Are the old Victorian and School Cast Iron Radiators compatible with modern central heating systems?

Yes, all our cast iron radiators are compatible with modern central heating systems. On ordering, we will discuss with you the position and size of the valves you require, either 15mm or 22mm. Just leave the rest to us.

Are your valves bi-directional?

The Traditional are non bi-directional. Please advise your plumber of this information when installing the radiators. 

What colour(s) can we have?

Included in the price of the radiator is one of our stock colours or for additional costs you can choose  any companies plant colour  (note this may be a colour match depending on the formulation of the paint *) . We are no longer offering an Ardenbrite paint finish , we can supply an Ardenbrite colourmatch an additional £50 per radiator. .  We are able to send you a swatch of stock colours so that you can match colours with your decor.
* we spray paint in colour match paint in a solvent base, for this reason the colour may appear a slightly different shade as compared to a water based paint and also due to the different surface.

What size do the radiators come in?

Cast Iron Original Radiators were made in various heights and lengths and widths with the lowest being 13 inches (330mm) examples are Chubby Churchill, Chubby Princess and 9 column Radiators with the tallest being 45 inches (1125mm) examples are Princess Radiators, all with any length between 7 inches(175mm), to whatever length you need. We do not advise radiators over 1.5m in length for Health and Safety logistical reason , please discuss with us if your requirement is > 1.5m in length.

How do I work out what size I need ?

Let us know what room size you have and we can work out the heat output (btu / watts) you require.  For example, a 12 foot (3.7metre) square room requires approx 5000 btu, or if you have a gap for the radiator to go into then give us that size and we can give you a radiator with the max output for the space.

We require a number of old cast iron radiators that match is that possible?

With a stock of around 2,000 radiators, we are able to match radiators for either size or style. For example we have just completed a contract to supply over 300 radiators in the same style.

How do you restore the old Victorian and school radiators?

Firstly we remove any old fittings and then flush the old radiator out. They are then sand blasted. After sandblasting we fit new reducing bushes to fit the valves you have chosen and then we pressure test to 4-bar pressure, your normal central heating system is about 2 bar. After we have checked the seals on the bleed and gaskets, we then either spray paint or hand polish the radiator.

Do you deliver?

We can deliver to anywhere in the World,  our own driver will deliver by lorry to the majority of mainland UK from £125.00+vat.per order up to 10 rads, please advise your postcode for a delivery quotation there is a small additional charge for Scotland For other destinations beyond mainland UK we will give you a quotation. Delivery is kerbside but the driver will assist your labour.  He is not insured to be in your home so if you invite him in this is at your risk and we can not be held responsible for any damage caused.. Delivery is per order/lorry load not per radiator.

All our radiators are delivered in one piece ready to be fitted please take this into account when ordering ie consider the logistics.

We have existing old Victorian or school / hospital radiators we would like to have restored can you do this?

Yes we can however if we are very busy with our own work we may put extended leadtimes on any third party refurbs please just give us a ring to discuss.

However you are welcome to call later in the year to see if we have taken these back on again and you can ask us for a  quotation and read the section on the website regarding the restoration process. Prices start at £315 plus VAT per radiator for up to 1m in length. Please discuss with us if the radiators are greater than 1.5m in length for a quotation.

Please do not send any small or valuable items with the refurbs as we can not guarantee their return and can not restore small items ie brackets or radiator feet. We can restore legless radiators , there is a small additional charge due to the additional handling requirements. We can not restore valves.

If there are any issues found during the refurishment of customer supplied radiators we will inform you of any potential additional costs for approval before continuing for example we can replace any damaged radiator sections.

.Does it require a specialist plumber to install the old radiators?

No. Any plumber will be able to install our radiators as they come ready with all the right metric fittings in all the right places.

All radiators are supplied with new bushes in 15mm in a BBOE ,bottom bottom opposite ends , position unless advised otherwise (this is for refurbs and radiators supplied by us) .

Is all your stock shown on the web site?

By no means.  We could not keep our website up-to-date fast enough with our constantly changing stock.  Our website pages show photographs of the most popular ranges of cast iron radiators.  We are able to source many unusual, ornate and one-off cast iron radiators which never actually make it onto our website.  We hope to expand our range of photographs so that you can see the true variation of radiators that we do stock.

We do have a ready to go list if you need a radiator quickly.

Can you supply touch up paint?

If you contact us we can send out a small touch up pot of paint in the colour of your radiator. This goes off in the pot after a few weeks so please request when required.

I have wide skirting board have you got flexible brackets?

Yes we supply flexible brackets which match the valves 

Do you buy old cast iron radiators?

Yes we do. Please send us an email with pictures attached of the radiator/s you have for sale, contact information and where you are in the country. We will then look at the pictures and let you know if we would be interested in purchasing them and for how much. Please refer to the contact page for details on contacting us.

How do you calculate the BTUs/Watts?

The heat output of a radiator is measured in either BTUs (British Thermal Unit) or Watts. The heat output of a radiator is established using a calculation called a delta t, based on a room temperature of 18°and a boiler temperature flow of 80° and return of 60° the delta t is 52°. Some systems useing renewable energy sources may have different flow and returns therefore different delta t, please contact us for variants.

What is your General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) policy ?

When you get in touch with The Old Radiator & The Vintage Floortile Company, we collect your name, address and contact details.

This information is kept on our ERP system so we can contact you about the quotation/orders and for delivery details. We do not share your information with any other business (excluding any courier company we may request to carry out any deliveries on our behalf). We do not send out “general” emails nor do we have a mailing list. Our server has security to keep the details safe. We do not store payment card details electronically.