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Community and Q&A

Replacing Recessed Radiators

resilientbuilding | Posted in Mechanicals on

I am looking for suggestions about how to upgrade a home that has recessed wall radiators.  I have seen mini-splits put in old houses with stand alone hot water radiators (that don’t interfere with the wall cavity).  That seems to work for all but the coldest days here in Massachusetts.  But now I am looking at a house built in 1952 with radiators built into the walls.  The metal must conduct the cold and there isn’t much room for insulation in the walls behind them (if any!).  I’m dreading the cost of having this heating system taken out completely.  Burying them in spray foam might be easier, but without taking the radiators out, I imagine the efficacy would be greatly reduced.  Has anyone done this before?  Are there any cost saving fixes that don’t involve cutting out radiators and patching the walls with insulation in every room?  Thanks!

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Replies

  1. aNewOldHomeownerNY | | #1

    We just bought a 1955-vintage cape with a similar HVAC scheme. In our home, the hot water radiators are always sized to fit in between the above window’s jack studs (convenient). Some quick measurements of the wall depth vs radiator depth confirm that the metal housing must back right up to the old t&g sheathing. Kinda deflating knowing that the backside of your radiators are directly heating up the outside of the house! Not that the existing shriveled cellulose batt insulation everywhere else would be much of a thermal barrier. Looks like the original heat exchangers inside were triple-row with a beefy cast manifold at each end- the “repair” replacements here and there are much more “economical” units that resemble basically stubby sections of hydronic baseboard. Chilling to look at as well as experience. So is there NO nifty modern low-profile replacement for this not-uncommon style of radiator?

  2. begreener | | #2

    You might be able to find a fan coil unit that fits exactly in that space

    This one is 26" x 28" x 5"

    https://www.arcticheatpumps.com/ultra-thin-hydronic-fan-coil-heating-cooling-water-radiator-060c-p-455.html

  3. Expert Member
    DCcontrarian | | #3

    I don't quite understand. Are you replacing the heating system with a heat pump or not?

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