Best radiator as in highest BTUs for smallest size

Monbretia

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I need to put in a new radiator in an extension, I have only space for one and the max space width wise it can take up is 1200 so space for valves must fit within that too. It is going under a standard height counter so while I see some are taller than 600 I don't think I can go with much higher, how low to the floor can they go? They always seem to be above skirting, is this necessary?

There is only space for one radiator and there is only one spot to put it in, believe me this has been well thrashed out, there is no other option. Plumber says I need about 6500 BTUs to heat space but at this stage I'd settle for as close as I can get as giving up any more space to it is just not worth it. I have what I presume is a bog standard central heating system, 30 yrs old, gas boiler, mainly single radiators but some doubles, house is perfectly warm enough and system has never caused any problem, I never have to turn the dial on the boiler past 1 to get plenty heat and hot water and most of the time it's between 0 and 1.

As there is only radiator involved the price doesn't really matter if I could get something near what I want, any plumbers with suggestions? :)
 
If you can fit a double panel you should have no problem getting one with 6500BTU. This one from [broken link removed] for example at 500x1100 outputs 8141.
 
Thanks, but once the valves bits are added to each side is that going to go over 1200? Although I'll have a look and see if there is one slightly smaller that would squeeze in, I'm not sure how much you have to allow for those bits.
 
This might be unhelpful as I have no figures. Our daughter had an extension completed last year. The builder advised her to have an electric radiator fitted instead of one through the existing oil heating system. Apparently, the newer electric radiators are more efficient than the older electric radiators. I should point out all our radiators are through the gas heating system.
 
I use an oil filled radiator as a back up in kitchen when central heating is not on, I don't think I could ever see myself using an electric radiator on any sort of constant basis, I don't even the newest of them would be cheaper. We built on an extension for my father some years back and it was too awkward to run the existing gas heating system to it so put in super duper top of the range most efficient blah di blah electric heaters, ordered from UK as they weren't even available here. They still turned out to be way more expensive than running the central heating.
 
This might be unhelpful as I have no figures. Our daughter had an extension completed last year. The builder advised her to have an electric radiator fitted instead of one through the existing oil heating system. Apparently, the newer electric radiators are more efficient than the older electric radiators. I should point out all our radiators are through the gas heating system.

Electric rad should be close to 100% efficient whereas with gas and oil there are losses at the boiler and in the pipework, but electricity is more expensive per unit.
It probably depends on where the rad is located and how your central heating is designed - you might not want to heat the entire house just to heat the room that you're in.
 
Electric rad should be close to 100% efficient whereas with gas and oil there are losses at the boiler and in the pipework, but electricity is more expensive per unit.

Yeah, there's a BIG difference alright and no central heating system will be ~30% efficient to make electric make sense. See costs here.

Electric radiators in an extension are way more efficient for the builder! It can be a pain tapping into the existing pipework and routing to the new location.
 
In this new extension I am doing the builder already has the plumbing in, it's just a matter of finding the right size rad.

In my father's house it was an old stone built house with the boiler and existing rads on totally the opposite side to extension and no easy way of tapping into existing pipework, plus the extension was more of a separate couple of rooms joined with a little porch type thing to the old house for building convenience so it was never really an option to join onto the system.
 
I really dislike fan heater blowing air and fan noise so this wasn't option for me, grand as bit of instant heat but not for background heat all day. I sourced a triple panel stelrad 600x900 that fits the bill, it's ready for collection today, now to try to get plumber back in next few days
 
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