Widely used in standard apartments, cast iron radiators are the best way to heat residential premises. However, such heating devices also have their drawbacks, mainly associated with the lack of a thermostat and an excessively high output of accumulated energy. You can consider ways to optimize the operation of cast iron radiators, if any are present in your apartment.
The simplest and most effective material for eliminating excessive heat transfer from a cast iron battery is a regular blanket placed on the planes of the radiator. Closing the battery with it will be a matter of seconds for you. The possible predicted skepticism of many Internet users is associated, first of all, with poor knowledge of the physical processes described in the school curriculum.
Reduced indoor humidity will be a minor side effect. It can be easily eliminated by purchasing an air humidifier (its average consumption in a typical apartment is up to three liters of water per day) and a psychrometer - a device that controls the level of humidity in the room.
Do not use the windows as a way to lower the room temperature; they can only be opened for natural ventilation of the room. Otherwise, the presence of very dry air in the apartment can lead to unpleasant consequences for the nasopharynx and skin. The heat escaping from the room will not significantly reduce the heating temperature.
The rationale for such advice lies in the physical processes that occur when cold street air enters the apartment. This air, which has a low level of humidity, heats up as it passes through the window into the room and reduces the absolute value of humidity. Accordingly, an increase in the humidity of the apartment atmosphere will occur with the help of your breath and skin, taking away the water it needs from the body.
The simple way
The easiest way to cope with elevated room temperatures is for those who have a radiator system with regulated hot water supply installed in their apartment. It is enough to simply cover or completely shut off the water supply to the radiator, and the thermometer in your apartment will creep down before your eyes.
The balancing valve can also be installed on the heating riser. As a result of its complete or partial blocking, the temperature in the home will decrease. Having found the best option, you can easily bring your home climate to the required standard.
This will, of course, solve the problem of high temperature in your apartment. However, this is only suppressing symptoms when you can pay attention to the cause of the problem. There is another unpleasant aspect of overheating - every extra degree by which our radiators heat up is money that we overpay for heating.
What does a snowflake on a battery regulator mean?
“Snowflake” or “Unity” indicate the minimum coolant flow through the radiator. In this case, the radiator is disconnected from heat, but is protected from defrosting. The remaining 4 digits will allow you to adjust the air temperature within the range from 14 C to 28 C.
Interesting materials:
What is local lighting? What is local fertilization? What are local acts in education? What is Wire Tinning? What is a layout on Instagram? What is McCombo? What is Makukha for chickens? What is Malolactic Fermentation? What is manipulation of people? What is a snail's mantle?
Ways to disguise radiators
If the temperature in the apartment is completely satisfactory, but you are only concerned about the appearance of the batteries, then you can use one of the decorating methods. The main thing is not to harm the heat transfer process and observe several important points:
- The radiator may require repair or replacement, so you need to think through the decorative design so that in the event of an accident the battery can be easily removed. Plumbers who regularly encounter problems with heating devices generally recommend using only attached screens that simply slide to the side.
- The main threat from a radiator is a possible leak at the junction with the heating pipes. Therefore, the second important nuance is the accessibility of the connection points, which can be ensured by providing a plastic door in the box design .
Using wallpaper
Typical heating radiators are painted white and look good only against white walls.
If the walls are dark in color but without a pattern, the radiators can simply be repainted. Only heat-resistant paint can be used. Drawings on the walls complicate the task . Using a stencil and paint, it’s easy to duplicate a simple pattern on a battery. If the pattern is complex, you can cut pieces from the leftover wallpaper that match the size of the sections and stick them on the radiator.
A special way to decorate a battery is decoupage. Craft supply stores sell vinyl-based stickers that do not deform when exposed to temperature. For decoupage, you can use not only ready-made patterns, but also create your own from scrap materials: fabric, paper, hot melt glue and even beads.
Fabric screen
Women with good sewing skills often make their own fabric radiator covers.
An alternative way to decorate is to create a special curtain for the battery. They are made of loose fabric and attached to the wall or window sill using textile Velcro. Most often, a fabric screen is made from the same material as curtains.
An undoubted advantage of such screens: minimal impact on heat transfer and basic care - the battery curtain, which has collected all the dust, can be effortlessly cleaned when washed in a regular washing machine.
Mounted and attached structures
For lovers of ready-made solutions, construction and furniture stores offer screens made of various materials. The variety of choices allows you to choose a design that will fit perfectly into any interior. The most popular screens are made of metal and wood:
- Metal decorative screens are made from stainless steel. Chrome structures fit well into a stylish high-tech interior. The main advantage of metal decor is high thermal conductivity, easy maintenance and wear resistance.
- Wooden screens are suitable for interiors in American or Scandinavian style. Most often, wooden screens are made in the form of a large-mesh lattice, which does not interfere with the normal convection of the battery.
- The decorative glass screen looks very elegant, and the design itself takes on an airy lightness. But decorating with solid glass reduces heat transfer by almost half; a more effective way is to use a screen made of several glass panels.
- Drywall screens are also very common because you can make them yourself. It must be remembered that the thermal conductivity of drywall is very low, and the material itself begins to deteriorate under the influence of high temperatures. Therefore, it is better to choose fire-resistant drywall and treat the sheets with a primer or PVA glue.
Masking boxes
A more complex decor option is a box that covers the radiator on all sides.
Most often, boxes are made from the following materials:
- Heat-resistant drywall is an inexpensive material that at the final stage is painted, covered with wallpaper or film, decorated with decorative elements and even stucco.
- MDF panels are also inexpensive and successfully imitate rare wood species. The panels are selected to match the color of the main furniture.
- Plywood, like drywall, is very often used when making boxes yourself, and at the final stage it is decorated with various materials.
- Wood is used as a material for the box due to its high environmental friendliness, but it is more expensive and difficult to process.
- Plastic, although it is used as part of the box structure, is not particularly popular. When heated, plastic elements can release toxic fumes.
Heat Shield Materials
Foil foam is usually found in retail sales as short rolls. The thickness of the material layer in this case is up to 3 millimeters, and for foamed polyethylene – up to 4 millimeters. The thermal insulation properties of these materials are comparable to the properties of a 100 mm layer of mineral wool insulation.
When placing a screen that reflects heat, one can and should take into account such an important factor as the minimum distance between the edge of the radiator section of the battery and the inner wall, which is 4 mm. If you change this distance downward, it will complicate or disrupt the circulation of warm air and, as a result, convective heat transfer and the efficiency of the radiator.
Special cases of placing a heating battery on the wall do not allow the installation of a full-fledged screen that reflects heat. The way out of this situation is to mount aluminum foil on the wall, its shiny surface copes well with heat reflection. One sheet of such material, placed on a standard brick wall (if its thickness is 51 centimeters), will reduce the heat transfer loss of the battery by up to 35 percent.
The various methods discussed above for eliminating excess thermal energy from a battery can be taken into account as effective methods that have been proven in practice. If it gets too hot in the apartment, use what is said to make your home as comfortable as possible.
What to do if your apartment is hot in winter
In winter, some houses have very hot radiators. The air conditioner is powerless in winter - the external unit must operate at positive temperatures. But it can help in early spring, when it’s already around zero outside and the radiators are still hot.
The most effective way to deal with excessively hot batteries is to install thermostats or ordinary shut-off valves on them. With their help you can regulate the water supply. As a last resort, just block it.
If this is not possible, you can open the windows. But in winter this is fraught with the danger of catching a cold. If you open the windows for a short time, then after a while the air in the room will warm up again and the heat will return.
Heating radiators can be covered with damp towels or sheets. This will humidify the air and reduce the temperature of the batteries. There is only one drawback - the sheets dry out quickly and need to be constantly moistened.
Another option is to cover the battery with a thick blanket. It will serve as a heat insulator and help reduce the temperature. And next to the battery you can place a jar of water, which will evaporate and reduce the dryness of the air.
The management company is responsible for regulating the temperature of the water supplied to your home. You can contact it with a request to reduce the temperature of the coolant. If your request is ignored, you can file a written complaint with Rospotrebnadzor.
Can you get burned on a battery?
Yes, you can get burned from batteries without regulating the supply temperature. ... In apartments, the supply temperature can reach 80-90 degrees during severe cold weather, and burns occur at 50-60 degrees, so you need to be careful around batteries and pay special attention to small children during this dangerous period.
Interesting materials:
Can sofa cushions be washed in a washing machine? Is KN95 washable? Is it possible to wash sneakers without a bag? Is it possible to build a house in a ravine? Is it possible to glue glass with superglue? Is it possible to dry potatoes in the sun? Is it possible to dry things in the cold? Is it possible to remove a tattoo with a laser? Is it possible to dye dark hair with light dye? Is it possible to park taxis in courtyards?
What to do with a stuck ball valve
When ball valves are not used for their intended purpose for a long time, they begin to jam due to the formation of scale. Do not use brute force to try to open the valve using a gas wrench or pliers. When the faucet handle does not unscrew immediately, then:
- You need to unscrew the fixing nut and remove the “butterfly” from the rod.
- Under the “butterfly” there is a nut that secures the plastic seal, which needs to be loosened. A key is used and the tap is turned half a turn.
- It is also possible to use a tool that allows you to firmly grasp the stem. It is possible to use an adjustable wrench. The rod turns without excessive effort.
- If resistance is felt, you need to move in the opposite direction, gradually increasing the amplitude by 5 degrees.
- It is necessary to develop the rotation of the rod until a right angle is formed. If this result is achieved, the gland nut is returned and the butterfly handle is installed.
Important! When you have WD-40 lubricant in the house, apply it to the soured rod and leave for 10 minutes. This makes it easier to unscrew.
Of course, an electric sheet is the result of technological progress, but hot water in a rubber heating pad or a simple plastic bottle was, is and will be one of the simplest and most effective means for heating a bed or body. It’s not for nothing that servants put copper hot water bottles in their masters’ beds several centuries ago. And now the rules of the game have not changed: put a heating pad in your bed before going to bed - and enjoy the warmth.
It is worth noting that there are special heating pads on sale that can be placed in the microwave. Heat it for one minute and you are ready to use. In addition, there is a salt heating pad: it heats up due to the crystallization of salt. The temperature of such a heating pad reaches 52 degrees Celsius.
Heating Systems Basics
In general, according to the regulations of utility services, it is prohibited to interfere with the operation of the central systems of the house. In exceptional cases, when the battery is leaking or has ruptured, emergency intervention is permitted. But if the heating system in your home is connected to the central system correctly, then you can try turning off the heating yourself. There is nothing particularly difficult about this.
Correct connection means that the heating is connected to the general system using two ball valves (Figure 1) and a jumper called a bypass (Figure 2). This connection is called one-pipe. (Figure 3)
Figure 1 – Two taps
Figure 2 – Bypass jumper
Figure 3 – One-pipe system with a jumper. It can be covered
Important Modern heaters are filled with water, which plays the role of a coolant. In winter, hot water flows through the heating pipes, and cold water in summer. Oddly enough, it is filling with water that saves the insides of the radiator from rusting from the inside. After all, if all the water is drained from the heating system, then its remaining drops will create a microclimate for the formation of corrosion.
Bed
The optimal temperature for sleeping is 16 degrees, at which people feel rested and healthy. In addition, the room must have humidified air. Placing the bed next to heating appliances makes it difficult for people to get quality sleep.
The air around the batteries is very hot and dry. If you inhale it all night, in the morning a person wakes up lethargic, tired and as if sick. Doctors say that sleeping in such conditions provokes frequent relapses of colds and other diseases. Due to dry air, breathing difficulties and peeling of the skin occur.
Features of the use of decorative screens
When choosing how to cover heating radiators, many people make the mistake of paying attention solely to the appearance of the screens. And this often leads to a decrease in heating efficiency, since not all products allow air to flow freely to the device.
Of course, the screens must fulfill their main purpose - to hide pipes and old batteries. But when choosing from several options, you need to give preference to the one that will not reduce the efficiency of heating the premises.
The best way to paint hot batteries
Exposure to hot water causes premature failure of heating radiators - over time, pockets of corrosion are found on the metal surface. To prevent this process, special types of paint should be used to paint batteries.
A high-quality paint composition must withstand elevated temperatures well, have a stable film structure and maintain its original tone for a long time. In addition, if the owner prefers to carry out repairs in winter, it is advisable to choose paint without a strong odor .
To paint heating radiators during the heating season, it is recommended to use the following types of paint:
- Alkyd. This material does not have a strong odor, retains its original shade for a long time and is excellent for interior metal work;
- Acrylic. Paints based on this base have excellent resistance to elevated temperatures and are ideal for application to household heating radiators. Acrylic compositions retain color for a long time, but have an unpleasant odor, so the use of these paints for interior work is limited. There is a variety of acrylic paints that need to be mixed with special solvents; they are distinguished by higher covering qualities and an impeccable glossy film, and to apply this paint no preliminary primer of the surface is required;
- Oily. Durable and reliable paints, but they have a significant drawback - the drying time is too long.
In addition to the paints listed, aerosol cans with auto enamel can be used to paint radiators. The sprayer greatly facilitates the work and allows you to use material economically.
Is it possible to cover radiators?
Before you start masking, you need to know a few important nuances:
- The first thing you need to understand is that with any method there will be heat loss.
- Convection air flows should not be blocked by anything; this is the only way to maintain uniform heating of the room, and the windows will not fog up.
- For various emergencies, it is worth considering in advance free access to threaded connections and the radiator - this could be a window or a removable structure, for example, a door with hinges.
- For repairs, the faucet, thermal head and other elements of the heating system must remain in good accessibility.
The best ways to beautifully hide radiators
There are several ways to hide batteries; in this section we will look at the most popular and effective ones.
Hinged screen
It is by far the most practical and popular method; most often this design is made of metal and has its advantages:
- simple installation;
- heat exchange remains the same;
- can be made with rounded corners, which reduces the risk of injury.
Glass screens
A screen made of glass will be an interesting and stylish solution, especially for those who choose minimalism or a modern style in interior design. Photo printing or various patterns can be applied to the glass, but this method is not a budget option. Installation is carried out on a screw holder, but you will have to drill holes in the wall. However, the heating radiator will be stylishly protected. This option will fit into any interior.
Box screens
Box screens are an excellent option for decorating radiators.
- They will help to completely hide the battery.
- The box can become a piece of furniture.
- Erans are easy to install and easy to care for.
- Protect from burns or other injuries.
The photo shows an original green wooden box in the children's interior.
Curtains to the floor
Let’s not forget about the most popular way to hide batteries - simply hang them with opaque or translucent curtains. Using this method, over time you will even forget that there are pipes and a radiator behind the curtains. The main thing is to choose curtains that will look harmonious and not show everyone that there is something behind them.
Painting the walls in color
How to hide a heating radiator on the wall if other designs are “prohibited”. There is only one way to paint it the same color as the wall.
Wood frame
Wood will create coziness and warmth in the apartment, and the disguise of the battery will be elegant and beautiful. This option is for those who are furnishing their home in eco-style using natural materials. These ways to hide batteries can be used as a stand for home decor.
In the photo, ordinary wooden blocks stylishly hide the radiator in the kitchen.
Built in furniture
Another common way to cover a radiator is custom-made furniture or built-in furniture (shelves, cabinets, folding tables, seating).
Hide the radiator with furniture
Arrange furniture, such as an armchair or desk, so that it covers the radiator. A cast iron radiator is not attractive to many, but pieces of furniture can hide it.
Replace with designer model
For those who don’t want to invent anything, unique designer ways to hide batteries have been developed that already initially have a beautiful appearance and you simply don’t want to hide them.
Original ideas
There are many creative ideas that can turn batteries into a decorative element:
- Hide the radiator with fabric
- Painting and decoupage of batteries
In the photo, with the help of a beautiful painting, the battery has merged with the wall.
Hide with drywall
Separately, I would like to talk about how you can hide batteries using drywall. It’s worth noting right away that the material has its drawbacks, but plasterboard construction is still very popular for repairs.
- The material is environmentally friendly and is not subject to combustion.
- You can find several varieties of this material on the market.
- This camouflage option is budget-friendly, and installation can be carried out in different ways, in a way that is convenient for you.
- Also, it is drywall that will allow the apartment owner to come up with any design, which will help not only to cover the pipes and radiator, but also to make additional decorative elements.
The downside is that drywall is afraid of external influences; if you do it carelessly, it is quite easy to break or pierce it. And if a breakdown or leak occurs, the entire finish will have to be replaced again, but this material is cheap.
Do-it-yourself installation of a plasterboard box
In order to close the battery, you need to measure it, and then buy metal profiles and other additional products.
- What materials are needed: 12 mm plasterboard sheet, metal profiles 27x28 and 60x27, self-tapping screws for plasterboard and metal, dowel-nails 6x40 in size, construction sickle, perforated corners.
- Tools: screwdriver, hammer drill, metal scissors, stationery knife, stapler, pencil, tape measure, building level.
Attention, for the construction of a plasterboard box there is an important requirement: the window sill must extend beyond the radiator by at least 3 centimeters.
Work order:
- Installation of the frame. The profile should be mounted on three adjacent sides: floor, wall, window sill. Press the 27x28 metal profile to the base with your hand, drill a hole using a hammer drill in both the profile and the wall. Using a screwdriver, screw the dowel-nail into the hole. At the bottom of the window sill, a 27x28 metal profile is mounted on self-tapping screws; the length of the screws should not be greater than the thickness of the window sill. Next, you can install jumpers made of metal profile 60x27.
- Selecting the grid size. This hole must be made slightly smaller than the grid size. You can focus on three recommended sizes: 60x120, 60x90 or 60x60.
- Installation of drywall. Plasterboard sheets can be cut with a utility knife. Screw it in with a screwdriver.
- Installation of corners. They must be secured at the corners with a construction stapler, or attached to gypsum plaster. Serpyanka should be applied to all seams of the plasterboard box and covered with plaster. Before painting or wallpapering, the plasterboard box must be puttied, sanded and coated with primer.
Masking heating pipes
It doesn’t matter whether it’s an apartment or a house, a bedroom or a kitchen, everywhere I would like to have a good renovation. Questions immediately arise: how to beautifully hide heating pipes and how can this be done with minimal cost and maximum efficiency? At the same time, the method of disguise should be truly invisible and unnoticeable, fitting into the room.
The pipe can be hidden inside the wall, or it can also be closed into the floor. Remember that the old heating system should not be hidden in this way; this option is possible after a complete update of all elements.
Box on frame
It is best made from wood, plastic or plasterboard. Do not place the heating pipes close together; there should be at least three centimeters between the box and the pipe.
Battery shutdown
What to do when an accident occurs and the room is flooded with hot water, but there are no shut-off valves? Or are the connections to the battery not connected by a bypass? In an emergency situation, the temporary discomfort of the neighbors will have to be pushed into the background and the water in the battery must be shut off in any way.
After all, as a result of a breakthrough, significant material losses can be incurred not only by you, but also by your neighbors below, who will also be reached by the water.
Advice. If the leak is small, water just drips at the connection, then you have enough time to resolve the issue. You need to substitute some kind of container and contact the heating supply organization or a house mechanic by phone.
When the leak is significant and there is a risk of flooding in the room, you need to act quickly. The taps on the connections to the radiator must be closed, regardless of the absence of a bypass. If there are no fittings, then you need to make calls to all possible emergency services, and then try to shut off the entire riser yourself until they arrive. To do this, you will have to go down to the basement of the house and find the heating point of your entrance. In simple words, you need to find 2 vertical pipes going up from a horizontal collector of a larger diameter.
The valves or taps located at the insertion of both pipes into the manifold must be closed. In this case, not only your apartment will be left without heat, but also everyone else along the riser. In a good way, you need to go through all the apartments and warn your neighbors about the current situation, and hang a sign on the closed valves so that no one opens them again while you are undergoing repairs. If it was not possible to find the necessary valves, you will have to wait for the arrival of a locksmith or the arrival of the emergency service.
Conclusion. You can shut off your steel or cast iron battery in the middle of winter in two cases: when the piping scheme allows it and in the event of an emergency - in any case.
Adjustment features
Temperature changes in the heating system can be adjusted both automatically and using mechanical devices. By adjusting the position of special fittings, the temperature in the room is reduced. The option allows you to reduce or increase the parameters in a separate radiator.
Why adjustment is needed
Locking devices not only change the heating level of the radiators in the room, but also correct errors in operation. Air pockets can form in the heating system, due to which the coolant (water) stops heating the structure. Due to the cooling of the radiator, the microclimate in the room worsens. The mechanisms allow you to drain moisture and eliminate the defect.
Self-regulating the temperature in the system helps reduce utility costs. With the help of shut-off valves it is easy to reduce costs by up to 25%. Reducing the parameters in a hot room by 1C will save the user 4-6% in payment.
Why do you need to regulate the temperature Source kaluga-poisk.ru
According to sanitary standards, during the heating season, the temperature in residential premises should be between 18-21 C. An individual comfortable degree varies from 23 to 27 C. Due to physical characteristics, one person may be hot at +24, while another will freeze at +30 C. If the radiators get very hot, people often open the windows for ventilation. In families with small children or elderly parents, the procedure is dangerous due to colds in cold weather.
To normalize the microclimate, it is better to reduce the parameters using shut-off valves in the radiator. The user adjusts the temperature, adapting to the functional features of the room. In the bedroom and kitchen you can set the minimum values (20 C), in the nursery and bathroom - the maximum comfortable values (24-26 C).
To prevent the radiator from burning Source housechief.ru
How to change parameters
After turning on the heating, thermal energy spreads throughout the house system. The microclimate in the room depends on the volume of water passing through the pipes. By turning the valve or special tap, the user reduces the amount of hot moisture in the radiator sections. As a result, the battery heats up less intensely, which leads to cooling.
How to adjust the temperature in a radiator Source intelligent88.ru
When the coolant enters the heating system, it heats the metal surface of the structure, which transfers energy into the air. The heating power often depends not only on the volume of the media, but also on the material of the radiator. Steel, aluminum and copper heat up in a few minutes and cool down in up to an hour. The regulator in such models allows you to change the degree at the user’s discretion. Massive cast iron batteries cool down very slowly, so it is not advisable to install fittings.
Top tips
Creating a cooling system
The first thing that comes to mind when fighting the heat is, of course, creating some kind of air conditioner from improvised materials with your own hands. As a rule, almost every apartment already has at least one fan, which, however, copes with the heat rather poorly - it simply drives warm air from place to place.
By the way, it is important to follow several important rules if you really want to ventilate the room and not let in the hot heat from the street : close the windows when the temperature outside rises above +25 °C. The lowest temperature is from 4:00 to 7:00 and in the evening after 20:00.
However, with a little imagination you can turn it into something worthwhile and useful for fighting the heat. Let's look at the most popular methods and choose the best one in terms of efficiency and ease of “creation” (you can put on a white robe for respectability, so that your family will immediately understand that you are an inventor, not a hack):
Place a bowl or better yet a pan filled with ice in front of the fan. You can even take 3-4 plastic bottles (they are more convenient to freeze), but then do not forget to place a tray or large plate under them, otherwise the melted water will drain from them onto the floor.
Efficiency: high. Of course, this will add humidity to the air, and as we know, dry heat, when air humidity is low, is more easily tolerated than heat with high humidity. However, too low humidity leads to dry skin, poor body heat transfer, and damage to the upper respiratory tract.
In this case, this is desperately reminiscent of air conditioners, especially the centralized type, which are not just equipped with an automatic air humidification system that allows you to maintain the humidity in the room in a comfortable zone.
Cons: As a rule, bottles heat up in about 30 minutes to almost room temperature.
Advice: to ensure that cold air is drawn in from the rear and no extraneous warm air is sucked in, glue a homemade cardboard casing around the circumference of the fan with double-sided tape.
Gauze is placed on the fan in 2-3 layers, about 5 meters long. The lower or upper (or both) ends of the gauze are lowered into a bowl of cold water. When the fan is running at max. speed, the air in a medium-sized room is cooled by 4-5 degrees.
Efficiency: average - it’s pleasant to be in such air, but the air throughout the apartment is only slightly cooled.
A super difficult option for craftsmen - advice: make your husband make such a gravitsapa . You will need a fan, 6 plastic bottles, a sheet of thick cardboard or thin plastic, plastic zip ties, a utility knife, and silicone hot melt adhesive.
Let's start getting creative! We cut off the bottom part of the bottles, focusing, for example, on the label - the cut line will run exactly along it. Cut carefully, the resulting parts should be the same in height!
How to close a cast iron radiator in a room – VashSlesar.ru
When planning a room renovation in a certain style, apartment residents try to think through all the little details.
And then the question arises of how to close the battery. In a classic and retro style interior, a detail in the form of a cast iron radiator is quite appropriate. Ribbed cast sections and even bimetallic heating plates do not fit into the design of other styles. You need to install a box or cover the battery in the room with a screen. Then there is a risk of freezing. Decoupage practically does not change the power of the heat flow.
You can do it yourself.
How to cover radiators
Difficult choice between heating efficiency and beauty
Closing the radiators of the heating system
The number of sections of the heating battery takes into account the area of the room. The rules for installing a radiator strictly regulate the distance to the floor, wall and window sill. Compliance with these rules is necessary for normal room temperature in winter. The heated air should rise freely. A cold one takes its place. Radiation from the heated metal goes to the sides.
If you completely close the batteries, you get big gas savings. The water returns to the boiler room hot and can be brought to the required temperature with minimal heating. The room remains cold because the path to heat flow is closed. The interior has a beautiful view. The heating does not perform its function, the room is cold.
For normal heating of the room, it is necessary to ensure maximum conditions for heat radiation.
- The gap between the wall and the radiator to allow air to rise upward.
- The distance from the floor to the battery is 3 times greater than to the wall. Cold air should freely enter the place of rising, heated air.
- The convection flow of hot air rises freely. The distance to the window sill is more than 10 cm.
- The front part of the radiator should be as open as possible to infrared radiation coming from the front panel of the sections.
Closing the radiators means losing heat. We need to find the best option, beautiful decor and minimal losses.
What to consider when choosing a battery cover method
Heating radiators provide room heating in two ways:
- Infrared radiation, transferring heat to objects in the room.
- Convection, heating the air. Warm air rises and displaces cold air, circulating air in the room and equalizing the temperature throughout its entire area.
Before determining how to close radiators and pipes (pictured), you need to understand that any decorated element will lead to a decrease in heating power. The larger the dense surface area (without slits and holes) of the decorative element, the worse the room will heat up.
Attention!
From the point of view of maximum heating efficiency, the ideal option for a decorated surface is for it to have the appearance of a mesh with large holes.
In addition, the cover must be designed in such a way that the heating radiator and pipes can be accessed at any time. This is necessary if the battery leaks or its sections need to be washed. Therefore, it is better to use a removable screen or box with a special door that provides access to the mounting location of the pipe and radiator.
Boxes, grilles and screens for heating radiators
Closing the radiators of the heating system
The box completely blocks all flows and heating is ineffective. The exception is the manufacturing option in accordance with the requirements:
- the box does not have a bottom bar and hangs at a distance from the floor;
- in the upper part there are holes for air outlet;
- The area of the holes on the front panel is larger than the remaining body of material.
Such a box is easy to make with your own hands if you know how to work with metal. You can make a structure from plasterboard by taking fire-resistant sheets and treating them with a primer. The parts are made according to the size of the cast iron radiator:
- 2 side posts, at the same time legs on which the box rests, and other parts are hung;
- Front Panel;
- top panel.
Hanging screens are sold in the store. They are made of metal and reduce heating slightly. The heating radiator is closed and has an aesthetic appearance.
When placing the battery in a wall niche, it is convenient to make gratings with your own hands. The simplest option is narrow wooden slats. They are installed at a great distance from each other. The area of infrared radiation decreases slightly. The convection current circulates freely. The room is warm and the radiator is nicely camouflaged.
The frosted glass screen with a beautiful pattern looks stylish. It can imitate a fireplace and simply decorate a room with its design. The area of infrared radiation is completely closed and half of the heat flow is lost.
Attention! Do not use plastic to create the box and screen. When heated, it releases harmful substances and quickly breaks down.
How to close batteries correctly - technical rules and tips
This option is one of the most popular due to its average price and beautiful appearance. What is the difference between a box and a screen? The screen is designed for the battery located in a niche or under the window sill (pictured above), therefore, it covers only its front part. The box completely covers the radiator on the wall from all sides.
The screen, like the box panel, is made of perforated HDF sheet (high-density fiberboard 3 mm thick), but the box profiles are made of MDF. Both materials are quite strong, durable and non-toxic when heated.
