How Install Heating in a Farmhouse

Farmhouses are welcoming structures, especially with well-designed heating systems.

Part of the charm of old farmhouses is the amount of open space in them. Farmhouses were built for farm families, who worked and lived together. In other words, there was not a separate room for each member of the family. The open space makes them easier to heat, but since most farmhouses were built before the advent of high-tech insulation, it also is more difficult to retain that heat.

Things You'll Need

• Blown-in and roll insulation
• New windows
• Caulk
• Wood stove
• Radiant floor coils
• Electric wall registers

Instructions

1. Inspect your house for places where you are losing heat. Old farmhouses often are drafty structures that lose heat through windows and doors. Be sure your windows are properly caulked, and your doors can close tightly. Replace any doors or windows that can not be easily repaired. Add blown-in insulation in the walls and rolls of insulation in the attic.

2. Examine your house flooring to see if you can use radiant heat, which relies upon heated pipes underneath floors to warm the house. Chances are quite good that farmhouse owners can add radiant heating to their basement floors without a problem. You may be able to use registers mounted along the walls on higher floors, for heat.

3. Take advantage of the open spaces in a traditional farmhouse, by installing a wood stove or fireplace insert. A standard wood stove can heat a 3,000-square-foot house if the stove is properly used and maintained. Fireplace inserts are simply stove-like boxes placed inside a fireplace that are used to avoid heat loss from the chimney. The heat can be directed by utilizing ceiling or stove fans.

References

• This Old House: Keeping Warm for Less
• Wood Heat: Wood Stoves
• This Old House: Radiant Floor Heating
• Old House Online: Heating and Cooling for Old Houses
• Treehugger: Renovation Turns Old House Into Green Healthy House With Near Zero Heating Bills