I am doing re-decoration at home.
Will re-painting the radiator panels decrease their performance in terms of heat transmission?
It is not strictly necessary to re-paint the radiators from a cosmetic point of view.
I would have said not enough to notice. If anyone dissents I will fish out some calculations that I did recently (for a different purpose).
No. I calculated the thermal resistance of a plastic heat exchanger a few years back, and it came to something like 1C drop. A simlar film of paint is presumably rather more conductive, being largely polymerised oil.
NT
Thank you for the informative response, which is relevant.
I, intuitively, agree with it on the marginal effect of the first one or two coats. But the cumulative effect or more coats may be noticeable.
Over the years, these radiators have already been painted several times, at least four times. Is it time to try to cut the number of further coats?
obviously not
NT
To give a serious answer we need more information. The old cast iron radiators used in 19th century schools and hospitals were painted with traditional oil-based gloss paint and I could imagine film thicknesses reaching 1-2 mm over decades, maybe more. I've only ever painted pressed steel "home" radiators with emulsion, not reaching 0.5 mm.
Whether its 0.5mm or 3mm its not going to make a significant difference, so I dont think we do.
NT
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.