DESPERATE for help with glass roof

scooo

Excellent work guys, the things you are suggesting do correlate with some of the things we tried previously just by chance.
We had a 3KW elec heater in the room one winter which made a difference but we were concerned about the running costs plus we want a more permanent solution.

I'll get the UFH checked by a different plumber, in the mean time I see then that I have 2 options - increase circulation or add to heating.

The boiler is a Baxi 105e serving 6 rads in a bungalow + the UFH which the pipes are slightly more concentrated under the lantern.
I think the boiler is sufficient that I could add another rad straight off it, especially as the rest of the living area rads are turned down low. That would put the new rad at the farthest end of the room away from the lantern, under a plastered ceiling. Would that work???

Or would simply putting a ceiling fan in the centre of the lantern be better to increase circulation?
Unfortunately no Keystone, there's no opening. There was supposed to be but it didn't happen, then all the builders excuses came out. I could possibly get one added but I'd really like to do 1 thing that fixes it rather than several if possible - we've already done multiple things that haven't worked hence why I was considering scrapping it all together.

We did think that the rev cycle AC would dry & replace the air, are we saying that it doesn't? Or simply that it's not enough?
We did think that we could leave that running all evening but despite being quite quiet it's still too noisy of an evening plus it struggles to maintain a constant temp so it's constantly off & on.

Battleaxe44

Same problem, so would love to know how fix it. No UFH though

DavidFx

Ideally, the extra radiator should be placed in the coldest part of the room to minimise temperature gradients, but in a well insulated room it probably won't make any difference.
As I said before, 5kW should be more than ample for your well insulated room.
What is the flloor covering?

I don't think humidity is an issue if:
(1) There is good air circulation in the room - so the air is in contact with a cold surface for a minimum amount of time. Radiators are better than UFH in this respect as the hot surface forces convection.
(2) The humidity is 'normal' i.e you are not adding moisture to the air by cooking,drying clothes and showering. And remember, this can be in other rooms if they are interconnected. Since the act of breathing releases moisture there should always be a background level of ventilation to maintain the humidity level. Windows should have trickle vents and these should be used.

keystone

scooo wrote: »

There was supposed to be but it didn't happen, then all the builders excuses came out. I could possibly get one added but I'd really like to do 1 thing that fixes it rather than several if possible - we've already done multiple things that haven't worked hence why I was considering scrapping it all together.

Even with extra heating you still have a nice trap up there on the warm air rises principal. Big slap for the builder then. You paid him quite a bit of money (those lanterns ain't cheap) to do a job he has failed to do. Yes? Your telephone is over there --->

We did think that the rev cycle AC would dry & replace the air, are we saying that it doesn't? Or simply that it's not enough?

Yes - well not enough I think.

Cheers

scooo

Floor covering is carpet. It's a thin-ish carpet and was rated as suitable for wet UFH along with the correct underlay.
Initially it was floating floor but we had a severe problem with echoing.

Any added humidity is limited as far as is possible, the wet areas are all at least 3 doors apart but understandably there will always be some migration being a bungalow but we do keep doors closed and the kitchen is at the diagonally opposite corner of the house.

So to add some heat a rad might be the simplest option but won't that then exacerbate the problem of the drafts & cold feeling as it will cause more air to move towards & into the lantern pulling cooler in along behind it?

And the condensation only forms of a night time when the room is unoccupied?
Admittedly the UFH stat is set to drop from 21 to 17 overnight, would it help if it was kept at 21?

scooo

keystone wrote: »

Even with extra heating you still have a nice trap up there on the warm air rises principal. Big slap for the builder then. You paid him quite a bit of money (those lanterns ain't cheap) to do a job he has failed to do. Yes? Your telephone is over there --->

I'm just glad he's off the site to be honest, I'd rather pay someone else than go through all his BS again!

Added: What about if I put trickle vents along the edge of the upstand, would that suffice?

scooo

scooo wrote: »

Added: What about if I put trickle vents along the edge of the upstand, would that suffice?

Anyone ???

keystone

Anyone who answers your brainwave in the positive needs their bumps feeling TBH from this distance. The best you'll get is "ummmmm - possibly". Certainly you'll get nothing commital

Do you know who manufactured the lantern or can you find out? I think you should invite them to come in and advise you how best to modify their product to the way it should have been fitted. They've probably got a fairly easy fix to insert an opener which is what was specified IIRC.

Cheers

scooo

I definitely didn't expect any commitment, just suggestions and I am grateful for the consideration so far but you both disagree on the cause.

Given that I am no expert, how do I know which avenue to pursue?
Only one can be correct so I was hoping for further expansion hence my question "will trickle vents suffice?" and why I answered DavidFXs question "What is the floor covering?"

I don't know who manufactured the lantern and I can't find out. It is an oak frame with SUDG units made to the builders specs. I may be able to get an alternate carpenter to add a window but that will be very expensive so I'd like to do as much research into 'if it will' work before I commit to what is likely to be an expensive exercise.
Otherwise I may as well just plaster over the lot and install Veluxs. They won't be as nice visually but at least the condensation & heat loss will be resolved - wouldn't it???

For example, when the room was first used we had a problem with sound echoing.
I had the builder asses and also an engineer from Bang and Olufsen. Both came up with different recommendations which were contradictory and very expensive, ranging from sound deadening wall panels to convoluted multi-speaker sound systems to building the walls offset and in staggered sections horizontally.
In the end I reckoned that the floating timber floor was the most likely problem and had carpet installed. The result was an instant cure.
I am no sound or flooring expert but I had a "brainwave" which worked.

This time I have no idea and was hoping someone else may have some experience of the same issue and may be able to offer a suggestion, just as I would if anyone had an echo problem like I had.

DavidFx

scooo

The original problem was that the room was too cold - which you put down to excessive heat loss from the lantern.

You then tried to block off the lantern which then led to condensation inside it.

From the details you have given us, the insulation of the lantern and room are very good and I assume they satisfied the BCO.

Everything points to insufficient heating.

You need to determine the heat output of the UFH (inlet and outlet temperature and flow rate). You will also need to accurately calculate the heat loss of the room (this assumes that the insulation was installed to specification).
Testing the heating is not a summer job as the UFH will need to achieve equilibrium before you can measure the output.

However, if you know what was installed and have the design calculations (making allowances for the carpet and underlay) and that the feed/return and slab temperatures are as per design then you should have a pretty good idea as to what the output is.
Of course, measurement is always better than calculation

I think once you have sorted the heating issue, the humidity/ventilation will not be a problem.