d15eliz

My well house always hold moisture and in the winter can freeze the pump. Any ideas on how to keep it dry and semi warm for the winter months?

Wuzzat?

You may need 10w per sq. ft. to achieve room temperature for an insulated house. 5w per may prevent freezing in an insulated well house.

Using this,
http://www.degreedays.net/
we can get an idea of your winter temps. You also may want to know your Outside Design Temperature which for my area @ 39 N. Lat. is +14F.

And,
http://www.amazon.com/Fahrenheat-Marley-WHT500-Utility-Heater/dp/B001OEPXXU
If you don't want to gamble $100, wire up a few 100w bulbs to a t'stat and see how many it takes to give enough heat.

In a medium size house, the center can be at 45F and the pipes in the walls can be freezing.

It comes down to a lump sum for insulation plus a small electric bill or you paying a larger annuity to the PoCo. If the payback period is less than 10 years, insulate.

nealtw

Use a heat tape to keep the pump warm and build an insulted cover to set over the gear. If you heat the whole building you have to worry about ice dams and all that.

Wuzzat?

IMHO, heat tape with a t'stat set at 33F is an excellent idea.

nealtw

I get lucky once in a while.

Wuzzat?

If your answers are good/right/just/wise more than half the time - i.e., better than a coin flip - then it's probably not luck.

BTW, water freezes at -0.0001 degrees C.

Speedbump

What are we going to use when the incandescent light bulb is gone?

I like light bulbs for heat, but when they burn out, then what. I like the heat tape idea too.

I once thawed a pipe along side a cement block wall that had a small crack in an otherwise 72° basement. The slight breeze blowing into that crack hit the pipe and eventually froze it solid. It was 3/4" copper.

Insulate and tighten it up.

Probably the best thing is a small space heater on a thermostat.

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FAQ's

GermanWindows

Heat tape is something i have used quite a few times before, never any trouble with it.