Tubular radiators - their types and installation features

Any residential building, if it is located in a region where there are cold seasons, needs some kind of heating method and often tubular radiators made of different metals are used for this purpose. All of them have different degrees of heat transfer, which is what we are talking about now, and you also watch a video in this article that clarifies some technical issues.

Heating appliances

Tubular or, as they are also called, columnar radiators are one or two rows of vertical tubes (columns) that communicate with each other at the top and bottom.

Types of tubular radiators

• At present, you can hardly buy a new steel tubular battery in the store - the fact is that because of its design, it has a rather low heat dissipation and steel, as is known, is susceptible to corrosion.

Of course, there is an opportunity to produce heating devices of this type made of galvanized or stainless steel, but their price at the same time increases prohibitively, so that in such situations dressing costs much more than sheepskin itself. Of course, stainless steel in this case can be used as a decorative ornament in conjunction with a heating device, but this option is possible only in an exclusive production (any good welder can make it).

• And here is another very familiar version of the metal heater in the photo above - this is a stainless steel heated towel rail, which can have a very different configuration, which can only enter the designer’s head. As we have already mentioned, such devices are very expensive and the average cost of a good heated towel rail reaches about $ 150, although, of course, you can buy the option for $ 60-70.

• Bimetallic vertical tubular heating radiators are currently very widely used for both autonomous and centralized heating, and this is all due to the variety of advantages that a bimetal device has.

The fact is that its internal part is made of steel, which significantly increases the strength of the structure (some models can withstand a working pressure of more than 15 bar), and there is aluminum on top (in rare cases there may be a copper alloy), which increases its heat transfer.

This combination is extremely valuable for heating devices, moreover, they have an acceptable cost (lower than aluminum panel), which makes them in demand.

• And finally, the well-known cast-iron battery, which is still preferred to other options in most new buildings, and, perhaps, quite justified, when viewed in terms of value for money. Cast iron itself has a fairly good heat dissipation, but due to the fact that the walls that have tubular radiators of this type are very thick, they heat up for a long time, besides they need a lot of water for heating (large volume). But on heating, the appliance keeps heat for a long time, which is very convenient for centralized heating, but not profitable for autonomous, since you have to heat a large amount of water (in centralized heating, the radiator volume is not significant in the economic sense).

Comparative characteristics

If we compare the panel and tubular radiator, then no doubt, the palm will get the first model and there are enough good reasons for this that can not be circumvented, no matter how many supporters traditional batteries have and whatever reasons they give.

Let's start with the fact that panel radiators work on a convection system, which increases their heat transfer by several times - in the upper image you can see a section of the device with U-shaped plates for convection of air.

Note. In total there are three types of such panels, it is No. 11, where there is only one plate with a U-shaped impression, No. 22 - with two such plates and No. 33, where there are already three plates.

But not everything is so good - panel devices have less capacity with greater heat transfer and they are much lighter, but this affects the ability of the heater to withstand the pressure in the system - they hold up to 10-12 bar, and this is not enough for a 9-storey building.

But this applies to steel models - aluminum pressure is kept even less, so they are preferable to use in low-rise buildings and the private sector. In addition, aluminum requires special additives for the coolant to eliminate metal corrosion, and this, again, is acceptable only for your own home, but not for a centralized boiler room.

Therefore, if you live in a high-rise building, then you should think about which steel tubular heating radiators are better, and this, according to all characteristics, is a bimetal, which has great strength and excellent heat transfer.

But again, you can stay on the budget option - a cast iron battery, but this is only if you are not very worried about the design. Although here, panel heaters are in the first place - they are much more beautiful and can serve as an integral part of a thoughtful interior.

Note. As you can see, the panel radiator seems to be better, but just not always and everywhere its parameters are acceptable. If such a heater were better in all respects, then the tubular models would not have been produced long ago.

Installation Features

If you want to find a tubular radiator with a bottom connection, then I would like to say that the connection location does not matter here. Such models have two entrances on each side, which means that they can be connected from the side, top, bottom and diagonal, that is, as required by the layout of the heating circuit, which, by the way, is extremely convenient for the private sector.

One and all radiators of this type, if they are used for a water heating circuit, are fixed (hung) on ​​special S-shaped brackets, the main models of which you see in the upper image.

If the connection is made to the steel contour, the placement of these brackets is the primary task in the installation, because their displacement is only 1 cm, it can be fatal - the pipe will have to be screwed “inhale”, which the instruction does not recommend to do. hammer out).

It's no secret that the air in the system is the worst enemy of the whole heating circuit, which can cause a lot of trouble during the launch or even during the system operation right in the middle of winter and you have to look for points where you can let it out - call plumbers, run to neighbors and so on.

But all this turmoil can be avoided by installing a Mayevsky valve on each radiator (it is also known as the “Mayevsky tap”), through which you can release excess air from the battery at any time, without having to drain the water.

Conclusion

I would also like to add that it is possible to install automatic temperature controllers (for each point separately) on tubular radiators, just like on the panel radiators. Only such luxury is available only in the presence of independent heating - in centralized systems, the temperature is regulated from the central boiler room or distributor.