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[ELVIS1]

Just talked to Bruce at Ridgewood and I think I'm going to be a new OWB owner.
I looked at a few owb's and had sticker shock based on what I was seeing but after my first propane experience I still knew I needed an alternative. I found the Ridgewood from looking at this forum so thanks to the members that posted on here. Now I need to get some good piping. My searches has most pointing to logstor or thermopex but I don't see much talk about z supply pipe. How do you guys feel about it or should I just spring for the other 2 I mentioned.

[slimjim]

LOGSTOR, do it right the first time, anything else in the system can be changed out later, you don't want to change out the pipe down the road

[ELVIS1]

Thx for the pm automan, and the post slimjim. Underground pipe certainly has been discussed a lot the more I search the more threads I find. The one thing I for sure agree with everyone on is I don't want to get to cheap with the pipe.

[ELVIS1]

Slimjim I tried researching Logstor more, but can't seem to find the place to purchase it.
   

[slimjim]

We sell it, so does Scott and I think Yoder as well. I'm not sure on current pricing and check on shipping costs.

[ELVIS1]

I got another question. I was told by a local woodmaster dealer to exit the ground with my pipe a few feet before the house and enter the house above grade. Has anyone done that or is that a complete No No.

[WoodMOJoe]

I got another question. I was told by a local woodmaster dealer to exit the ground with my pipe a few feet before the house and enter the house above grade. Has anyone done that or is that a complete No No.

Did he tell you that on April 1st?   

Unless there is something specific to your application that would require that I just don't get it.  Would like to hear his reasoning on that one.

[slimjim]

  I have done that many times by coming up outside the building and penetrating the sill or wall, then building a removable insulated box around the pipe, this saves disturbing the ground under the slab.

[ELVIS1]

Did he tell you that on April 1st?   

Unless there is something specific to your application that would require that I just don't get it.  Would like to hear his reasoning on that one.
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Nope it was no April fools joke. The dealer gave me a similar answer slimjim gave, but also added it was kind of a cost savings method. I was worried by doing it that way I would lose lots of btu's.

[slimjim]

You will not lose any BTU's if you insulate the box, you will save money and labor cutting the concrete and will not compromise the floor with cracking due to the base settling after you undermined it to install the pipe

[Jwood]

Is the house slab on grade or do you have a full basement?

[WoodMOJoe]

I didn't consider a slab-on-grade type of construction, that would make sense.  Not many homes built that way around here.   Most here are either basement or crawl space. 

[ELVIS1]

I have a full basement, but drilling through 12in of concrete is more costly than drilling through the wood above it.

[ITO]

 My house is heated slab on grade and I roughed in a 4" insulated PVC (http://insuls.openfos.com) into my utility room floor when I prepped for the slab, I used 2 45's rather than a 90 in the ground to make the bend radius less for pulling the pex later. That works well but a few years later I wanted to come back out to feed a loop to heat my outdoor hot tub so I used the method described with an insulated box covering pex connected to buried zsupply pipe to the tub. So I guess I used both methods, I wouldn't recommend digging under a poured slab, I think that would promote problems down the line, in the case of a heated slab it's about impossible to do with insulation and not knowing where the pex is encased in the pour.

[ITO]

Elvis if you are going into a full basement I think I would dig down and penetrate the concrete wall, rent a hammer drill and drill a circular pattern of small holes, knock the slug out with a sledge, then you have a nice clean look and can run insulated piping right into the utility area. It may even be less time consuming then coming up outside, cutting the wood wall, making up the pex 90's, building an insulated box and going down through the interior floor to get to the basement. Something to consider, this has been discussed before if you look at some past posts.