Hi All,

Has anyone built or received comparative bids somewhat recently between an air source heat pump vs radiant heat system, both installed by a contractor?

Secondly, by chance have you received a comparison bid between crawl space/full basement?  

Nowadays bids taking quite a while with everyone so busy and just needing to make some concrete directional decisions so am gathering the info I can.

I’ve done a lot of research here and read the consensus of radiant floor heating generally not being worth it tight, well insulated houses.  Often quoted is that it’s dramatically more expensive, with the funds better spent on insulation, pv, etc., but I’d be curious if someone has some numbers or % comparisons?

My house will be built in Western MT with a slab very viable with 4′ frost walls.  AC is rarely needed with cool summer nights, but if I go with radiant I’d plan 1 mini-split in the great room as a cool haven. 

Thankfully a south facing orientation is natural, though there is also quite a bit of west facing windows to take advantage of the views.  While not ideal from an energy point of view (no pun intended), it would be a crime not to savor the natural beauty.

Thanks,

Steve