Hot water radiator

Bob_36

I know has been discussed before, but which way is the ideal way to hook up the feed and return of ci hot water rads? Also if not the best way, is it alright to use both bottom tappings on thin tube rads?

bob young

hot water radiator

if a radiator is piped supply top tapping and return bottom tapping on same side as opposed to right & left bottom tappings will it work satisfactorily ?

Guy_6

i doubt it

I would say NO. Water is lazy, and it will not travel any further than necessary. If it only has to travel down one side of the radiator, you will get only one warm rad. section.

Mike T., Swampeast MO

IF the radiator is quite narrow (say no more than 18" or so)and;

IF flow is KNOWN to be low (e.g. a TRV and/or a non-gravity conversion system with a properly sized circulator);

THEN there shouldn't be a problem.

If this is the only possible tapping and the above conditions aren't met, I'd suggest rigging something like a water heater dip tube to force either the supply or the return to be drawn from the opposite end. Best way I can think of to do this is to weld a pipe to the INSIDE of the reducing tapping bushing.

Mike T., Swampeast MO

I daresay that millions of cast iron rads say it's fine to use both bottom connections.

Dave Stroman

Mike, I was salvaging cast iron radiators out of a house that was gravity hot water. They are putting in scorched air. That is where I got the Capital raditor. They had one radiator the was made for steam only, not connected across the top. She said it got warm in spite of all the air in it. Just go to shows you how screwed up things can be and still work, sort of.

Dave in Denver