I have radiant heat installed in the ceiling of the basement.
I will be dry walling the ceiling soon, is there any special considerations that I should do.
I am thinking about the heat and the taped joints etc.
Would it be better to use fiberglass tape instead of paper?
Is there a special type of mud that should be used?

 

Is this electric of hot water heat?

Two things come to mind: don't puncture the wires or the pipes.

I think use paper tape and I think I would use setting mud like Durabond or EasySand for the tape bedding coat. Durabond is especially hard to sand so don't leave any humps or ridges. Easy Sand is sandable but it's always important to lay it down well enough not to have to do much sanding.

There may be some specs about the drywall over the radiant heat. I don't know about that.

 

You should have a vaper barrier, they really don't sell them in HD. you have to go to a heating supply house or a place that does insulation. then you need insulation for ceiling then you put your sheet rock. remember the heat is for the 1st floor not the basement. put like a 1 inch gap between the tubbing and the vapar barrier.

 

I've painted a lot of houses that had ceiling heat. Most of them were built before the advent of the 'sticky' mesh tape.

Can you inspect the heat system in ceiling for brand info and maybe contact the manufacture for their advice?

 

Hi rrekih, this is all just my opinion so add the grain of salt. I personally have always considered access to that ceiling and the plumbing, electric, and ease of making changes to be a strong advantage, thus something removable would fit my nature. But maybe covering it up would shorten my to-do list so perhaps I'm short sighted .

The water temp you should be running is lower than normal baseboard so the surface temps will be lower than the walls above most baseboards. Thus I see no problems. I like to see insulation and below that a radiant barrier. It somewhat depends upon how much heat you want to add to the basement. If your basement is also heated, then essentially there is no loss. I'm not sure why a vapor barrier would be needed, as the humidity down there will need to be controlled anyway.

You are moving into the right time of the year as less heat is needed so you won't cook the new mud. But often, a contractor will need to add some heat just to get the mud to dry. I've seen basements that took a week before the second coat could be added.

Just double check your before list. That's everything you need to do up there before you close it in. Here are some helpers:
1. Are you sure the amount of radiant is correct?
2. Have you air sealed all penetrations, house to foundation, plumbing, chimney, electrical, and overhangs?
3. Have you installed any spare conduit for future wiring?
4. Have you mapped everything out and taken pictures so when you do need to open it up, you will know where to start?
5. Radon mitigation in place
6. Replacement air for IAQ reasons.
7. Combustion air supply?
8. Data wiring to all rooms above?

That's enough, enjoy

Bud