Black column radiators - yay or nay?

[catinanotherlife]

Thinking of replacing old standard radiators with black column radiators - what do you think? Too extra? Not a forever home so want to gauge if this is mainstream popular or not
Also contemplating radiator covers as an alternative if I keep old radiators... thoughts?

Thank you!!

It's impossible to comment on the aesthetic without knowing more about your home/style etc, but the main thing to check is that your new rads will have enough BTU for the space. If you're changing the shape/style then make sure they have enough output.

When we put our new rads in, we went for white, because they were the most efficient (more than polished surfaces). Black may not have the same issue as polished, but I'd make sure to check this out.

Black can look very dusty and not everyone would like black. If you are looking to sell in the near future that is.

Radiator covers block heat.

Matt black would be the most efficient colour but output on modern rads would be good and so the difference between them would be tiny. Never had rad covers but I’d assume they would make heating the space less efficient? Don’t know just seems like you’d be blocking heat. I love column rads, redone the whole house. Mostly white but two rooms are painted very very dark colours and so went with Matt black in both and they look really good. This is our forever home though so the cost was worth it to me. Shop around, there’s a huge difference in price, I got advice from my local plumb shop on the BTUs as some rooms are huge and the old flat rads were enormous so wanted to make sure it was still going to warm enough. Also - column rads so much easier to clean so less dust floating around in general, huge bonus.

Good point about BTU, thanks, will definitely keep that in mind!

I have column radiators, most are white but have a few in almost black - like a cast iron colour. I love them, they go with the Victorian house, but they do show the dust more than the white ones. I definitely wouldn’t get shiny black.

Thanks! Sounds great. Do you have issues with dust showing on the black radiators as pointed out above?

Do you mean ANTHRACITE ? Or black-black?
we have 7 & will be getting another 3.
It’s all in the eye of the beholder, we are really pleased with ours, particularly with how long they stay warm after the boiler has switched of from the thermostat. Much longer than our white ones.
We have them on very light walls, and from photos they look equally good with teal, which is our next room choice.
Can’t link but look at best at heating site.

I was thinking black-black. Do you have anthracite?

Yes, ours are anthracite - Matt not shiny, have a look - you may possibly find you like them more…

Thanks for your reply! I will stay away from shiny!

Thank you, I will have a look!

No but they are very matt and I think that really helps. The white ones are more glossy and I’d say the dust is more obvious on those than the black ones tbh.

Depends what you like I guess.

Problem is if you have modern looking new designs they tend to date rapidly.

I have bog standard flowmaster radiators, they are cheap and do a good job and from srewfix you get a free trv with each one last time I bought them.

Each time I replace one I replace it with a higher BTU, so that if I go for a heat pump in the future they are ready. If they get too hot you can always limit with the TRV.

Good point about heat pumps needing bigger rads. We too have gone well above the BTU with any new ones we've bought for that reason- just in case. If you have a thermostatic valve, while you have gas/oil, you just set it lower.
BTU is very important. We were bothered about 2 rooms in our house just never getting warm- as you walked into them a wall of cold just hit you. We thought about cavity wall insulation but this property is simply not suitable for it. Both rooms have substantial roof insulation above, and the walls are thick, but they do both have 3 outside walls.
We were resigned to just being cold, until when we were replacing the rads, DH calculated the BTU on the (very old) current rads. Less than half the needful.😨We replaced with 'over-the-top BTU' new ones, and we only need to keep the thermostat set at about 3 out of 5 and the rooms are warm.

Thanks all for your replies!!
I currently have the standard flowmasters, I agree they work well, but some need replacing (rust). Column radiators more pleasing on the eye. The standard ones I would want to have under radiator covers, but it seems they are unpopular, so probably not a wise idea..

I'm having these at my new place:

https://www.bestheating.com/milano-aruba-black-horizontal-designer-radiator-635mm-tall-choice-of-width-78655?_gl=11bl30n2_upMQ.._gaMTA0ODU1MzEzNS4xNjk4NDg1MzA1_ga_WZSJ3P813DMTY5ODQ4NTMwNC4xLjEuMTY5ODQ4NTMxOC4wLjAuMA.._ga_NNJ853190J*MTY5ODQ4NTMwNC4xLjEuMTY5ODQ4NTMxOC4wLjAuMA..

I think they look fantastic against pale walls. They are matt black.

(I had the BTU's calculated by my previous contractor, and have also added insulation, so I'm hoping they would still work well enough if I ended up getting a heat pump.)