Radiant floor heat in bathroom

[eSJayDee]

I'm probably going to re-tile my 2 (small) bathrooms.

They're currently heated w/ (glycol filled) electric baseboards (240v).

For a few reasons, it's not practical to convert to 120v, so I'd be staying w/ 240v.

 

My main question/concern is will one of these systems be adequate for heating the bathroom?

 

Each bathroom is roughly 30 sq ft of floor plus bathtub area. I wouldn't be able to get more than about

15 sq ft of wire down which would be about 200 watts. The space is currently heated by a 500w heater.

 

My other question is it worth the $ & effort?

 

I'm perfectly happy w/ my baseboard system (have them thru-out the house) so the primary reason I'd be switching is aesthetics. Figure it'll cost roughly $300 doing it myself (which would mean roughly tripling the cost of this project). It'd be nice not to have the extra clutter of the heater along the wall but the bathrooms aren't exactly a thing of beauty.

As background info, I live outside Albany, NY. My house is ~22 yrs old & I think worth currently about $180k.

 

Any other input would be appreciated. TIA.

[stuckincincy]

I'm probably going to re-tile my 2 (small) bathrooms.

They're currently heated w/ (glycol filled) electric baseboards (240v).

For a few reasons, it's not practical to convert to 120v, so I'd be staying w/ 240v.

 

My main question/concern is will one of these systems be adequate for heating the bathroom?

 

Each bathroom is roughly 30 sq ft of floor plus bathtub area. I wouldn't be able to get more than about

15 sq ft of wire down which would be about 200 watts. The space is currently heated by a 500w heater.

 

My other question is it worth the $ & effort?

 

I'm perfectly happy w/ my baseboard system (have them thru-out the house) so the primary reason I'd be switching is aesthetics. Figure it'll cost roughly $300 doing it myself (which would mean roughly tripling the cost of this project). It'd be nice not to have the extra clutter of the heater along the wall but the bathrooms aren't exactly a thing of beauty.

As background info, I live outside Albany, NY. My house is ~22 yrs old & I think worth currently about $180k.

 

Any other input would be appreciated. TIA.

 

I'd stay with what you already have. That they are radiant heaters with oil jacketing that retains heat is a plus over the more common baseboard units with elements and finning. I'm not sure what you mean by 15 sq ft of wire - typo?

 

You might want to spend that $300 in racks and/or tasteful wall-mount storage cabinets. A fresh coat of paint to spiff it up, perhaps.

 

Also, one of those cushioned toilet seat kits. Don't laugh - you will really learn to like it. They don't last all that long - but for 20 bucks every year or so...

 

I consider them one of life's small luxuries, the concept being that taking care of one's own as* is a desirable goal...

 

[eSJayDee]

I'm not sure what you mean by 15 sq ft of wire - typo?

 

Yeah, maybe that is a bit vague.

 

My bathroom is roughly 5'x8' including tub, which yields roughly 5'x6' excluding the tub.

Included in that is the toilet (floor mounted) and vanity. You're not supposed to install the heating elements either near the toilet drain (it'll melt the wax) or under an enclosure (vanity as heat will build up).

 

Were I to buy a mat (where the wire is woven into a mesh mat), max std size I could use would be 3'x5'. Were I to get just a wire (about 80' linear ft) and lay my own pattern, I still could only cover less than 20 sq ft.

 

When laying the wire, there's a min & max distance (2"-3") that you must maintain between "rows". 15watt/sq ft is the max allowed output of these things, so I'd be replacing a 500w heater w/ like max 250w, ie 1/2 the output.

[Dr. Fong]

If you're looking to spend the money and get any of it back in the "value" of your home just stay with what you have. Because, despite what HGTV wants you to believe, you won't recoup any of it as added value to your home. If you want to do it as a project to get more enjoyment out of your home then go ahead and get it done.

[Alaska Darin]

Radiant floor heat in a bathroom is a huge selling point. Chics love that stuff.

[Fan in San Diego]

Do they work worth beans? I remember old water radiators and they were always cold.

[Mr Info]

Another option I did was install heated tile mats (electrical - 120v, low watt & low cost) with a digital thermostat control under the tile in all our bathrooms. I have them turn on in the morning so that when anyone gets up, the floor is warm. Obviously, this is only programmed in the cool months. However, we have our HVAC system feeding the bathroom. Can you extend the ductwork for whatever system you have for the rest of the house into the bathroom? It's a nice feature and, as someone mentioned, chicks (my wife) love it.

[eSJayDee]

Another option I did was install heated tile mats (electrical - 120v, low watt & low cost) with a digital thermostat control under the tile in all our bathrooms. I have them turn on in the morning so that when anyone gets up, the floor is warm. Obviously, this is only programmed in the cool months. However, we have our HVAC system feeding the bathroom. Can you extend the ductwork for whatever system you have for the rest of the house into the bathroom? It's a nice feature and, as someone mentioned, chicks (my wife) love it.

 

This is what I'm proposing except that it's less practical for me to switch to 120v as I'll be replacing a 240v baseboard heater. You can either purchase ready made mats w/ the wire/heating element woven into them or separate wire that you have to lay yourself (which is more work, but in this small space you have the advantage that you can manage to squeeze in a bit more wire therefore more heating capacity. IDK if a 15 sq ft mat (roughly 210 watts) is adequate to replace a 500w baseboard. I should be able to get 264 watts (you can't "cut" the system) if I lay my own wire.

 

Personally, I don't think it's worth putting in programmable thermostats in these locations. Trivial savings vs extra effort to program them when I lose power (which is frequent )

 

I have these baseboards (of varying wattage) thru-out the house. I do have central A/C but no duct work to either bathroom.

 

Mr Info, how big is your bathroom & what sort of wattage did you install? (I realize your heating requirements in VA probably aren't as much as mine here in NY.)

 

FWIW, I'm leaning toward installing it. Not so much for the toasty feet but rather less clutter in already small, cramped spaces.

[Just Jack]

Personally, I don't think it's worth putting in programmable thermostats in these locations. Trivial savings vs extra effort to program them when I lose power (which is frequent )

My thermostat has a couple AA batteries in it to keep its programming when the power goes out, and it's not a top of the line unit.

[Mr Info]

My thermostat has a couple AA batteries in it to keep its programming when the power goes out, and it's not a top of the line unit.

True for me as well.

 

eSJD - the mats I installed under the tile are not intended to heat the bathroom; just to warm the tile. The three bathrooms I installed them in are varying sizes - from 6x10 to 12x14. I also installed it under the kitchen tile as well and that area is much bigger than any of the bathrooms. They all work great. I'll have to get back to you on unit wattage.