Trying to save on propane

[walleye-]

So I'm trying to decide how to run my heat in my house. I have a furnace with ductwork in basement and main floor I also have Infloor heat ran by a electric mini boiler in the basement. Right now I have all vents in basement closed besides the return vents and the Infloor set to 70. Main floor is set at 68 using the furnace. With the propane prices going through the roof and my 500 gallon tank at 55% I am wondering if It would save on propane to turn on the furnace fan to run constantly to pull the warm air from basement up and lower furnace thermostat. Or would the air not be warm enough to help after it travels from basement through ductwork and up to main floor? I could also raise basement Infloor up to like 74. Way cheaper using the electric duel fuel right now than propane. Anyone have any input?

[WalleyeChaser]

I would open the vents and run the fan on circulate. The vents pushing extra volume of air downstairs will push the warmer air upstairs I would think. But I could be wrong.

[BoxMN]

Ditto. While my infloor heat is in basement of cabin, I do just that, though lower temps since we don't live there. Turning fan on moves around the heat pretty well if the floor heating is cranked and up to temp.

[walleye-]

K I adjusted my Infloor heat to 72 in basement. Lowered furnace on main floor to 64 and set fan to run continually. Also in basement all heat vents are closed only returns are open. So far after 4.5 hours it is still 66 on main floor and basement is holding at 72. Saving propane now but mmmm that fan is going to cost a few more bucks as is the mini boiler but it's workin.

[BoxMN]

K I adjusted my Infloor heat to 72 in basement. Lowered furnace on main floor to 64 and set fan to run continually. Also in basement all heat vents are closed only returns are open. So far after 4.5 hours it is still 66 on main floor and basement is holding at 72. Saving propane now but mmmm that fan is going to cost a few more bucks as is the mini boiler but it's workin.

Try opening all basement vents to see if that changes. I think mine are all open. That should push the cooler upstairs air into the basement, giving more circulation. Just a guess on my part though

[walleye-]

I don't think that would help me cause I have a thermostat for the Infloor in basement. If I were to open the vents the Infloor probly wouldn't run.

[Josh.P 86]

is the thermostat sensing air temp or slab temp. Either way I would open vents.

[Tom7227]

Don't you need to figure out what the costs are for each unit? I suspect that the cost is BTU per dollar. It may be that the electric boiler costs more to run than the propane. Obviously the issue of having enough propane to last the winter is the ultimate question but if all you want to know is how to save money you have to do some research and some math.

Another factor may be the amount of heat loss you have in the basement. If the walls aren't insulated and if you have a ceiling down there it may well be that those two things are preventing the heat from getting upstairs where you want it. I agree that the fans make sense and from that standpoint leaving the return lines open would seem to be the most efficient and keeping the hot air lines closed makes sense as well. Keeping the basement door open and maybe even having a fan down there to keep the air moving would also help.