Column Radiators

Whenever we think of radiators, the first thing that typically comes to mind is a lovely Victorian radiator that has embellishments on the ironwork and is reminiscent of something found in older English homes, the type with hardwood floors and wood burning stoves. This is actually what an authentic column radiator looks like but most of us would be hard-pressed to describe what a ‘column’ is or how many we need for that matter.

In fact, there are very few true column radiators left on the market and those which are manufactured are extremely good quality replicas of the originals. At Radiator Gallery, we only carry one model of an authentic column radiator in our showroom, although we can special order others directly from the manufacturer for you, oftentimes at a significant savings.

Understanding the Difference between Sections and Columns

Unless you are familiar with the mechanics of radiators, you may be amongst many people who confuse columns for sections. If you are looking at the radiator at its widest point and you can see perhaps ten or twenty vertical segments, you are looking at what are called ‘sections.’

However, when you look at the radiator from the side (usually the narrowest view) and you see segments running up and down, those are called columns. Many people confuse columns with sections when ordering radiators and it is important to understand the difference.

A true column radiator could have perhaps two columns and up to twenty sections. Then again, a column radiator could have three, four, five and six or more columns by as many as twenty or more sections. In any case, to find the number of columns you want or need, look at the radiator from an angle perpendicular to the wall and that’s where you are going to count the columns.

If you look at the radiator from the front, parallel to the wall, you will count the sections. These are the numbers we will need to know when you order a column radiator from us, either a stock model or a special order. For example if you are looking at the side and you see three rows then you would tell us you are looking for a three column radiator by however many sections long it is. Most often there will be more sections than columns.

The Ancona Column Radiator

This is one of our most popular radiators as it comes in a huge variety of sizes and outputs. The Ancona Stock Column Radiator comes in 2, 3 or 4 columns in three different heights of 500mm, 600mm or 750mm. As well, it comes in six different widths which include 460mm, 598mm, 690mm, 828mm, 920mm, and 1150mm. This makes ordering the Ancona a bit confusing as each of those sizes does have a unique output.

For example, the 2 column, 600mm tall Ancona that is 460mm in length is a 1501 BTU radiator whilst the 4 column 600mm high Ancona that is 460mm in length puts out 2627 BTUs. This, in itself, evidences the importance of those columns. Both radiators described are just as tall and just as long, the only difference is the number of columns (width) which significantly adds to the output in terms of heat.

Therefore, if you are looking for an explanation of what columns add to a radiator other than width or visual appeal, the answer is output. The more columns in a radiator the higher your BTUs are going to be and conversely, the fewer columns a radiator has, the lower your output will be. However, don’t let this one fact fool you because there are some flat radiators on the market that put out some extremely high-powered heat!

Although we only stock the Ancona, we can order designer column radiators from all the major manufacturers such as MHS or Bisque. If there is a particular column radiator you have seen at a friend’s home or perhaps in a catalogue or online, just ask us to special order it for you. Our prices are amongst the lowest you will find in the UK and our customer service is geared towards your needs. We will do whatever we can to help you find the radiator you are looking for. If we don’t have it in stock, we know where to get it and if we can’t get it, it probably doesn’t exist.