is definately your problem, and solution. Does you kitchen
get warm? Is the other bedroom over the kitchen? Does that have
a register? What kind of furnace(I know it's busted) is in the house
now?

 

[SterlingAcres]

The master is above the kitchen and living room, the boys' room is above the living room. The floor register is right at the doorways upstairs. The kitchen is chilly, but the bathroom is always freezing. Like the air doesn't get far enough into the kitchen to rise up the steps.

It was a coal furnace. They started burning other things in because the didn't want to pay for coal. We spent 2 weeks scrubbing the soot off the walls in this place before we could coat it with sealer primer. It was disgusting. Right now, the only heat is the wood stove.

 

[Msbear]

I grew up in a 200 yr old farmhouse with forced air furnace and woodstove going for heat. We had vents that were actually cut into the floor in each upstairs room with cool wrought iron vents with louvers. You can buy some now with fans in the vents to pull hot air up. They weren't that big... maybe 10 in. diameter.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Wow. I'm sure it's frustrating but that house sounds so cool. I love
those old farm houses.

Remember the thing about air flow is it must complete a full circle.
Blowing air into a room without giving it somewhere to escape to
defeats the whole idea.

So the register is in the upstairs hallway, not the bedroom?

It really sounds to me that two 10" vents with fans blowing into
the bedrooms from the living room cieling would solve your problem.
You would have to keep your bedroom doors open most of the time
unless you vent into the hallway.

As for the bathroom I would just use a small electric heater when you
are in there. I put one in the wall of my bathroom so we heat it up
before showering and get out of the shower into a super warm room.
The mirror doesn't even fog up.

Was the original furnace forced air or did it heat radiators?

 

[SterlingAcres]

This house was built in 1910 or something.
I believe the furnace was forced air, since there was only one duct from the basement to the living room floor. Nothing else. The furnace has been removed and the hole sealed.

The floor register IS in the hallway. So you'd recommend closing it and putting two in the bedrooms with fans? That'd work I suppose. My major concern was the bathroom, but I can hack it if I have too.

And again, THANK YOU.

 

[PurpleChicken]

There's your problem. Heat rises but doesn't produce enough pressure.
Plus all it would do is cool and drop down the stairs to your kitchen.

One vent fan in each room would work wonders for you. You would
control the flow by how much you open the vent and the size fan you
use. Realistically you can do it all for under $200 if you buy nice grills.

Best of luck with it SA!!!

 

[SterlingAcres]

Thanks PC. You're the man

 

[PurpleChicken]

Stop thanking me. You'd help me out in a heartbeat.

Anyways, now you got me surfing. Check these out. Built in
fan and thermostat.

http://www.atrendyhome.com/durebofan.html