Radiators under windows.

Chris Pearson:

. . .


In practical terms, if you need to put furniture against the other walls, the space under the windows may be all that is available.


What you shouldn't do is cover the radiators with floor-length curtains. Unfortunately that is exactly what Mrs P likes and then she complains about the cold. ??

Consider a radiator installed away from the window. This sets up an air circulation pattern. Hot air rises from the radiator and travels just below the ceiling towards the window, from which cooled air sinks to near floor level and travels back to the radiator. People thus sit or stand in the path of the cooled air from the window, which can compromise comfort. To compensate for this, it is desirable to bring the mean room temperature higher than would be necessary if radiator were under the window, avoiding this circulation pattern. This offsets the gain achieved by having the radiator situated where its heat is less likely to leak outside.


So from an energy point of view, maybe fitting radiators under windows is not such a bad idea after all. Has any university or other organisation conducted any research to quantify these alternatives?


In my house, most of the radiators are under windows, thus no clash with furniture. There are a few exceptions, e.g. the bathroom, where the bath, handbasin and loo are all backed against the outside wall, so it is not practicable to put the radiator under the window. In the dining room the window is - well a french window, so the radiator clearly cannot go there.


Overall I think common sense has been applied in the positioning of the radiators (done by a previous owner).


As for curtains, I suggest these should be just long enough to reach the window sill, and sit on it without overlap.

Chris Pearson:

. . .


In practical terms, if you need to put furniture against the other walls, the space under the windows may be all that is available.


What you shouldn't do is cover the radiators with floor-length curtains. Unfortunately that is exactly what Mrs P likes and then she complains about the cold. ??

Consider a radiator installed away from the window. This sets up an air circulation pattern. Hot air rises from the radiator and travels just below the ceiling towards the window, from which cooled air sinks to near floor level and travels back to the radiator. People thus sit or stand in the path of the cooled air from the window, which can compromise comfort. To compensate for this, it is desirable to bring the mean room temperature higher than would be necessary if radiator were under the window, avoiding this circulation pattern. This offsets the gain achieved by having the radiator situated where its heat is less likely to leak outside.


So from an energy point of view, maybe fitting radiators under windows is not such a bad idea after all. Has any university or other organisation conducted any research to quantify these alternatives?


In my house, most of the radiators are under windows, thus no clash with furniture. There are a few exceptions, e.g. the bathroom, where the bath, handbasin and loo are all backed against the outside wall, so it is not practicable to put the radiator under the window. In the dining room the window is - well a french window, so the radiator clearly cannot go there.


Overall I think common sense has been applied in the positioning of the radiators (done by a previous owner).


As for curtains, I suggest these should be just long enough to reach the window sill, and sit on it without overlap.