concrete question pipes
- Thread starter richardmm
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A lot depends on when it was built and what sort of person built it.
You may find pipes cast into the concrete - as in pipes laid, and concrete poured on top. Obviously zero scope for maintenance/alterations without digging the floor up.
For good measure they'll have made no attempt to insulate the pipes from the concrete - either thermally (so your hot water arrives cold because it's heating the floor slab en route) or chemically (AIUI copper pipes corrode in direct contact with concrete or plaster).
You may find pipes cast into the concrete - as in pipes laid, and concrete poured on top. Obviously zero scope for maintenance/alterations without digging the floor up.
For good measure they'll have made no attempt to insulate the pipes from the concrete - either thermally (so your hot water arrives cold because it's heating the floor slab en route) or chemically (AIUI copper pipes corrode in direct contact with concrete or plaster).
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Most likely yes it will be insulated.
We're having heating retro-fitted to a house with concrete floors. I did ponder about other options, but in the end we're just having pipes in plastic trunking dropping down in a discreet corner, going along the top of the skirting to each radiator.
I really didn't want this, but in the end it gets the job done and will probably be near invisible once caulked and painted to match the wall. Plus you get a bit of extra heat from the pipes too - there's absolutely no point in insulating them as they're going to a radiator, the entire purpose of which is to release heat into the room.
We still have the original 1950s pipes directly concreted into the floor. They're all very green and crunchy and definitely not fit for use.
I really didn't want this, but in the end it gets the job done and will probably be near invisible once caulked and painted to match the wall. Plus you get a bit of extra heat from the pipes too - there's absolutely no point in insulating them as they're going to a radiator, the entire purpose of which is to release heat into the room.
We still have the original 1950s pipes directly concreted into the floor. They're all very green and crunchy and definitely not fit for use.
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