Hot water baseboard heater in basement - install

[MrChaos]

We are in the process of re-finishing/upgrading a previously finished basement. The existing setup has the heater recessed into the wall installed directly on to the foundation wall.

With the reno we are re-framing most of the wall and adding spray foam insulation and would like to move the heater to the finished side of the wall.

In order to get the supply/return piping inside the wall 2 - 90s will be needed. One to turn in perpendicular and into the wall and another to turn it up inside the wall.

From what I can see all of the end caps are made for the piping to go down and through a floor. Would the normal process be to modify the cap to allow the pipe to exit out the back?

Thanks,
Steve

 

[Dana]

A picture or two would be useful here.

BTW: Is the framed wall up against a poured concrete foundation? There are good/better/best ways of insulating foundation walls, as well as some true mold-farming operation methods (which are unfortunately the most common.) Some of the particulars are climate-sensitive, so it would be useful to know roughly where in Ontario the house is located.

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Tom Sawyer]

The short answer is yes, make a hole in he back of the end cap

 

[MrChaos]

Old setup with the baseboard recessed into the wall. Wood framing directly on wall with fiberglass insulation.

New setup is framing set off wall about 1 1/2" and spray foam insulation directly on foundation wall.

Located in Hamilton, Ontario.

Thanks,
Steve

 

[Dana]

It looks like the spray foam does not quite go over the top edge of the foundation, air-sealing the foundation to the foundation sill & band joist, nor does it seal the exterior side of the framing bays. It's better to correct that now, while it's still open and accessible. The foundation sill/band joist air leakage in most homes is larger than all the window & door crackage, and it's at the bottom of the stack-effect stack, maximizing the stack effect drive. Seal the foundation to the 2x4 wall at the top too, which will allow you to insulate it with cheap fiber insulation for a significant thermal performance boost.

Ideally there would be at least R4 rigid foam (1" EPS is good) under the bottom plate of the studwall as a thermal and capillary break, to prevent moisture wicking from the slab into the structural wood, and keeping the wood above the slab temp in summer so that it doesn't take on moisture from the room air during the warmer months when the outdoor dew point is higher than the deeps subsoil temps in your area. The studwall isn't structural- it's not holding up the house, so the pressure rating of the foam is of no consequence. Any foam but polyisocyanurate is appropriate here. EPS is cheap and effective, and greener than XPS (which uses much more damaging blowing agents.)

With 1.5"/R9 ish closed cell foam in a Hamilton Ont. location it's mold-safe to install unfaced R15 rock wool in the 2x4 studwall without interior side vapor retarders, since the average winter temp of the foam/fiber interface in winter would remain well above the ~ +4C wintertime indoor air dew point, it would not accumulate moisture. From both a comfort and energy use point of view it's worth it, and it would beat IRC code-min performance for the climate (equivalent to US climate zone 5A) with a bit of margin. You could also install kraft-faced R13 fiberglass and still beat code-min. But don't use foil-faced batts or ANY type of interior side vapor barrier (whether you insulate the stud bays or not) or you will have created a moisture trap around the 2 x 4s, increasing mold potential.