How much gap if putting sofa bed in front of radiator?

darkazuria

Hi everyone.

We've bought a futon sofa bed for our spare bedroom/office but the only placement that would work for the room would be in front of the radiator. (100cm wide, 45cm tall, single panel convection radiator).

Would leaving about 15-17cm gap be ok to avoid damage to the futon (the back of it is a slated oak base - I've attached some pictures). And would that allow the radiator to heat sufficiently?

If keeping the radiator in this spot, we were thinking of maybe replacing it with a k1 Stelrad radiator of the same width, but maybe 60cm tall, so the BTU would be higher.

Otherwise, we were thinking of replacing it with a vertical radiator between the windows, but it would cost quite a bit of money and might look a bit odd as it's the first thing you would see when coming in the room.(I've attached an AI pic of how a vertical radiator would look on the room.)

Eldi_Dos

Have you thought of fitting a radiator cover of a suitable height so that would just appear as a shelf behind the futon. May be able to get one that matches the futon, if that does not appeal you can get ones that are easy to paint in same colour as the wall.

Grumpy_chap

I would have thought the space shown in the OP's photo would be sufficient, especially as the rear frame of the Futon also allows air flow to circulate about.

I am not sure the idea of a radiator cover or shelf as suggested is correct in this case. The shelf would push the warm air from the radiator out into the room, but that is actually straight into the back of the Futon so would prevent air circulation rather than enhance it

daveyjp

Unlikely to affect the futon frame, but being so close once the futon mattress is on the frame that it will take most of the heat off the radiator,

Silvertabby

I rather like the tall radiator. They aren't as efficient as normal rads, but as the futon would be blocking the heat from the current one the tall one may even be the warmer option.

kimwp

Is there space behind your door for the vertical radiator?

WIAWSNB

The column rad looks fine to me, too, and would be ok as a solution.

However, it's completely unnecessary - Eldi's suggestion of a rad cover would be ideal in this situation, as the radiator - and the cover - would be fully hidden behind the headboard (unless you wanted to make it a feature, with a raised top surface that doubled as a useful shelf for small lamps, mugs, ornaments...)

Yes, covers can reduce overall heat output, and certainly alter the way heat is given out, but the OP can compensate for this by increasing the rad's output if needed by going double-panel (Ie, h&w stay the same, so rad still hidden). I'd trial it first to see if it's necessary.

Rad covers can/will reduce radiated output, but I understand will increase convected due to their chimney effect, and convected would be better for this room.

Since the rad is hidden, a full rad cover is hardly even required - a freestanding, or rad-clipped, wall-coloured MDF panel could go in front of the rad, behind the bed. Leave a skirtingboard gap at the bottom to allow good circulation, and up to a couple of inches gap in front of the rad surface for ditto. Then your bed can safely go close to this.

Or, chances are, unless the rad is very hot and/or the gap too small, the bed will be perfectly fine. Just try it, and check the timber's surface temp - I bet it won't be any warmer than if sunlight landed on it.

If access to the TRV becomes awkward, fit a Smart head - they are pretty awesome, and can be programmed to come on only when needed, and at whatever temp is required. So, say, 18oC an hour before bed, and an hour before wake-up, and 15oC overnight if really needed. Far better than constantly having to manually adjust.

TroubledTarts

What sort of btu does the room require as you may be able to get good heat from a triple core smaller radiator in that section between the two windows, however I do like the tall column radiator we had one in a previous house and it looked stylish.

WIAWSNB

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82082269#Comment_82082269

And would cost unnecessary multi-£100s 😶

kipsterno1

You could fix reflective foil to the back of the futon with hook and loop so that the frame doesn't absorb the heat.

TroubledTarts

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82082280#Comment_82082280

What would? A triple core starts at just over £100.

Looking at the OP's first picture they have a single core radiator behind the sofa bed.

A triple panel small radiator from £108 could replace that and out perform btu without the losses associated with a taller column radiator and won't be shielded by furniture.

I thought it was a decent suggestion?

https://www.diy.com/departments/homestylestore-white-type-33-horizontal-triple-panel-convector-radiator-600mm-x-400mm/5059803658449_BQ.prd?