Radiators in on landings and hallway? 8 December 2022 at 6:13PM in In my home (includes DIY) MoneySaving 22 replies 883 views

ChasingtheWelshdream

I have been pondering again (I’m good at that!).

We have the heating off when the kids are at school to save money. The house is currently poorly insulated (solid walls) and the temperature plummets quickly. It has been hovering around 12 degrees all day today.

When the heating goes back on, it takes an age to reach 16 degrees.

We have radiators in the living areas and bedrooms (mostly too small and I’m working on them room by room). The thermostat is in the downstairs hallway, where there is a small rad but there are no rads on the middle or upper landings.

We tend to keep most doors open (dog and kids…), except our bedroom which is noticeably colder than the rest of the house.

I have been wondering if houses generally have radiators in upstairs hallways? Would adding a couple increase the overall temperature of the house, and thus quicker to heat up? Or just heating a wasted space?

Ganga

Change the radiators for double ones with fins ,i think they are type 22,s ,will give you more heat and you will not have to move the central heating pipework ,do you have a modern efficient boiler?

ChasingtheWelshdream

I am gradually changing things and using type 22 in most places, but also moving many of the rads as they are generally in silly places that restrict where we can put furniture.

The boiler is approx 7 years old so not too bad.

We did have an engineer out to quote to replace and move all radiators once (couldn’t afford it, I learned myself in the end) and he recommended 16-17 rads, adding extra in a couple of rooms plus the hallways. We currently have 11.  Five beds, 3 floors so a fair space to heat.

webjaved

Have you looked to see if the loft has 270mm - 300mm of insulation? That will help keep the rooms warm. 

Ganga

ChasingtheWelshdream said:

I am gradually changing things and using type 22 in most places, but also moving many of the rads as they are generally in silly places that restrict where we can put furniture.

The boiler is approx 7 years old so not too bad.

We did have an engineer out to quote to replace and move all radiators once (couldn’t afford it, I learned myself in the end) and he recommended 16-17 rads, adding extra in a couple of rooms plus the hallways. We currently have 11.  Five beds, 3 floors so a fair space to heat.

A large house ,would not like your heating bills  ,but as others have said make sure your insulation is up to spec and make sure people close doors and turn off lights when not using them.

ChasingtheWelshdream

It has 300mm, we just had a new roof signed off by building control and upped the insulation as part of it. There are coombed areas on the top floor that couldn’t be insulated from above, which we are icing to do with celotex. As will we be doing the suspended ground floor areas. The external walls are trickier without losing large areas of original ornate cornicing. 

We know which bits are poorly insulated and are slowly adding as and when we can afford. 

My question is really whether adding radiators to the hallways that form the ‘spine’ of the house would be beneficial - but increasing the overall temperature and flowing between rooms. Or is just a waste of money?

Ajmason42

Seeing as you have doors open then I would fit rads on the landings otherwise the cold will creap into the heated rooms. Heat does rise but even so it would be better balanced

if your boiler can cope with the load then even slightly over size them due to your insulation issues 

ChasingtheWelshdream

A large house ,would not like your heating bills  ,but as others have said make sure your insulation is up to spec and make sure people close doors and turn off lights when not using them.

We are doing what we can with the insulation and I generally resemble a screaming banshee should a light be left on 😆

The first heating bill for November was £90, which was better than expected. We also have a wood burner for cold evenings. We have been as frugal as we can, but the future is quite terrifying now the weather is turning.  We do have 

ChasingtheWelshdream

Ajmason42 said:

Seeing as you have doors open then I would fit rads on the landings otherwise the cold will creap into the heated rooms. Heat does rise but even so it would be better balanced

if your boiler can cope with the load then even slightly over size them due to your insulation issues 

Yes the boiler has sufficient power. The middle landing has no external walls and the top landing we have already insulated with celotex, so hopefully the additional heat won’t leach out as it rises.

easy

"We know which bits are poorly insulated and are slowly adding as and when we can afford"

Might it be worthwhile to get a loan (if you can get a fairly cheap-ish one)  to add more insulation now?  It's forecast to be a cold winter right through,  It might be cheaper to pay interest on the loan than on lost heat..

ChasingtheWelshdream

Sadly not an option with my employment situation uncertain over the next few months. But I see what you mean.