Setting up a 2 Zone Heat System

I currently have 1 zone on the lower floor for a 3,000 sq ft house. I have hot water radiators. This seems very wasteful to me. Every time the boiler kicks on it heats the entire house when the 2nd and 3rd floor don't need any heat.

I wanted to know how difficult it would be to set up another zone on the second floor and let that zone handle the heat for the 2nd and third floor. the third floor only has 2 radiators.

How much would something like this cost me. What parts would I need to complete this project. I have a plumber who could do the installation for me. But I am curious as to how time involved the project would be and how expensive.

It's hard to say without seeing the application. One way or another you'll have to run two new pipes to where you want the next zone. Then you have to figure a way to get the pipes there.... up through a closet? In some corner, then box them in? It might be the two new pipes have to go in separate places. To do it yourself, I'll guess $200 for parts. To hire the job out I'll guess $1,000. I could be way off!

Freddy wrote:It's hard to say without seeing the application. One way or another you'll have to run two new pipes to where you want the next zone. Then you have to figure a way to get the pipes there.... up through a closet? In some corner, then box them in? It might be the two new pipes have to go in separate places. To do it yourself, I'll guess $200 for parts. To hire the job out I'll guess $1,000. I could be way off!

I just called my plumber, and he said roughly a 1,000 dollars. He said I would need at least 1 circulator, new pipes, and some sort of main control box for wiring. I am not sure why I would need one since there is already a box with a lot of wires on the existing boiler but he said that would be 200 dollars. he also said it would take all day to do. im assuming 8 hrs.

He charges 30 dollars an hour times 8 hrs would be 240
then from what he said, control box, circulator, new pipes, 200,100, 100? so maybe 400 - 500 on the high end for parts.
Would there be more parts then what I am including?

so that would be 750 on the high end. I don't know where he came up with a grand unless I am missing something obvious

Don't forget a thermostat and running the wire to it. That can take a few hours just in itself depending on how well you want it hidden.

You have a plumber that works for $30 an hour? Hire that man! I don't think any around here will shake your hand for less than 40.

Plan on $1,000, if it's less you'll feel good. If it's more, well, it took more. This type of job it's common to hit snags that quickly add to the job.

Ya know, when I guessed $200 for parts, I was thinking pipe & fittings. I forgot about pump ($75) Thermostat ($20), T-1000 relay ($65ish)

Freddy wrote:Don't forget a thermostat and running the wire to it. That can take a few hours just in itself depending on how well you want it hidden.

You have a plumber that works for $30 an hour? Hire that man! I don't think any around here will shake your hand for less than 40.

Plan on $1,000, if it's less you'll feel good. If it's more, well, it took more. This type of job it's common to hit snags that quickly add to the job.

Ya know, when I guessed $200 for parts, I was thinking pipe & fittings. I forgot about pump ($75) Thermostat ($20), T-1000 relay ($65ish)

This plumber has done work for me already. He has fixed at the least 7-8 leaky pipes, a toilet, a sink, and frozen pipes. He is a nice guy, with a nice per hour rate. so I guess he is sorta my plumber. At my place in maryland it is a hundred dollars just to get someone to show up. I think it cost us roughly 500 dollars to have a plumber unclog 2 drain pipes and a toilet about a year ago in our condo in maryland.

is the t-1000 relay the "control box" as my plumber described it to me or is this something else. when I googled it, it looked like a wiring device of some sort. and for 65 bux sounds better then the 200 he was talking about.

Will setting up two heat zones save me money on my heating bill since the boiler wont be trying to heat the entire house everytime it comes on and only where it needs the heat if I get the house re zoned. if so how much could I potentially save?

Check your piping yourself first. I found my house already had two sets of pipes, to heat the first and second floor. I doubt that your entire house has a single line of heating pipe for three floors.
All I did was add a couple of Taco zone control valves and a thermostat to my place. Used the same circulator pump. Each thermostat opens the zone valve and kicks on the circulatory pump when heat is called for. My plumber friend told me to replace the existing circulator pump with a high volume unit to push the water to each zone more efficiently. Presently the second floor does not receive as much volume when both zones call for heat, hence the high volume circulator pump. I did the whole thing for less than $100

Tdevery wrote:Check your piping yourself first. I found my house already had two sets of pipes, to heat the first and second floor. I doubt that your entire house has a single line of heating pipe for three floors.
All I did was add a couple of Taco zone control valves and a thermostat to my place. Used the same circulator pump. Each thermostat opens the zone valve and kicks on the circulatory pump when heat is called for. My plumber friend told me to replace the existing circulator pump with a high volume unit to push the water to each zone more efficiently. Presently the second floor does not receive as much volume when both zones call for heat, hence the high volume circulator pump. I did the whole thing for less than $100

i wont be able to check till next weekend when I go back to pa, but I do know it is a monoflow system. im not really sure what that tells me or means.

BrockWilt wrote:ill setting up two heat zones save me money

If you keep one zone cooler than "normal", sure!

BrockWilt wrote:is the t-1000 relay the "control box"

Yup. Hey, he's gotta make profit someplace!

BrockWilt wrote:if so how much could I potentially save?

Hard to say. If you kept half the house 10* cooler you might save 3% on your yearly bill. But, you could be more comfortable, hard to put a price on that.

Tdevery wrote:All I did was add a couple of Taco zone control valves and a thermostat to my place. I did the whole thing for less than $100

When was that? Geepers, last I knew zone valves were about $85 each.

Monoflo system? Most assuredly you have one pipe feeding all the house. It's probably larger than 3/4". As for the upgrade, not much changes from what I said earlier. You'll be running two new pipes, and maybe a partial third. It's your choice whether you go with another pump or zone valves.

Well I was thinking that if the second floor and third were zoned when the first floor called for heat it would only heat the first floor instead of the first second and third like it does now. wouldnt that be cheaper?

Hey Brock, are they stand up cast iron radiators or run along the wall , baseboard hot water copper/finned pipe radiators? do you use the upper two floors? current t-stat on first floor? Multi-zoning your system will indeed give you the control to save $$$$ by not wasting BTU's to a unused area. depending on pipe type and current pump system you might want to project your plan into your intended coal conversion. will it be a boiler/coal thing?

Why stop at two zones -- isolate your bathrooms and less used rooms so you can run areas cool or warm --

or just put thermal reacting Danfoos valves on each radiator and control each one for comfort.

Sting wrote:Why stop at two zones -- isolate your bathrooms and less used rooms so you can run areas cool or warm --

or just put thermal reacting Danfoos valves on each radiator and control each one for comfort.

even if use the the danfoos valves my boiler will still be pushing water to all of the radiators... right? so I would still use the say amount of gas. Unless it works differently that I am aware of.

Poconoeagle wrote:Hey Brock, are they stand up cast iron radiators or run along the wall , baseboard hot water copper/finned pipe radiators? do you use the upper two floors? current t-stat on first floor? Multi-zoning your system will indeed give you the control to save $$$$ by not wasting BTU's to a unused area. depending on pipe type and current pump system you might want to project your plan into your intended coal conversion. will it be a boiler/coal thing?

they are stand up cast iron radiators.we will use the second floor 4 bedrooms and 1 bath. the third floor probably wont use to much. well I am planning on having the house rezoned when I have the coal boiler installed. But I am not made of money so im not sure how much extra work I can afford right now. Would I save that much money that it would pay for itself in a few years by having the house rezoned?

Heyyyyyy.... as much as I never liked monoflo systems (because they're a pain to bleed), Sting might have a good idea. He's smahter than some whole school yards! You see, right now each radiator is "on it's own". If there were a shut off valve on any one radiator, you could shut if off and it wouldn't stop the water from going to the other radiators. SO, if each radiator had a regulating valve on it, it should work.