Choosing the Best Column Radiators for Your Needs
If you’re searching for new column radiators, you’re in the right place.
Radiators are one of the most important fixtures in your home, ensuring comfort by adequately regulating the temperature of your property.
Here is how to choose the best column radiators for your needs, ensuring your home will be kept warm and toasty whenever you need heat.
Let’s take a look…
Understanding Your Heating Requirements
Before diving headfirst into the varied world of column radiators, it’s important to assess your heating needs. For example, if you live in a cold part of the UK (such as the highlands of Scotland), heat will naturally be a greater priority than if you’re living in the English Riviera.
However, if you’re lucky enough to have a wood fire in your home, your central heating requirements will likely be less than someone without a fire.
Various factors come into play, all of which need to be considered before purchasing your new central heating radiators:
- The size of your home and how many rooms you have
- Which rooms you’d like to place your new column radiators in
- How often you use each room (and whether each room needs to be heated regularly)
- The colour scheme and design of each room
- Your insulation levels
- Your own heating preferences
Are you looking for one radiator to heat a large room, or would you rather have several smaller designs to focus on particular areas of your home?
The choice is endless and entirely up to you, so it’s important to have a good think before committing to your new column radiators.
Size Matters
First things first - you need to decide on the size of your new column radiators. The size you choose will depend largely on the size of the rooms your radiators will be placed in, as well as your desired heat output.
Generally, if you have a cold house or a high sensitivity to the cold, we'd recommend installing larger column radiators, as this will help to heat your home up more. Another idea is to place a range of different column radiators into each room, which will allow you to spread the heat around and target particular areas.
However, you’ll need a higher budget to place more radiators, so this is something you need to weigh up first before making a commitment.
From Classic to Contemporary: A Wide Range of Material Finishes
If you're pressed for time or on a budget, another way to increase your heat output is by choosing the right material for your radiators.
Aluminium column radiators are extremely energy-efficient, also appealing to eco-friendly homeowners. Aluminium is a fantastic heat conductor, heating up much quicker when compared to bare metal column radiators made from steel. Whilst they're often pricier than steel radiators, you'll likely save money in the long run, as aluminium column radiators require less water and can heat up a room quickly.
Aluminium is also recyclable and durable, making for an extremely versatile material. For more information about sizing and energy efficiency, please see our Energy Saving Guides here.
If you'd prefer to have a more traditional radiator style in your home, another option to consider are cast iron column radiators.. Cast iron column radiators have an impressive style, combining a rustic aesthetic with a dominating look that will attract the eye of any visitor. They're perfect when used as either normal radiators or towel warmers, mixing a flexible appeal with an impressive heat range.
These traditional column radiators have a Victorian style, adding an industrial chic to your home. Cast iron radiators are also extremely well built and strong, delivering a heat output that will keep you warm on even the coldest of nights.
For something similar with a more modern twist, our Raw Metal column radiators could be ideal - they're made from steel, offering a lower price tag than many of the other traditional radiators on the market at the moment. Steel is the most common radiator material and for good reason! As well as its high heat output, steel is also malleable, ensuring manufacturers can physically design their radiators to better pass heat into your home.
Horizontal or Vertical?
Now you've chosen the material finish and style of your new column radiators, it's time to choose between vertical and horizontal column radiators.
In all honesty, there's no major difference in heat output when comparing horizontal and vertical column radiators. So long as you've gone for the right size and heat output for your space, you should have nothing to worry about. This means that your choice will largely depend on your own personal design preferences. However, one thing to consider is that if you're considering installing towel rails in your bathroom, we would recommend using horizontal column radiators, so you have enough space to lay larger towels out.
If you're looking for more traditional column radiators, then a horizontal design may be preferable. This form of radiator is the classic orientation for column radiators, and the type that likely comes to mind when thinking about them. If you'd like to place your new radiators underneath your windows to try and cancel out the heat loss from the area, a horizontal column radiator may be the perfect choice. As most homes already have horizontal radiators in them, they're more likely to fit with your existing style, and can be placed in most areas of your home.
However, vertical column radiators have a more modern look, ideal for properties with a contemporary design scheme. If you have limited space available or you'd like to add a modern flair into your home, then a vertical radiator could be perfect for you. You could also consider a selection of taller vertical radiators, which should increase your overall heat output.
Choose from a Spectrum of Colours
The last thing to think about when choosing a new column radiator is the colour you’d prefer. Again, this is something that will depend upon your own preferences and your design scheme, as the colour you choose will not affect the heat output of your desired radiator.
Naturally, the most common colour is white. As the most traditional radiator colour, white will never go out of style, so it’s understandable that you might want to go with the most conventional column radiator colouring for this reason.
However, you shouldn’t feel limited by colour. In recent years, other column radiator styles and colour schemes have expanded, so if you have a different design in mind, you may be able to find what you’re looking for. Black, anthracite grey and raw lacquered metal radiators are now in vogue, creating a unique talking point for your home when placed effectively.
As you can see, the world of column radiators is vast, with many different options available for the discerning homeowner. We hope that after reading through this blog, you now have a better understanding of the best column radiators for your needs.
