Will a towel rail offer the same heat as a radiator?

A towel rail will not normally produce the same heat as a standard radiator, due to the design and construction of each product.
Standard panel radiators have a relatively large surface area allowing more heat to convect into a room but heated towel rails have a smaller surface area usually with a ‘ladder’ rail design, very useful for hanging towels but not as efficient for heat distribution.
As an example a 500 x 700mm single panel standard radiator will give a heat output of approximately 2114 British Thermal Units (BTU’s) whereas a similar sized heated towel rail will give approximately 1145 BTU’s.

How do I measure my BTU’s (for towel radiator)?

Here is a fairly complicated system for calculating the required BTU out put for a towel heater/radiator in any room…please don’t panic however there are a number of on-line calculators, for example from:
http://www.radcalcs.com, which will make the job much, much easier!

However if you want to do it the old fashioned way here goes!

1. Find the volume of the required room in cubic metres
   • Calculate length x width x height
2. Adjust this measurement according to room type:
   • Lounges and dining rooms multiply by 50
   • Bedrooms multiply by 40
   • Common areas and kitchens multiply by 30
   • Bathrooms multiply by 90
3. Allow for important environmental variables:
   1. For north facing rooms add 15%
   2. For Patio doors add 20%
   3. For double glazing deduct 10%
   4. For very exposed property add 10%
   5. For new property (which tend to be much better insulated) deduct 20%

This will give you the output of a radiator in watts.
Multiply this by 3.412 to give the BTU requirement for the room.

When buying a shower cubicle, there is a vast array of products on offer. What will I need? E.g. shower screen, shower tray with feet, pop-up waste, hot and cold valve, shower head (none of it comes together and there are loads of other scenarios)

We agree that buying a new shower cubicle can be a little daunting that’s why at http://www.bigbathroomshop.com we tend to offer packages in addition to the individual items, both for shower cubicles and the showers themselves.
If a customer buys a package from us they will get all the components necessary to fit the item, our shower cubicle packages come complete with the relevant shower tray, feet, panels and waste as required.
What will I need?

Shower screen; yes you will almost certainly need a shower screen. The size and style will depend on your individual room size and shape.
Shower tray with feet; Once again you will almost certainly need a shower tray, unless you are fitting the cubicle into a ‘wet room’ installation.
Whether the tray needs feet or not will depend upon the floor it’s being fitted to, the type of tray you’ve purchased and the look that you’re trying to achieve.
Shower trays are generally made from two types of material: Resin stone, or Acrylic.

Resin stone trays are made from stone and resin, which is finished with a hardwearing gel coat. They tend to be heavier than acrylic and fit straight to the floor, usually without feet. They tend to be lower cost than the acrylic versions and are very stable if fitted correctly. They range in height from 800-120mm from the floor. The disadvantage is that they restrict access should you need to get to the waste pipe after fitting.

Acrylic trays are constructed from moulded acrylic that is strengthened with glass fibre reinforcement and a wooden baseboard. They are usually 40-50mm in height giving a very sleek modern look to your bathroom and making access easier for the old or infirm. The majority of acrylic trays can be fitted with optional feet and panels raising the tray off the floor by around 80-100mm which is useful for fitting to solid floors and allows for easier access after installation.

For more information see: http://www.bathroomhelp.co.uk

Pop-up waste; We wouldn’t recommend fitting a pop up waste in a shower tray simply because if you fitted one and it closed there is a good chance you could flood the shower tray and then your bathroom. Shower tray wastes tend to ‘free flowing’ i.e. not able to be closed.

Hot and cold valve; Yes you will need a Hot and Cold valve, virtually all showers are supplied with these, although the real question I suppose is whether to buy a thermostatic or manual valve. In simple terms thermostatic showers have a safety feature, which means that if the water pressure changes (For example, because someone has switched a tap on elsewhere in the house, or flushed a toilet) then the shower adjusts the water flow to ensure you are not scalded. Manual showers do not have this safety feature and for this reason tend to be cheaper.

Shower head; You will need a fixed shower head, or slide rail and shower head kit. The choice is down to personal preference. Fixed heads give a more minimalist look but slide rails are far more flexible as the shower head height is adjustable and the shower head can be removed from the bracket to rinse your body or even to assist when cleaning the bath.

What is the difference between a tap and an extra-fill (or Exo-Fill)?

Essentially there is no difference, as both will do the job of filling a bath! The difference is in the look and ease of fitting.
Bath taps have been around for hundreds of years and have a hot or cold feed pipe that brings water to the tail of the tap, the flow of water through the tap is controlled by a valve, or ceramic disc cartridge. They are a well-proven simple solution and easy to fit.
Exo-Fills are a relatively new product. The water still comes from a hot and cold feed pipe but it is ‘mixed’ in a valve arrangement concealed below the bath. The flow of water through the Exo-fill is controlled through ceramic disc cartridges operated by handles that fit directly to the bath (usually in the holes where the taps would fit). The outlet for the water is combined with the bath overflow mechanism and usually incorporates a bath pop up waste arrangement. The Exo-fill arrangement is a neater, solution but can prove more difficult to install than standard bath taps.

What is a pop up waste?

In simple terms a pop up waste takes the place of a plug and chain for basins and/or baths.
For a basin arrangement there is an arrangement of two rods fixed to create a lever arrangement. As you lift the ‘pop’ up rod’, usually on the back of the tap, it moves another rod which causes the plug to fall into place closing the waste. The action is reversed to lift the plug and open the waste. A bath pop up waste is a slightly more complicated product that fits into the overflow waste hole of a bath. With a pop up waste the bath overflow has a handle over it that rotates to raise or lower the plug using cables. The operation of the bath overflow is not affected.

Do all taps come with a pop-up waste?

Not all taps are supplied with a pop up waste. Monobloc basin mixers (for one tap hole basins) and Three tap hole basin mixers tend to have pop up wastes as a standard feature. A pair of basin taps need a plug and chain type waste. This arrangement is as much to do with basin design as it is with the taps themselves, a plug and chain assembly needs a small hole in the basin for the chain ‘stay’ to fasten to, these are a standard feature on two tap hole basins.
A one tap hole basin can be fitted with a monobloc tap which normally has a pop up waste supplied as standard.
A bath waste, whether pop up or standard plug and chain style is supplied separately from the taps so either can be chosen. The bath overflow hole size they fit to is governed by British (now European) Standards so either style should fit to any bath you purchase.

http://www.bigbathroomshop.com/zpage/product_details/zpricecat/0013/zpricecat1/0002/zsuite/1134/zdesc/milano-pico-suite.htm#configurator

What’s generally cheaper – a bathroom suite or to buy the pieces separately?

As a rule of thumb it is generally cheaper to buy a complete suite than the individual pieces, this is largely decided by the pricing policy of the retailer. There is a saving for the supply chain if the order value is higher. A retailer will generally discount a bathroom suite to encourage a complete sale rather than individual pieces.
There is however a growing trend towards consumers wishing to choose more ‘bespoke’ solutions for their bathroom designs so the more sophisticated retailers (dare I say like BigBathroomShop.com!) are working on mechanisms such as the configurator on the bathroom suite pages that allow consumers more choice and flexibility, without a financial penalty.

Acrylic vs steel baths what are the differences?

Essentially there is little difference in the user experience between an acrylic bath and a steel bath PROVIDING that either one is from a good manufacturer, purchased from a reputable retailer, and installed correctly.
The following table outlines the main differences:

	Steel	Acrylic
Design	Due to the high cost of moulding tools and the relative inflexibility of the material steel baths tend to be simpler in design.	The manufacturing process is simpler, the tools are cheaper, and the material is much easier to mould therefore designs can be much more elaborate.
Thermal properties	Steel conducts heat well and so the water in a steel bath will cool more rapidly than in an acrylic bath. This effect should be so small that it should not detract from the user experience.	Acrylic baths retain heat better than steel baths and will be warmer to the touch.
Surface finish	Good quality steel baths are finished with a hardwearing enamelled surface that will give many years of trouble free use. Please be aware however that should the enamel become damaged it will need professional attention to repair it and the bath may need replacing.	Good quality acrylic (those manufactured from sanitary grade acrylic) will also give many years of trouble free use with the added advantage that small surface scratches and blemishes can be polished out using ‘T’ Cut or a similar mild buffing agent.
Stability	Steel baths give the impression of being more stable when fitted, as the material is obviously less flexible to start with.	Acrylic baths have suffered in the past from a poor reputation due the supply of inferior quality products. However they still have the lion’s share of the market in the UK and when supplied by a reputable retailer and installed correctly they should prove sturdy and trouble free.

How can one make the most of limited space in their bathroom?

There are a number of products now available for smaller bathrooms; these include baths sized at 1500mm or 1600mm as opposed to the more standard 1700mm (5’6”), Showerbaths which combine a bathing area with a specially designed shower area are a superb solution for those wanting a shower and a bath in a small space.

http://www.bigbathroomshop.com/zpage/product_list/zpricecat/0014/zpricecat1/0010/zdesc/showerbaths.htm

Smaller sized pottery (sometimes called ‘Compact’ pottery) is becoming more popular as it projects into the bathroom less than standard pottery.

As furniture becomes more popular manufacturers have started to design ranges for smaller bathrooms that are less deep (front to back) than standard bathroom furniture (Appx. 200mm deep as opposed to standard product depths of appx. 330mm).
Shower cubicles with Bi-fold doors are a good solution for smaller bathrooms, as are corner entry cubicles or sliding shower doors as an alternative to a bath.

For those who want an eco friendly bathroom, can you recommend a couple of ways to save water/use natural materials?
The ‘usual suspects’ are fairly well known, showering as an alternative of bathing, the use the ‘short flush’ option of modern toilets with ‘dual flushing’ mechanisms, and washing, shaving and cleaning teeth in a basin/mug of water as opposed to leaving the water running.

A less obvious way to reduce energy use is to use the Internet to shop (well we would say that wouldn’t we!). No endless driving from store to store looking at styles and designs, just one online facility with over 4000 bathroom products to choose from, which are delivered to your home in reusable packaging, www.bigbathroomshop.com for all your bathroom needs!