Fitting cabinets over or around baseboard radiator

remydog

I live in a home built in '74 heated by oil using forced hot water feeding baseboard radiators. We would like to add some built-in cabinets in several rooms on the walls where the radiators are located. I assume I cannot simply box in the radiator or it will be bad for the cabinet, its contents and of course the heating efficiency.

I thought of two solutions. First, build the cabinet above the radiator and install a false front/kickboard at the bottom with grills all around. This is the easier solution, but not my preference.

Second, same as above, but also build a false back on the cabinet allowing a chamber behind the same or greater depth as the radiator to allow air to come in from below and circulate above and behind the cabinet.

The cabinets may be one or more of base cabinet (i.e. about 30" high), corner or full wall cabinet (80"), or a window seat.

All thoughts appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Gary Fereday

hummmmmmmmmmmmm

I'd do both options (if there is no other ideas). BB usually heats by convection. A couch or sofa placed in front of it seems to do little against it, the rooms remain vary comfortable. The furniture is 1. up off the floor, 2. it sits in front (away from the wall) of the BB.
The window seat could have a open front and a horizontal grill at the back allowing the warm air to up draft past the window. You will lose some comfort somewhere in the room, as the old saying goes, "Never something for nothing" Decorative strong horizontal grills are custom made and avaliable bigugh

Mark J Strawcutter

move

the baseboard out to the front of the cabinets - where the toe space usually is. Would require taller and perhaps deeper toe space. Paint baseboard to blend with cabinets.

Could also make the toe space much larger (especially taller) than the baseboard and cover with some sort of grille.

Mark

allen

How about using a kick heater. I am getting something like 10k btus off mine. And it has the fan already built in.

Allen

Dave_4

built-in cabinet around baseboard radiator

...solution #1: enclosing them will decrease heat output but if your rads are oversized enough (& the boiler) to keep you comfortable...you probably loose 10-20% of the output if your baseboards are less than 15" overall high, with a cabinet bottom of 30" AFF....fintube bb are de-rated more than cast iron bb -more radiation/less convecton than fintube....can you put a curved scoop under the cabinet & staple bubble/foil/bubble behind the bb to reflect/direct more heat into the space.....

solution # 2....any heat going behind the cabinet will rise to the ceiling & stay there....you won't get "circulation" until the air cools & drops.....a ceiling fan will attempt to get the hot air doen to the occupied space