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towel warmer as sole source of heat?

jimt
jimt Member Posts: 22
We are planning a complete bathroom remodel.  The bathroom is small with only 52 ft sq. For aesthetic reasons we would like to remove the hot water base board and replace it with a interesting hydronic towel warmer.

Is it practical to have the towel warmer as sole source of heat in the bathroom? Can the towel warmer just be installed in to loop where the base board is now? My thought is that I only need a warm towel when it is cold enough for the heat to be on.

Comments

  • heatpro02920
    heatpro02920 Member Posts: 991
    edited May 2013
    Sure

    I have done this many times, a good towel warmer will run enough heat for a bathroom, BUT i wouldn't "just do it" like Nike says, you need to do a heat loss for the room, and then pick the towel warmer that will produce them BTU's with the temperature ou are going to be introducing to it, ALSO it works best with its own thermostat {especially if it is sized different than the resst of the rooms on that zone}, but this will make short cycle issues with certain systems if just the bathroom is calling.... There is a lot to think about if you want to do it rite, BUT since it is your bathroom and not a customers it matters much less, see no one is going to call you at 7pm on a january saturday to tell you there bathroom is cold or too hot....



    Also it works even better with towels on it...



    one more thing 52sq feet is a good sized bathroom, my first house had a 15 sq ft bathroom, I could fit it in my current master bath over 10 times lol....



    Anyway, do a heat loss, iven if you just get an approximate, you want to know about where you should be, even a bad plan is better than no plan... Then pick the unit that works for you...



    OK one more tip for you on the wall going up to the towel warmer use radiant heat transfer plates on the tubing, so you scavenge the heat in the pipe to the wall behind the towel warmer, and insulate behind it very well so all the heat ends up in the bathroom. I did this for a customer, I used thermal plates on all of the pex tubing that touched his bathroom walls, it works well and costs short money, like a few dollars, compared to what you are going to spend on a towel warmer lol, that could be a lot, I did one for a customer that was almost $2K, actually he had 2 of them, because the bathroom had 2 showers, a huge tub, and 2 toilet rooms with pocket doors inside the bathroom one of which had a bidet and TV...

    One more thing, check amazon for deals, one of my customers bought his toilet and towel warmer on there for less than the toilet would have cost at ardentes...



    Also, I have a myson in my master bathroom, that is just piped into the return of my attic air handler {with a mod con boiler anything you can do to lower the return temps is a plus, and the quality was good, and the cost was low... kind of an afterthought on my part, but it works well... when the heat is running anyway...



    http://www.homeclick.com/myson-cos-85-avonmore-1302-btu-contemporay-hydronic-towel-warmer/p-508535.aspx $240 in white -shipped if you buy by 12pm.... you can put a few of them for that price...
  • R Mannino
    R Mannino Member Posts: 440
    Check the Heat Loss

    But, can a bathroom be too warm? I put a 4000 btu towel rack in a 35 sq ft bath, no outside walls, vaulted ceiling with skylight. Works just fine (ODR) and the bathroom is a few degrees warmer than the rest of the house. I say go for it.
  • hot_rod
    hot_rod Member Posts: 22,018
    a small electric

    is what I have in one bath. it's nice to run on low for summer warming of towels. I have a Myson with a line voltage stat.
    Bob "hot rod" Rohr
    trainer for Caleffi NA
    Living the hydronic dream
  • mgabriel
    mgabriel Member Posts: 1
    Yes.

    Yes, a towel warmer can be used as a heat source.  Amba is a high quality towel warmer manufacture and they make the Quadro collection that can be used as a space heater.



    http://onlytowelwarmers.com/products/amba-quadro-q-2033-hardwired-mounted-towel-warmer-towel-dryer
  • Sola
    Sola Member Posts: 1
    sure

    Sure, a towel warmer will warm the bathroom just like any other heater if you leave it on. But not all towel warmers offer the same heating ability. Amba has some decent options for a wall mounted towel warmer. Amba towel warmers heat up to the highest temperature and the price is good, too.