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But why?
Why do you want to cover up your radiators? Because they are ugly. So why not change the radiators? That way you could continue to hang up your washing on them! Well, that's what I did in my own home. The cast iron “Liberty” radiators (below at the right) are only a little more expensive than covers, although there is also the cost of installation not to mention disruption. If I have talked you into changing your radiators, feel free to get in touch and ask about the cost, for we can supply them. The polished ones, like this "Daisy" design, cost a fortune. But we can also provide a partial polish that looks great but is half the price.
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Alright, so maybe you don't want your front room to look like a laundry and a radiator cover will give you a shelf on which to display your porcelein pig collection.
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The price of beauty
As I understand it, you don't like the look of your radiators and are willing to spend good money to hide them.
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
Cost and delivery?
Let's cut to the chase. How much will it cost you? Expect to pay £290-310 for a single cover (the price will come down a tenner each if you take more than one), including measuring, staining, varnishing, delivery, fitting, painting radiator and VAT. Fit it yourself and save £50 for each cabinet. You will probably have to fit it yourself if you live too far outside Glasgow -- we don't like to travel. But we can organise delivery to you, even in deepest England. For delivery add a one-off cost of £50 whether taking one cover or three. The price for a painted MDF cover will cost £30 more than a timber-veneered version and you have to supply (or pay for) the paint if it isn't white, believe it or not. To get a good paint finish on MDF requires many coats and hours of work.
When we fit you radiator cover, we scribe it to the wall. That is to say, we cut out the shape of your skirting boards on the cover and we plane the back edge of the shelf so that it follows your wall, even if the wall is quite uneven. The end result is a snug fit with only small gaps around the edges. But we also paint your radiator. Not just paint it to match the colour of the radiator cabinet, we also add some graining effects.
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Our radiator cabinets are absolutely made to measure (the shelf will be about 80-90mm above the radiator, however high or low it has been mounted on the wall). They are not simply adjustable or come in several sizes, they are made to fit your radiator exactly. We can accommodate tight corners, odd sizes, nearness of window sills and door facings, access for thermostats or electrical sockets. For those who worry about heat loss, we can lag the underside of the shelf (which absorbs some of the heat) or insert brass or chrome grilles in the shelf to let out the heat trapped under the shelf more readily. Because they are handmade and completely bespoke, our covers are not cheap. And, what's more, even the design is bespoke.
Bespoke designs?
Yes. We offer bespoke designs. Until recently we have not charged for designing something to go with your furniture
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Where to find us
A radiator cover is on show, from the 1st of March 2009, at the Antiques Warehouse, 719 South Street, Glasgow G14 0BX. The Warehouse is in the old Kodak Processing Factory, not far from the Clyde Tunnel and the new Glasgow Harbour Development.
Footnote
*Covering a radiator cuts down its heat output, end of story. We make radically different radiator covers to the mass produced variety. We pay little attention to the conventional designs of our competitors and try to make our covers look like art while allowing them to do their job. To start with, we leave your radiator as open to the room as possible. The average commercial cabinet grille is no more than 30% open and 70% screened, whereas ours are about 60% open and 40% screened. Other manufacturers make the ludicrous claim that by building up heat behind behind the screen (and sucking up cooler air from below) the heat is convected through the top slit and shoots out into the room instead of rising to the ceiling, making the radiator work more efficiently. Rubbish. Radiators radiate heat to the air around them.
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