Bster13

Ok, the 1/2 "Ultralight" Sheetrock is up! But we have a problem...


So we cut holes for the recessed lighting in the kitchen, through the new drywall that was erected over the old popcorn ceilings. We saw what looked like copper piping sandwiched between the underside of the ceiling joists and the plaster ceiling in two of the holes we cut.

So tonight I donned the respirator and started diving in fiberglass insulation up in the unfinished attic. This is what I found:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8970927@N04

What you're looking at, from left-center-right over the span over 6-8 feet is some sort of copper colored piping looped in the attic. One of the pipes looks to have a small pinhole in it.

What's weird is after this "set" of pipes, to the right another set starts...and at that point I gave up trying to trace this stuff.


The house was built in 1957 with plaster ceilings. The boiler (not furnace) w/ the gas lines is in the basement. It was an oil furnace until 2011 when the previous owner had it converted to gas. The washer dryer and what I think is all water lines emanate from the basement as well.

Thoughts on what these pipes are/were for?

Bster13

Only other thing in the attic is the air handler for the central air, but the A/C has only been in the home for a few years, pipes look like they've been there for ages.

nealtw

The pipes are radiant hot water heat, showed up big in the 1950s. If they set the heat to high the boiler would cycle to much and crack the plaster when the pipes expand and contract.

Bster13

I think you're absolutely correct!

http://www.heatinghelp.com/forum-thread/127971/Radiant-ceiling-in-plaster

Instead of trying to trace those lines, I should only need to crank the heat and listen for the pipes starting to creak or being hot to the touch. Heck of a lot easier than trying to trace the pipes all over the house. If the pipes remain cool when I crank the heat I can cut them away and put the light fixture exactly where I want it...any objections?

nealtw

no garrentees

Bster13

haha, yeah this I know....

From Yahoo Answers:
the pipes were old radiant heating pipes. and yes they were sometimes installed in attic ceilings.(your ground floor could be concrete making it difficult to install there). after looking at your link , the old pipes are definitely dead as there is a hole in one. just ignore them or rip them out and sell the scrap copper. should be worth a few $ as scrap metal is at all time high.
Source(s):
plumber