Many of those old enough will remember the
nineteen sixties and seventies when central heating systems first became
available to the masses through easy credit.
We signed the agreement and the fitters
turned up a few days later. At that point we were so excited about getting
central heating that we never thought to ask about the radiator and neither did
we particularly care.
They were invariably white steel panel
radiators connected with bright copper pipes that ran along the skirting board.
Today when you browse these pages online
and marvel over the extraordinary number of radiator styles and finish it is
little wonder that anyone seriously refurbishing a property will also replace
the bland boring white panelled ones with a selection of these.
Just one popular style is the column
radiator that has an attractive tubular appeal it replicates some of the very
early types of radiator and is perhaps not ideal for very small rooms.
The original version of this type of
radiator can be found in old Victorian institutions and perhaps most notably in
some of England’s finest old Norman Cathedrals. These vast areas are
notoriously difficult to heat and on particularly cold days it is still common
to find many people huddling around them trying to get some warmth.
Other types resemble modern art works and with
any colour finish you want the opportunities for making the humble radiator not
just a source of room heat but of a statement of taste is all yours.
Column
radiators just like most of the others available
these days can be mounted in such a way on the wall that all pipework is hidden
and this is a far cry from those early fittings where bare copper and messy
welding meandered their way along the wall.
The other major improvement is in the
choices available in the finish of the radiator. Where once it was hard to find
anything other than white these days there is the possibility to have a
radiator finished in any colour or shade you can think of to match the décor.
