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March 1, 2008
Is Ambient Heat Sufficient for a Bathroom?
We are doing a gut renovation of a brownstone and in the course of moving things around we've removed a steam riser that previously ran through our bathroom. We're trying to determine whether the ambient heat from the house will be sufficient to keep the bathroom from being chlly. It's an interior bathroom with no window and the house is usually pretty warm. We are installing Sun Touch electric radiant heat in the floor. Looking for input regarding whether an additional ceiling heating unit or electric towel warmer (doubling as a heaing element) would be advisable to supplement ambient heat?
Comments
My house, which has hot air heat, was designed without hot air registers in the bathrooms. They were always pretty cold. We had a hot air register added to the ground floor half bath many years ago and [finally, after 33 years] had a combination exhaust fan and heat lamp combination* added to the top floor bathroom. Ambient heat was NOT enough.
*I used the heat lamp/ fan because I was reluctant to recess an electric resistance heater/exhaust fan combo into the ceiling because of [possibly excessive] safety concerns.
Posted by: Bob Marvin at March 1, 2008 10:44 AM
If it's internal you'll need a fan anyway and many fans come with a heat lamp. It's so cold out right now I hate the idea of taking a shower without being able to crank up the heat.
Posted by: guest at March 1, 2008 10:45 AM
We just did the exact same thing as you (riser removed, radiant heat installed). Radiant heat in the floor has been perfectly sufficient to keep the bathroom warm. We have a regular exhaust fan, without a heater, and it has been fine.
Posted by: guest at March 1, 2008 11:03 AM
Do you mean the rest of the house has radiant and the bathroom has none or the whole house including the bathroom has radiant heat? If it's the former, you need heat in a bathroom unless you like being cold and wet.
Posted by: guest at March 1, 2008 3:29 PM
Thank you 11:03. The radiant floor heat is in the bathroom and your comment just saved us $2000.
Posted by: Jane at March 2, 2008 10:27 AM
To Quest @ 3:29, the house as a whole has steam heat. The only heat source in the bathrooms in question will be Sun Touch electric radiant heat under the floor tile.
Posted by: Jane at March 2, 2008 11:06 AM
Basic physics suggests that an interior, non-top-floor room will be just as warm as its surroundings.
The house is "pretty warm," and you also have radiant heat in the bath. I would worry about more substantive issues.
Posted by: cmu at March 2, 2008 11:55 AM
Where did you buy the Sun touch system?
Local or ordered? Did you DIY? Have you started yet... ?
Posted by: Bergen at March 12, 2008 2:51 PM
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