How do you heat a house with very high ceilings??

Question

We have tried electric heaters, the fire place, using the stove, and none of that has worked. There are no holes or drafts coming in. (taht i could find) And electric heaters are not working even if you are right in front of them. Does anyone have any suggestions?

We have tried the ceiling fans but when we turn them on it blows cold air.

Answer 1

Put in ceiling fans

Answer 2

Does your house have a furnace?? Is it an old house? Is there insulation in the walls? If you have a furnace, the location of the thermostat may be such that the furnace is turning itself off too soon, before the other rooms get well-heated. The solution might be to turn the thermostat up a degree or two or closing the heat source in the room that it is located in to "trick" it into running longer. Of course either of these solutions will probably get you a higher fuel bill.

Fireplaces are generally useless unless it they're the kind that has a fan assembly that intakes room air from below the firebox, warms it around the firebox and blows it out above the box. These kinds will at least let you use some of that heat instead of letting it go up the chimney. In addition, the fireplace needs glass doors on it and they should be closed when you have a fire. Also, it helps if the fire gets its air from outside, not inside the house. It must have a flue that you can close when you are not using it (or else whatever room heat you do have will go right up the chimney). Generally, however, they are a poor method of heating a room and contribute more atmosphere than heat.

We used to live in a 100 yr old house with 10' ceilings, heated with a hot water boiler and radiators. Although the floors would get somewhat drafty in extremely cold weather, the boiler did a good job. The downside was that the house was not well insulated and our heating bills were outrageous. With an open staircase, our second floor was always warm and toasty.

I'm not sure what kind of stove you are referring to in your question. Do not try to heat a room with a kitchen range. Space heaters can also be dangerous. Fire departments hate them. However, if by "stove" you mean a wood-burner or the like, a safely installed, well-maintained, strategically located stove of this type is quite efficient and could be a reasonably safe alternative to a furnace..

Answer 3

Ceiling fan manufacturers recomend that when you are heating a room you should run your ceiling fan so that it blows the air toward the ceiling. This increases the natural convection current and prevents the hot air from stagnating on the ceiling. When you are seeking a cooler room, have the fans blow the air straight down as this gives you a "wind chill" effect. You are heating a large space and so you need alot of heat output. One of the best things I can recomend for you is a properly sized Underfloor radiant heat system. This will put the source of your heat where it is most apparent to you. Go through the Phone book and look for a HVAC guy that says he specializes in under floor radiant heat.

Answer 4

I have no problem with mine and it is about 14 feet at the highest point. The thing to know is that the warmer the air you are using to heat it, the more that air wants to stick to the ceiling. It sounds like you need more insulation in your attic, which is not too expensive to do and can sometimes be done yourself with a machine you rent at Lowe's.

I actually have all the vents in the room with the high ceiling closed off and enough warm air rises from the basement up the staircase and keeps the great room comfortable.

Answer 5

I have an old home with high ceilings and was running into the same problem. Even though I didn't feel drafts coming from the windows, I used the 3M plastic wrap to seal them in. (You can find this at more any hardware/home improvement store.) It has made a big difference. With higher ceilings it's going to take longer to heat pretty much regardless, I would focus on keeping the warm air in once you have already paid to heat it.

Answer 6

Radiant heat, either cove or ceiling panels are best. Since radiant heat doesn't cause stratification, you don't end up with heat trapped near the ceiling.
But with any heating system you will never have true comfort if you have insufficient insulation. All the hot air your generating could be rising upward and cooling when it contacts a cold ceiling. This could be indicated when you try fans, they bring down cold air. Wall and floor insulation also help hold in the heat.
You should have 10-14 inches of fiberglass, cellulose, or my preference, rock wool insulation in your attic. 4-6 inches in the walls and floor. This will keep you and your checkbook comfortable. Your local hardware store can help you with the specifics.

Answer 7

I have radiant heat in my house. The heat is actually in the ceilings. My ceilings are normal height (about 10 feet). You can try that, or I'd have to agree with the ceiling fans, but in reverse direction so it circulates the air more rather than blowing cool air back down. If you can't reverse direction then try a low speed.

Answer 8

Try hanging a couple of ceiling fans and putting them on reverse. The heat is rising and getting stuck up on the ceiling. The fans on reverse will push the air down and warm you all up.

Answer 9

Put some kind of cloth or plastic sheet lower than the actual ceiling to hold the warm air in? Ceiling fans are another idea.

Answer 10

Keep the heat on longer, with the ceiling fans, reverse them so they draw warm air up for awhile, then turn them off.