Just getting the bits together for a central heating fed towel rad and (if it’s not going to be too much hassle – other thread) I was going to fit an electric element for summer use.

What element do people normally use for this situation? It’s a 1400×550 towel radiator. Seems be a toss up between a small element being on ages to heat up and a larger one heating up quicker so maybe it doesnt matter but I’d rather have a lower power one in case it gets left on.

Also how do you control yours? Will be on a switch in the airing cupboard but do you bother with a timer? Was thinking about a basic mechanical one fitted after the spur switch so come summer you just need to turn it on and check the time is set right and leave it to it.

Towel radiators – how do you have yours?

Left in the shop! MTFU you tart!!! 😀

I’d rather have a lower power one in case it gets left on.

we had one – took a *long* time to have an effect.

recently changed to something with an element about 3 times the length!

I ran the wire through the wall into the bedroom behind and run it on a timer from a standard 13 amp socket – saved getting all that spur into the bathroom thing done and it’s not that big a wattage element.

If you’re worried you can get them with thermostats fitted.

MIne heats up with the hot water circuit. (tanked system)

v8ninety – so does mine – it’s just you can add an electric element into the rad for when you want to dry towels but not have the whole heating system on. Great in spring & autumn when it’s warmish but the towels still stay soggy.

[edit] ah, you mean when you heat water the radiator comes on? It’s an option I suppose but prefer to have the radiator on when the heating is (we only have the hot water on for about 40 minutes a day).

One thing to bear in mind – towel radiators have a pretty low output compared to a normal radiator – we had to put a pretty big one in our bathroom to stop the room being too cold.

Left in the shop! MTFU you tart!!!

😆

It’s more for drying towels than pre-warming. Don’t want wet towels draped over the normal rads against my freshly tanked walls.

v8ninety – that would be ideal but sadly combi boiler so won’t work unless I put the thermostat in the bathroom!

Ransos – yeah don’t worry. Room is tiny with no windows (just fan) but current rad is too small – hence why it was going anyway. Sized the towel rad even bigger.

Initially I thought 400W element. Would like one of the ones with an adjustable thermostat but they seem to be extortionate.

We have a combined electric and central heating one. We normally only use it as a standard radiator, coming on when the rest of the house is heated.

I am thinking about fitting a timer to the electric part as at the minute we don’t use it as by the time it has warmed up we’ve got up and gone out. Don’t like leaving it on all night.

I think you need to turn off at the valves before using the electric part.

Useful to have the electric extra for spring and autumn when it’s generally warm enough to not need heating but things stay damp in the bathroom and you want it warmer than the rest of the house for when you get out of the shower.

It’s more for drying towels than pre-warming. Don’t want wet towels draped over the normal rads against my freshly tanked walls.

Fair enough, that sounds a bit more reasonable. I still think you’re a tart though. 😛

Drying! Ouside would be better unless you love condensation or have a very efficient ventilation system with a heat exchanger.

Ours are heating only fed and we don’t seem to have an issue. Towels dry nicely in summer/spring

Edukator – it’s only for when they’ve been used to dry after washing, not from the machine.

With a family of 4 they just seem to stay damp if left on the towel radiator during the day.

Drying! Ouside would be better unless you love condensation

Have shower, dry yourself with a towel then wander out into the garden and hang it up??

Drying! Ouside would be better unless you love condensation or have a very efficient ventilation system with a heat exchanger.

You have a short memory, the last time I tried to dry a towel outside I think it was actually wetter after five days… A bit of a shock when one was used to having a pair of jeans dried in under an hour of hanging on the outside line. 😀

We have bought towel rails and heaters from Warmrooms.co.uk whoe are competitive, quick and good with advice.

Don’t make the mistake I made and assume you can leave the electric heater switched on permanently and it will just take over when the CH goes off. It doesn’t work that way; the element just overheats and throws a wobbler.

That’s exactly what we do, Graham. It’s not completely outside, a covered area that gets a breeze.

Just keep it fed from the boiler and when it gets too warm to have all the heating on close the valves on the radiator, that’s what we do, surely that is more cost effective?

giant_scum – to run the whole central heating system with all the other radiators in the house switched off just to have a towel rail warm enough to dry some towels?

We keep our towels on the banisters outside the bathroom, so they dry naturally in a few hours. There is a small CH fed radiator in the bathroom just to warm the room.

plumbed into the heating, no element. In fact I have a small unused one going spare in the garage if anyone fancies a barter…

Plumbed in, plus a ‘leccy element for the mornings in the en-suite — we only have the heating on in the evenings at the moment. Can’t remember how powerful the element is, it’s a couple of feet long though. It’s wired to an immersion heater timer on the other side of the wall, comes on for 45 minutes each morning which gets the room warm enough to prevent condensation and make the towels pleasant 😉

Hmmm, I totally under-estimated the size needed to heat up my shower room. 😳 The room has two outside walls and ceramic tiles and is like an ice box.

In fact I have two electric towel warmers for sale, both only 3 months old. E-mail in profile. Am going back to ones that run off the central heating.

WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY.. get it plumbed into Ch circuit and leave alone.. they get forgotten about eft on and the elements inside explode making a royal mess of the ch circs.. spend the money on something anything else..

I thought it was the Scandinavians that like living in saunas. I don’t suppose anyone wipes down the shower after using it either. And I can see your saucepans simmering away without lids on from here. You do realise how many health problems are related to living in warm, humid houses don’t you?

I have some towel rail elements you have have for a tenner plus post if you like – I decided against, what with all this “part P” electics for bathhrooms stuff, pluss the srewfix towel radiators haven’t been the best to plumb in.

What power are they? Actually probably a bit late now as boiler is going in on thursday so all has to be done before then.

Picket up a 400W from toolstation but not sure if it is a bit overkill. One site said to use the smallest possible for summer only use. Might go get a lower power one and ask the heating guy what he thinks.

It’s for my flat I am doing up to rent so hoping it will be used instead of leaving towels over the radiators.

1 bed flat so no banisters, no quick route to hang them outside, when I used to hang my towels outside it would end up raining and yup the bathroom is well ventilated with a permanently on fan which speeds up when the light goes on.

I wasn’t sure if you should close the valves or not. Convection currents should keep most of the warm water in the rad and some losses from conduction but if you close them then there is no room for thermal expansion of the water.

We keep our towels on the banisters outside the bathroom, so they dry naturally in a few hours. There is a small CH fed radiator in the bathroom just to warm the room.

Exactly what we do. Hand towels left on it but even in summer they dry pretty quick. If they get very wet hang them on the line.

My neighbours tumble dry everything. Washing line spoils the garden they reckon. Chuffin idiots.