All Forum Posts by: Russell W.

My concern with this would be that it's a band-aid approach. If the duct is rusting enough to cause holes, it is not going to stop rusting after the aeroseal application. It may take awhile, but the rust will continue to deteriorate the duct and eventually you'll have the same problem again. 

Edit- I do not have personal experience with this, just my two cents.

Can you refi into a conventional on your current residence and then acquire an FHA 203k for the subject property? Not sure if that works- just a thought.

My preference is to ask for a credit and later manage subcontractors to do the work under my watch. The concern is that the seller is going to find the cheapest method possible to "fix" the issues. I wouldn't trust a seller to do a thorough job. That being said, you do need to have the capital to pay for these fixes after closing. Are you comfortable with managing subcontractors to do the work for you after closing? For many people, they'd rather not deal with that hassle 

This is a vapor barrier issue, and as you've stated there isn't one on the exterior walls. Without one it's no different than leaving the windows wide open (in terms of moisture transmission). I'm surprised this wasn't addressed when the blown-in insulation work was done.

Additionally, you mentioned there is plastic over the dirt in the crawlspace. Is it the cheap 3 mil plastic like you'd use to cover furniture while painting? Or is it the thicker 10-15 mil that is actually intended as a vapor barrier? Are there slotted vents in the foundation wall? If so, the insulation between the floor joists overhead may also require a layer over vapor barrier.

Ahhh, now I understand your dilemma. Something else to consider, if you can make it work off the existing main supply trunk feeding the other rooms, is a narrow depth wall cavity duct. Theres going to be a bit of drywall patching, but regardless it'll be way way cheaper than someone trying to sell you on the idea that a mini-split is your only option. If it were me I would try every option to utilize what I already have. Hope you find a good solution  

I had a similar experience with a furnace gas manifold that went bad. When the tech gave me the price I couldn't believe it, so called around until I found a better price. Keep in mind though that part of what you are paying for is their expertise in determining what the problem actually is. They have the tools to run diagnostics and tell you exactly what is malfunctioning. Once I knew what it was I was tempted to do the repair myself, and while I could have I didn't because

a.) I had a tenant waiting for heat and the HVAC tech would certainly be quicker than me

b.) the HVAC supply houses typically don't sell retail so unless it's a part you can easily find at a big box, you might be out of luck anyways

Why is adding another run of duct not an option? Do you have access to a basement or crawlspace where you can add 6" round duct overhead and terminate at a floor register like you mentioned? You can DIY this for less than $100.

The problem with brushing it off as "just radiant heat" is that the heat has nowhere to radiate to. It's trapped behind cabinets/dishwasher/under countertops (if I understand correctly). It's not as if the cabinets will conduct heat to the rest of the room. I bet if you asked your tenant they would say it gets pretty cold in the kitchen. Your best and only option may be to reroute the piping for the radiators. Do you have access to a crawl space? Where is the boiler located?

I'm literally going through this process right now. I have two units that are both heated by separate boilers, both in good condition. Personally, I love hydronic radiant heat. It's quiet, efficient and inexpensive to run. When properly maintained boilers can last 30+ years. The downside obviously, as you mentioned, is that there's no AC. Also, boilers can be very expensive to replace when they do break down.

I want central AC to be a standard feature in all of my rentals so I decided to install ducted central heat/AC in these two apartments. I've already completed one and am in the process of the install in the other. To get around the problem of "two ways to heat the house" I simply shutoff the gas service to the furnace. Tenants use radiant heat only, and they now have central AC for the summer. I'll continue to use the boilers until they break down, at which point I'll simply remove them and switch over to heating via the furnaces. 

Seems like a lot of wasted effort but if you are willing to spend the money now to upgrade to a ducted system, you will save yourself the hassle in the future when the inevitable happens and the boiler goes out, while still providing AC 

For that amount of square footage you'd be best to look into a direct vent wall furnace as Mason recommended. They're available in electric or gas and are very affordable.