Replacing a radiator with a smaller one.

paul5046

In the spare room (8ft x 8ft) i want to replace a 25 yr old 1 metre long radiator with a 60cm one.
I guess its a plumber job, as the pipes will need altering.

1. Whats a rough quote.
2. Should i buy the radiator and how do i know what to buy.

latecomer

If you are not confident in doing it yourself then yes its a job for a plumber. If you are happy for the pipework to be altered above the floor then its a simple job. If you want it modified under the floors then obviously its going to take longer.

As for the radiator you need - do you need the same heating capacity? There are online calculators to tell you what you need based on the the room size etc.

As for costs and whether you should supply the radiator yourself - best thing to do is get a couple of quotes as different plumbers may have different opinions on the supply of the radiator. Get a recommendation from friends/family/neighbours if at all possible.

cyclonebri1

Exactly as above, and a new radiator will be more efficient than those fitted 25 years ago so you may be able to get a smaller rad with the same capacity.

Do the calcs, it's simple, then look at any manufacturers range, they all state the btu rating on the package.

It's not a good idea supplying the rad if you are employing a plumber, it will be fitted at your risk most likely, or he may even factor something into his quote to cover the fact that he's made nothing on the supply ;)

I've also had several leaky new rads and ones where the inlet and outlet have been very loose, best left to him if you go with a plumber.

Bogtrotter

cyclonebri1 wrote: »

Exactly as above, and a new radiator will be more efficient than those fitted 25 years ago so you may be able to get a smaller rad with the same capacity.

If the only reason in fitting a smaller radiator is the better efficiency I would replace it with a new 1m radiator and a thermostatic valve.

1000mm radiator cost maybe £30 more than the 600mm plus £10-£15 for the valve but no expensive plumber needed to alter pipework.

Even if you're not confident in your DIY skills to swap the radiator yourself it would probably still be cheaper to get the plumber to fit a 1000mm radiator than alter the pipes and fit a 600mm radiator.

paul5046

The reason i want a smaller one is its in the way. I'm putting a room long computer desk/ worktop in.

Using an online calc, 2060 BTU which is a 600x600 rad.

thanks.

cyclonebri1

I assumed as much, which is why I was hinting that the smaller one could be as efficient as the big one.

Several other factors I didn't mention, you can get a single rad with no fins, single rad with fins, then a double rad with 1 row of fins, then double with 2 rows so you can see the size and efficiency thing has several options.

paul5046

Add a thermostat fro £12 as well.