Heating Element Radiator

[HenryGregory]

I would be really grateful of any suggestions on how best to add a heating element radiator to my bathroom.

I have a standard towel rail radiator. It would be good to heat this all year round to dry the towels without having to put the heating on.
Behind the towel rail wall is a bedroom, but sadly, no sockets on that wall.

In the right hand corner of the image (where the mirrored cabinet is), there is a double power socket on the other side of the wall which is the upstairs landing. I am thinking, I could get an electrician to run a wire from that double socket, under the floor and up to where the existing radiator is (marked in red). Does this sound like a good option?

The only other option is in the corner by the toilet, there is boxing for a SVP which runs up to the loft. I have power in my loft, though it comes from a 16A fuse on the fuseboard downstairs, where as the upstairs sockets are on a 32A. I have marked a possible wire run in blue.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I would like to get the hideous vinyl flooring changed which is why I wondered if it might be better to run the wire under the floor. The house is six years old.

 

[martygturner]

whats on the other side of the wall...any sockets ?

 

[EFLImpudence]

Behind the towel rail wall is a bedroom, but sadly, no sockets on that wall.

In the right hand corner of the image (where the mirrored cabinet is), there is a double power socket on the other side of the wall which is the upstairs landing.

 

[Taylortwocities]

I would suggest that the blue circuit would be easiest. Hard to judge without knowing what is actual there.
You'll need a suitably fused FCU in the run to the radiator element. It looks like your radiator is more than 600mm from the edge of a bath/shower, so it could go adjacent to the radiator. Your circuit must be protected by a 30mA RCD - check in the CU if that particular circuit IS RCD protected. post a photo of the CU if you arent sure.

 

[CountryFan]

Or maybe zone off the radiator from the heating using S-plan type motorised valve setup or a smart heating setup, such as Honeywell Evohome, Wiser, Tado et al.

 

[Taylortwocities]

Or maybe zone off the radiator from the heating using S-plan type motorised valve setup.

Obviously. Can you detail how that is done? Asking for a friend.

 

[morqthana]

Or maybe zone off the radiator from the heating using S-plan type motorised valve setup.

Does that satisfy the requirement

It would be good to heat this all year round to dry the towels without having to put the heating on.

?

 

[CountryFan]

Obviously. Can you detail how that is done? Asking for a friend.

Locate the pipework for that particular radiator and create a branch if required so as to install a motorised valve, and one would need to be installed, if not already for the remainder of the heating and add a thermostat. Or use smart heating to create independent zones such as Honeywell Evohome.

 

[CountryFan]

Does that satisfy the requirement


?

I believe so.

 

[Murdochcat]

Assuming it’s a house do you have power in the loft ?

 

[ericmark]

As to the electric route, I would look at where the immersion heater is, so cables are where at a latter date if required, an Eddi solar diverter can run the radiator as well, I note the Eddi has a lower limit of 150 watts, upper limit is 3.68 kW which you would be unlikely to exceed, but to set up so if you have solar panels latter it is easy to connect to them to heat towel rail, seems a good plan, even if never used.

As to the problem of the heater heating other items, I have tested a TRV with a standard head, and set to around 2.5 it starts to close at around 18.5ºC and does not fully close until around 21.5ºC so would not really help to stop flow to other radiators, the electronic heads are better, the eQ-3 and Terrier i30 were cheap stand-alone units, but the price after Brexit went up. And the eQ-3 Bluetooth version will only connect to one phone, so although only £15 in 2019, getting a Wi-Fi version may be better. The Kasa one I have, eats batteries, and the Energenie, Kasa, and Wiser TRV heads all needed their own hub to work, the Energenie will work with PC, as well as phone, the other two are phone or tablet only, there are emulators but the emulator is so slow to load, in real terms they will not work with a PC. But the Energenie had no option to manually set, the others do.

I would say one would need to change settings summer/winter, as one normally wants a bathroom warm, so set to 22ºC in summer still could heat other radiators, so maybe a suck it and see approach, and see if it circulated first, if it does not, then fine, if it does then look at ways to turn radiator off.

My bathroom radiator/towel rail, is connected to the same pipework as the hot coil, so it works when the boiler is used to heat the domestic hot water (DHW) since we use solar to heat the DHW, summer the towel rail does not get hot, but airing cupboard next to bathroom so can put towels there to dry, but never found the need.

I found using around 30 kWh per week to heat DHW using oil, and 15 kWh using electric, and electric is between 8.5p/kWh and 15p/kWh depending on if off-peak or solar used, so now use electric to heat DHW not oil, so towel rail stays cold, I got the iboost+ solar diverter not the Eddi, so not sure if I can use second output for a towel rail.

 

[Taylortwocities]

Assuming it’s a house do you have power in the loft ?

I have power in my loft …. it comes from a 16A fuse on the fuseboard downstairs,

Please try and keep up!

 

[Murdochcat]

Please try and keep up!

Then the lift circuit is probably the best answer - but it must have RCD protection

 

[CountryFan]

Then the lift circuit is probably the best answer - but it must have RCD protection

Is there a lift in the property? I presume you mean left?

 

[Taylortwocities]

Is there a lift in the property? I presume you mean left?

Maybe a rift?