How do radiators work?

Radiator heating is one of the most common types of heating, making up many traditional central heating systems. They are a reliable and efficient way of keeping your property warm. Knowing how they work will be beneficial if you ever have a problem with your radiators as you can get a better understanding of the steps required to fix it. Also, you can get a good insight into why your home heats up in the way that it does, which could help you become more energy efficient – lowering your carbon footprint and heating bills. 

How radiators work 

Radiators rely on a process called convection which involves heat transfer within the system. So, when the water is heated, the air around it is heated up as well by convection. The now hot air is then transferred around the room as the air circulates. Usually, radiators have pipes that connect them to the central heating system and hot water flows through them to access the radiator and spread the heat. From there the hot water in the radiator heats up an area using convection. 

It’s important to note that the hot water doesn’t stay in the radiator, it moves through the radiator and out so it can move to the next radiator and so on. As it passes through the system it starts to cool down. When it gets back to the boiler, it is then reheated, and the process starts again for as long as the central heating is on. 

All the radiators in the system are linked in a chain, meaning the radiator closest to the boiler will have the water pass through when it’s at its hottest. Whereas the last radiator in the chain will have the coolest water, which isn’t ideal when you want to heat all the rooms in your home to the same temperature. Therefore, a process known as balancing is used to help all radiators operate at a similar temperature. Balancing restricts water flow into the radiator and is achieved by turning a valve called the ‘lockshield valve’. This can restrict or open the flow of water into the radiator depending on your needs. 

Do gas heated radiators work differently to electric ones?

Gas heaters work in the traditional convection method detailed above, but electric radiators are very different and as a result, are a lot more energy efficient. Instead of depending on water to heat the radiator and the air within in to circulate heat into a room, electric radiator systems typically have a non-porous, ceramic core containing up to 20 heat plates. 

This means that the radiator can heat up more quickly through the heating element that is fitted in the core. Not only that but heat can also be better retained in the core, so the radiator can keep emitting heat for a long time after the system has been switched off. 

Electric radiators can reach maximum heat in an impressive five minutes and stay warm for a while after because the heat isn’t required to travel through a network of radiators. Testing has shown that when the temperature outside is 6 degrees, an electric radiator only needs to be on a third of the time to keep a room at a temperature of 21 degrees.  

Conclusion

We hope this article has helped you get a better understanding of how radiators work. If you’re having a problem with your boiler or central heating and need UK boiler parts to have it fixed, NBS can help. We stock a wide range of new and refurbished boiler parts and heating spares from many different manufacturers – so you can find the exact part for your needs. Explore our online shop today and contact us if you have any questions.