Radiators That Look Back

It’s only in recent years that radiator manufacturers have realised that there’s no need for all radiators to look alike.

Way back in Edwardian times only the super-rich, living in very grand homes could afford to install central heating. In those days the radiators were usually shaped like a big doughnut on its end.

They were all cast from iron and presumably took a very long time to heat. Then in the early seventies millions of ordinary people were offered central heating systems on very generous terms.

The order was signed for and a few days later the boiler along with radiators, valves and pipes would arrive to be fitted a few days later by a team of installation engineers and plumbers. Nobody questioned what the radiators would look like. They were just glad to have this new heating system.

In fact, all the radiators were painted white or cream on a pressed steel panel. And this is how they remained for decades.

Sometime in the not too distant past the radiator manufacturers had a lightbulb moment. As the simple physics of the radiator is to pump water into one end and out the other, there should be no restriction, other than surface area, of the shape.

A popular recent addition is mirrored radiators and these are particularly useful where there is not a great deal of wall space for both a large mirror and a separate radiator.

They are also useful in the bathroom as the best of these are designed not to suffer condensation problems.

Where radiators used to be necessary but quite boring wall mounted panels, they are now highly individual items that can enhance any décor. 

When completing a large refurbishment of a property, designers will incorporate into the plan the positioning of radiators in each room. Where they used to have to find a large expanse of wall to take a conventional oblong horizontal radiator, now they can fit them anywhere.

Every shape is available to fit under windows, in narrow alcoves or any other part of the room.

For mirrored radiators https://www.designerradiatorsdirect.co.uk/

Keeping Warm In Style

It’s a strange fact that when central heating systems were first being fitted in UK homes during the early part of the seventies, nobody cared a jot on the make of the boiler or radiator.

It was just such a novelty to have a new heating system that the details about manufacturer was just left to the salesmen.

For younger people today it may be hard to imagine that until the early seventies the vast majority of homes in the UK did not have central heating systems.

Most people made do with coal, gas and electric fires. And usually a combination of all three heat sources.

The government of the day was looking for ways to boost an ailing manufacturing business and to do this they introduced easy credit for even the lowest paid homeowner.

Credit had hardly existed before this time and when it did it was mainly targeted towards home improvements.

And so in the evenings when people were likely to be back from work, the knock at the door was likely to be one of three types of salesman. Central heating, double glazing and fitted carpets.

It has to be said that all three improvements transformed properties for the better.

Nowadays radiators are manufactured by a huge number of different companies and come in all sorts of shape and material finish. 

Hudson Reed radiators is just one of these brands that happen to prove very popular. There are countless others. And prices that start at something like fifty quid to ten thousand or more.

It may be hard for most of us to understand paying over ten thousand pounds for one radiator, but then not many of us have premier league football players take home pay.

If like most people, you haven’t in recent years taken a look online at all the radiators now available, perhaps you should surprise yourself by doing so now. 

There are so many different designs that some look like modern art to hang on the wall. And there’s no reason at all to have the same model in every room.

For Hudson Reed radiators http://www.designerradiatorsdirect.co.uk/

  

How Can You Make Sure That Your New Radiator Suits the Room?

We’ve all been there. You've just redecorated a room; everything looks perfect, except one thing: the radiator. Radiators are rarely considered works of art, and in a beautifully decorated room, they can actually drag things down. Today, we are going to teach you how to avoid this issue by making the right choices and ensuring that you select a radiator that will suit the room.

The first thing that you need to think about in terms of the suitability of the radiator to the room is the amount of heat that the room needs. There’s no point spending money on a beautiful radiator, one that suits the room from an aesthetic perspective, only to find that it doesn’t provide enough heat. 

OK, so your first task is to use a BTU (British thermal units) to establish the heat output requirements of the radiator. You can then use this figure to limit your search. It helps you to avoid disappointment too. If you don’t do this first, you might find a range of beautiful designer radiators and only discover later that they're inappropriate. We all know what happens then: no future radiators live up to the original range.

Now that you know the BTU needed, you can now begin to look at style. In general, you need to keep the style of the room in line with the style of the radiator. For example, if you're room is decorated in an English countryside style, then it will suit a column radiator in cast iron – the traditional panel radiators simply won’t do. Alternatively, you may have decorated the room in an art deco fashion, in which case, you should choose an art deco radiator.

Finally, we would advise you to shop for your designer radiators online. This is because they offer far more choice than the bricks-and-mortar shops do. You are much more likely to find a suitable style if you use the internet.

Are you interested in buying new radiators? If so, please visit http://www.designerradiatorsdirect.co.uk/.