[buddy110]

Like the title says, can I lay tubing, and float a floor directly over it? Much of my floor has spray foam underneat it, so running it there was not an option.

Thanks in advance

 

[Walk On Wood]

The tubing cant support the weight of the floor. You could do a close together sleeper system and run the tubing between

 

[buddy110]

The tubing cant support the weight of the floor. You could do a close together sleeper system and run the tubing between

What's the OD of the tubing, 1/2"?

 

[tyb525]

If it is 1/2" pex, about .625". Like Walk on Wood said, you can build a sleeper system of 2x's to run the pex in between, then put wood over that.

 

[buddy110]

Thanks
I'm laying (floating)strand bamboo down in all te rooms except two bathrooms and a mud room. 1/2 of the floor is foamed, the rest has original 1830's floor (1.25" planks) and then 1/2" plywood recovery flooring over top. I'm concerned that retrofitting under all that, plus 1/2" flooring that it would be too thick for the heat to penetrate all that.

I could lay 3/4 sleepers screwed and glued 16"oc, but then I think I'd have to support the floor where is floats in between the sleepers. I think the bamboo comes in 6' lenghts. I could run the 12" oc too.

 

[Walk On Wood]

Im thinking closer to 8"oc would get you the support you need.

 

[Inner10]

Gypcrete.

 

[Morning Wood]

Is your bamboo a click together type flooring? I would use climate panel by Viega, although it is pricey. Or I would use 3/4" plywood strips with transmission plates on top and then nail the hardwood to that. Not sure how a floating floor would perform over transmission plates. Maybe ok with felt or a slip sheet between them. Laying 2x's and tube between isn't worth it.

 

[buddy110]

Is your bamboo a click together type flooring? I would use climate panel by Viega, although it is pricey. Or I would use 3/4" plywood strips with transmission plates on top and then nail the hardwood to that. Not sure how a floating floor would perform over transmission plates. Maybe ok with felt or a slip sheet between them. Laying 2x's and tube between isn't worth it.

click together

 

[ArtisanRemod]

Have you thought of pouring self leveler? Float floor on top of that?

 

[Golden view]

Edit: Missed your middle post.

For pipe under the floor, the more thermal mass the better. It will even out the hotspots. Just make sure you have a much higher R-value below the pipes. I generally use reflective insulation plus fiberglass, the pex will be in a small airspace. R30 is cheap.

There's quite a bit to this if you haven't done it before. Is this your sole source of heat, or just trying to make the floors more comfortable? It can be difficult to get enough BTUs out of a floor, especially if the home is not very efficient.

 

[buddy110]

The house should be pretty air tight. We blew closed cell in the walls, exposed cathedral ceilings, and crawl space floors and walls and installed top quality windows with an AI of less than .01

Main source is a heat pump, with an electric strip heater in the AH for the extra cold days.