A & E Plumbing and Heating

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Central Heating Radiators: A conventional central heating system will, of course, use radiators. But these now come in a variety of shapes, sizes, styles and colours, so you can choose the right ones for your home - whether you live in a contemporary or in a traditional, period style of house.
 

Traditional Radiators: Radiators are simple heat exchangers which distribute the heat by natural air circulation. Hot air rises, so the heated air next to the surface of a radiator rises, pulling cooler air up from the floor level. They are simple - very little can go wrong - and they're easy to install and operate.


It's worth remembering that any room can have more than a single radiator; with rooms greater than 6 metres (18 ft) in any one direction, it's worth considering distributing a number of radiators to minimise the thermal gradient within the room.
 

Thermostatic Radiator Valves: These are connected to radiators to control the flow of hot water, so as the room heats up to a preset temperature, the valve will close to reduce the amount of heat given out. Then as the room requires more heat, the valve opens to let more hot water in to the radiator, which gives out more heat.


Thermostatic radiator valves allow you to control the temperature accurately in each room where they are fitted. This can save energy - and cost - by preventing some rooms in your home from becoming overheated. Thermostatic radiator valves are cheap, and simple for a plumber to fit. The valves will soon pay for themselves in savings, and controlling the temperature separately in each room also lets you set bedrooms to be slightly cooler than living areas, leading to a better night's sleep.
 

Fan assisted convectors: Similar in principle to traditional radiators, these are usually wall mounted, and a low volume fan blows unheated air across the exchanger and into the room. Because of the forced movement of air, more heat can be extracted from the circulating water and the room heated quicker. The fan is normally controlled by a thermostat which will stop the fan when the set temperature is achieved. One drawback is that by encasing the heat exchanger and fan, the units tend to be a bit bigger than traditional radiators. Another drawback is that each heater requires a mains electricity supply to operate the fan.

There are three main types of boiler: conventional, combination and condensing.

Conventional: A conventional boiler is a good choice for large families who need plenty of hot water, as they're typically between 75-88 per cent efficient.
 

Combi: If you can't wait for water to be heated in the conventional way, then combination, or combi, boilers heat water direct from the mains, eliminating the need for a cylinder in the airing cupboard and tank in the loft. As no energy is wasted in keeping stored water heated energy efficiency can be as high as 90 per cent.
 

Condensing: At the top end of the market, both in terms of price and efficiency, is the condensing boiler. These use an extra heat exchanger to recover and recycle more of the heat that is wasted by a conventional boiler, and typically give an energy efficiency output of between 90-95 per cent. A further development in this market is the 'condensing-combi' boiler, which combines the efficiency of the condensing boiler with the performance of the combination boiler.
 

All of these boilers can be used to heat water for radiators and underfloor heating. If you have, or are installing, underfloor heating, then a condensing boiler will prove the most energy efficient.
 

A boiler is only as efficient as its controls, so an energy management system (EMS) can improve the efficiency of your heating system even further by monitoring the temperature of the water within the boiler and preventing the boiler's burner from firing if there is no need to do so.
 

(If you have the space, and the budget, you could install a central heating cooker, which is worth considering as an alternative to a boiler. The top of the range models can provide both domestic hot water and run your central heating system - oh, and you can cook on them as well!)