Progstat Controlling Boiler and Electric Radiators

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Manchester
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Hi,
Our open plan lounge does not have a radiator towards one end, so we are looking to put one in. I've had a few plumbers round and it appears that it's difficult to get the appropriate (15mm?) pipes to supply a radiator at that end of the room - at least without massive disruption to the existing floorboards and tiled hallway, which we want to avoid.

There is a radiator in the centre of the room, but it is being fed by smaller pipes, so I've been told a new radiator cannot be fed off that. That existing radiator also doesn't seem to get fully hot unless other radiators in the house are turned off, so I am guessing that it is not getting the full flow it needs to get hot.

Anyway that's a backstory to my main question - if we installed an electric radiator instead, is there any way to control both the boiler and the electric radiator with the same progstat?
(As you can probably tell I'm not very familiar with central heating above the very basics, so this might be a daft question).

Thanks.
 
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Most central heating thermostats are not suitable for controlling electric heating as they are only designed to switch a small electrical current and a big load would destroy them quickly. Most gas / oil boilers draw currents usually less than 1 amp, because the electricity is only used for control purposes. Also most wet heating systems will be fused at 3A or 5A and the thermostat will be supplied from that fuse. Electric heaters draw considerably more. A 3kW electric heater requires 13A supply for example.

What you suggest could be done by wiring a relay that has suitably rated contacts for your electric heating load, to the existing room thermostat and using the relay to switch the electric heater which would be supplied from a higher rated circuit. You would need to have a reasonable knowledge of electrical circuits and be competent with electrical work to do this though, it's not really something for a DIY novice to do.
 
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