Radiators - not enough heat 2nd floor


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Old 11-25-03, 07:24 AM
K
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Radiators - not enough heat 2nd floor

Hi all - I know nothing about radiators - My daughter is having a problem with "uneven heating" She turns heat up (thermostat on 1st floor) hoping the 2nd floor will warm up. Unfortunately all that happens is the 1st floor unbearably hot, 2nd floor uncomfortably cold.


Furnace appears to be about 15 years old, heating costs are reported to be about $1,400 per year - total sq footage of her 1/2 of 2 family home is only around 500 sq ft living area. Home is in dire need of insulation - we'll tackle that next, but the uneven heating needs to be addressed now.

Any suggestions on how to determine cause and hopefully resolve this?
 
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Old 11-25-03, 08:08 AM
MusicField
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How much insulation is currently in the attic? If there isn't enough, the first thing that should be done is bringing this up to snuff. It may be that by bringing the attic up to R-30, the coldness upstairs will go away.
 

Last edited by MusicField; 11-25-03 at 01:52 PM.
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Old 11-25-03, 02:07 PM
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Are these hot water radiators? Has she bled them to get the air out of the second floor radiators?
 
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Old 11-25-03, 03:19 PM
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If the radiators are cast iron upright ones, are they hot from top to bottom when the heat is running? If they are copper finned baseboard, are the pipes at each end hot? Start with a few simple asessments and we'll work our way up.

Ken
 
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Old 11-25-03, 06:54 PM
K
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not enough heat 2nd floor answers

>How much insulation is currently in the attic? <

Definately not R-30 seems more like 19


>Are these hot water radiators? Has she bled them to get the air out of the second floor radiators?<

No I haven't bled them - I could do a search to find instructions or someone could clue me in on how to do that.

> If the radiators are cast iron upright ones, are they hot from top to bottom when the heat is running? <

I know they're hot I'll check tomorrow to see if they are equally hot top to bottom

I've been told that I should buy a varity vent for each radiator - never heard of them - but am told they are simple to install , that they just screw in (w/teflon tape)
 
 

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