Goldfish wrote:My aunt and uncle heat their house with a wood stove like that which pumps the heat in. It's definitely toasty in there in winter. They've got a non-attached garage (which they bought at a garage sale and moved) that the slab is heated by the stove as well. Knowing that, I think there would be enough heat to heat the driveway.
Goldfish wrote:You don't look like you're in the cities, and if they did check up on ya I bet they'd only check by the edges to see that the foam is there being they can't see under a concrete slab...
assateague wrote:Thank you for reminding me how far behind I am when it comes to firewood this year. Got a pile of wood just waiting to be cut and hauled, free for the taking. Mostly maple, but just haven't got to it yet. Dammit.
assateague wrote:I haven't got to it yet mostly because it's been so hot. I enjoy splitting by hand, but when we go cut, it's usually a pain in the ass. When they timber land around here, they only take the pines, leaving the hardwood (and gum) piled up in heaps. Getting through that mess takes some doing, but after you get the hang of it it goes pretty quick. Worst part is cutting the gum only to throw it aside, but there's not much other way to get it separated. We tried a tractor and chains one year, but that just made a mess like you've never seen.
Westie25 wrote:When you say gum, you talking about sweet gum?
Westie25 wrote:When you say gum, you talking about sweet gum?
assateague wrote:Westie25 wrote:When you say gum, you talking about sweet gum?
Yep. That stuff doesn't put off heat for crap. Burns ok, but no heat. Lot of people around here like oak, but I'll take maple any day.
Eric Haynes wrote:
I know there is plenty of heat for it, but I have heard that without the constant heat, it will freeze up when a normal pad wouldn't. This is supposed to be due to the polystyrene insulation beneath the concrete, which is required by code. While the insulation stops the heat from going into the ground, it also stops the heat from the ground to rise up into the pad.
In reality, I don't see that as a problem, but the cost in propylene glycol, at $55 a gallon could off set my wallet more than I'd like. My boiler holds 350 gallons, and there would probably be another 30 in the lines. Right now I just run about 5% glycol through the whole system, which I don't really need because it runs 24/7, but was given to me for free.
Bootlipkiller wrote: all the mallards I killed today had boners do to my epic calling.
3legged_lab wrote: The town I live in sits on top of a huge geothermal hot spot, so it works basically the same as you plan on doing.
3legged_lab wrote:Eric Haynes wrote:
I know there is plenty of heat for it, but I have heard that without the constant heat, it will freeze up when a normal pad wouldn't. This is supposed to be due to the polystyrene insulation beneath the concrete, which is required by code. While the insulation stops the heat from going into the ground, it also stops the heat from the ground to rise up into the pad.
In reality, I don't see that as a problem, but the cost in propylene glycol, at $55 a gallon could off set my wallet more than I'd like. My boiler holds 350 gallons, and there would probably be another 30 in the lines. Right now I just run about 5% glycol through the whole system, which I don't really need because it runs 24/7, but was given to me for free.
Without the glycol you risk freezing up because you are above the frost line in the ground. I'm sure it varies in different areas, but I think around here they say its at about 24". If you bury your lines below the frost line they wont freeze, but they wont heat your driveway very well. Odds are (if you run your fire and circ pump 24/7) you could cut back on the glycol ratio and be fine, but if you do break a line you have two choices 1) shut off the circuit to the driveway, 2) start cutting up that new driveway.
There are several places here that use it keep snow off with great results. The town I live in sits on top of a huge geothermal hot spot, so it works basically the same as you plan on doing. A few years ago the city installed H/W pipes in all of the sidewalks down town as well as the cross walks. I think the entire college is heated with geo heat, pretty sure they been involved in developing some new technologies with it too.
Bootlipkiller wrote: all the mallards I killed today had boners do to my epic calling.
assateague wrote:3legged_lab wrote: The town I live in sits on top of a huge geothermal hot spot, so it works basically the same as you plan on doing.
People wouldn't be nearly so proud of it if they called it a "baby volcano".
Bootlipkiller wrote: all the mallards I killed today had boners do to my epic calling.
3legged_lab wrote:assateague wrote:3legged_lab wrote: The town I live in sits on top of a huge geothermal hot spot, so it works basically the same as you plan on doing.
People wouldn't be nearly so proud of it if they called it a "baby volcano".
I think it would be considered more of a 'fault line' than a volcano. But we arent too far away from Crater Lake aka the former Mt Mazama.
This link has a pic of our mayor cooking an egg on the sidewalk in winter. http://ci.klamath-falls.or.us/departments/works/water/geothermal
Our old shop was in the old downtown industrial area where we had geo heat in the floor. When the pump worked, it was awesome. I could come in to work on a winter morning on a 10 degree day and the inside of the shop was still 78*, I'd get there first and open the door to cool it off inside. The best part about a hot slab concrete floor was a warm toilet to sit on in the morning.
3legged_lab wrote:Assa could probably teach you how to make corn whiskey cheaper than 55/gallon. It wont freeze, correct?
assateague wrote:I don't mind short cords near as much as I hate green wood sold as seasoned. Pisses me off.
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