Radiator BTU output help

[Yogi&Bob]

Hi,

We are looking to upgrade our radiators, we have a mix of type 11 and type 22 central heating radiators. Primarily we want radiators that will provide more heat and if we can something that looks a bit nicer so are considering steel column radiators.

We have had a company come and provide us with a quote and they have told us that our existing radiators have the following BTU outputs

Room 1 Radiators - Existing BTU 11086
Rad 1 400mm high x 1800mm wide x 105mm deep type 22
Rad 2 600mm high x 1100mm wide x 105mm deep type 22

Room 2 - Existing BTU 5623
Rad size - 500mm high x 1400mm wide x 105mm deep type 22

Having checked a number of places now, I can't find any Type 22 radiators in the sizes we have that come close to having a BTU number as low as the ones above.

Lowest I can find for room 1 is a combined BTU of 14289 and room 2 BTU of 7030.

The steel column radiators they are trying to sell us have a BTU combined for Room 1 of 13212 and for Room 2 BTU of 6216.

These numbers are all at BTU T50

I have gone back to them and asked then to clarify the BTU numbers they have stated we currently have and asked them what size and type of radiator they have based their numbers on. Also telling them that all the type 22 radiators I can find in exactly the same sizes we have are giving me a far higher BTU output than they have stated we have. They have come back to be and told me that they got their numbers from a database they have but would not tell me what size radiators they have based their number on.

I'm starting to think that they have told us our current radiators have a lower BTU output than they actually have, in order to make it look like the steel column radiators have a higher BTU output. Everything I can find so far is telling me that the BTU output of the steel column radiators will actually be less than what we have at present and we'd be better off staying with what we have.

So is there such a thing as a standard database that companies use to provide existing BTU numbers or is this radiator company just trying to sell me radiators and giving me wrong numbers to try and make a sale.

Many thanks for any replies.

 

[Johntheo5]

Have a look at this.

 

[Yogi&Bob]

Thanks, I have that as well as the same from kudox, Kartell and Flomasta. All of the BTU numbers are fairly similar and all well above what the radiator seller has told me mine are. I'm just trying to be as thorough as possible as my radiators would have been installed in 2006 when then house was built. As my rads as the same size and type as all the data sources I have found so far, I'm assuming there isnt going to be much difference between 2006 and now.

Thanks

 

[ChrisJP]

Type 22 radiators are double convectors - having two inside corrugated convector surfaces, in addition to the radiator units each side. Steel column radiators of the same overall size, while looking good, will NEVER match the BTU output of type 22s.
So I think your suspicion that your radiator company is being "economical with the truth" is correct!
If you need to replace any of your radiators I would replace like with like. I find Prorad are some of the best and quite keenly price online.

 

[Yogi&Bob]

Thanks, my thoughts were that they were massively understating the BTU output of our existing radiators in order to make the one's they are suggesting look like they have a higher BTU output than our existing radiators. We have told them that we want more heat and we werent going to replace them with steel columns if we couldn't get more. Clearly they can't give us more heat without making their radiators much bigger, which they can't due to space restrictions, so I guess they only way they thought they would get a sale was by lying to us. I shall be giving the company a wide berth now that my suspicion is being confirmed.

Many thank for the replies.

 

[Madrab]

The trouble with the whole matching outputs between convecting rads and designer column rads is the way they heat the space. This has been explained numerous times on here, might be worth a bit of a search through.

Long and the short of it is - tubular column rads heat the space in a much less efficient way than convecting rads, so whilst the output may be similar, how they heat the space is significantly different. So TBH they aren't being dishonest but they also aren't being very upfront.

It seems that a lot of these companies (not all) either technically don't know or just don't care how these designer rads actual work in the real world and how they physically heat a given space

If you are looking for more heat then I wouldn't recommend the use of tubular column rads unless they are vastly oversized or there are more of them.

 

[Yogi&Bob]

Thank and I understand the point you are making. The dishonesty in this case comes from them purposely highlighting to us the BTU output of our existing radiators and then pointing to the BTU output of their radiators and effectively saying, look ours have a higher BTU output. When in fact the number they have stated to us as being our existing BTU output has been significantly understated and the actual BTU outout of our existing radiators is actually quite a bit higher than the BTU of the radiators they are trying to sell us.

 

[Madrab]

Room 1 Radiators - Existing BTU 11086
Rad 1 400mm high x 1800mm wide x 105mm deep type 22
Rad 2 600mm high x 1100mm wide x 105mm deep type 22

If these are standard double panel/double convectors then together they would sit around ~14400 BTU's (~ 4.2Kw)

Room 2 - Existing BTU 5623
Rad size - 500mm high x 1400mm wide x 105mm deep type 22

This one would sit around - ~ 7800 BTU's (~2.3Kw)

 

[Yogi&Bob]

Thank you, your numbers are in line with all of the one's that I have been able to find so far. I haven't been able to find any that come close to the numbers the company stated to us!