Discreet Heat - Skirting Board Heating?

[spaceyaface]

Dear All.

 

Looking into the possibility of running these fellar's of a webasto: http://www.thermaskirt.com/Working.aspx

Has anyone got, used or in fact got any comments good or bad with regards to these?

Is it possible?

 

Have I got too much time on my hands?

[bottle]

May work in a house but very doubtful in a boat.

 

These are just 'posh' Finrads without the fins.

 

Look at the spec page here

 

The best figure I can find is 236 watts per metre if the water is at 80 C

 

So to get about 3Kw you will need 12.7 metres of skirting, possible in a house but not a boat I would suggest.

[classicstove]

I've though about underfloor heating in a boat with either water heated by the stove and pumped or by electric heating for use when tied up in the winter at a marina

 

Anyone had any experience of this and advantages over skirting board heating ?

[nb Innisfree]

May work in a house but very doubtful in a boat.

 

These are just 'posh' Finrads without the fins.

 

Look at the spec page here

 

The best figure I can find is 236 watts per metre if the water is at 80 C

 

So to get about 3Kw you will need 12.7 metres of skirting, possible in a house but not a boat I would suggest.

 

On our 60' nb we have 15 metres of exposed skirting, still a bit on the lean side though, shame they don't do a double height version, 16" high wouldn't look out of place in a boat and would provide double output.

[Amicus]

I quite fancy that stuff in my drum, costed one not large room, using their software =£800+

Promptly fergot about it

Edited January 14, 2011 by Amicus

[Tony Brooks]

Dear All.

 

Looking into the possibility of running these fellar's of a webasto: http://www.thermaskirt.com/Working.aspx

Has anyone got, used or in fact got any comments good or bad with regards to these?

Is it possible?

 

Have I got too much time on my hands?

 

 

As declared all out on Dragons Den a while ago.

[kitman]

Dear All.

 

Looking into the possibility of running these fellar's of a webasto: http://www.thermaskirt.com/Working.aspx

Has anyone got, used or in fact got any comments good or bad with regards to these?

Is it possible?

 

Have I got too much time on my hands?

 

Hi spaceyaface, these rads are actually installed in a boat I am working on at the moment. Would you like me to ask the owner about them? If so what specific questions wuld you like me to ask? (other than whether you can hook them up to a webasto).

 

Owner tells me this product was on Dragon's Den and received no help from any of the investers, but has just won a massive contract with the NHS. The rads are really easy to clean because all surfaces are accessable to wash, as opposed to a normal rad.

Edited January 14, 2011 by kitman

[Alan Saunders]

I've though about underfloor heating in a boat with either water heated by the stove and pumped or by electric heating for use when tied up in the winter at a marina

 

Anyone had any experience of this and advantages over skirting board heating ?

The warmer the floor and walls the lower air temperature you need to maintain for comfort. But, underfloor and wall heating requires better insulation to reduce heat loss.

 

Alan

[Alan Saunders]

May work in a house but very doubtful in a boat.

 

These are just 'posh' Finrads without the fins.

 

Look at the spec page here

 

The best figure I can find is 236 watts per metre if the water is at 80 C

 

So to get about 3Kw you will need 12.7 metres of skirting, possible in a house but not a boat I would suggest.

My Alde (5.4Kw on propane) was running about 40% duty cycle @~80C in the recent cold weather (-7C outside, 18C inside), i.e. 2.16Kw dissipated by ~3m of finrad, ~10M 22mm copper pipe, the boiler itself and losses from the calorifier. I would expect ~400W/m from a finrad.t

OTOH, two finrads are installed under the dinette bunks that make up to a double berth. I can sit drectly over the warm air from a finrad or have under-bed heating on the coldest night.

 

The high cost of the thermaskirt may be justified by low cost of professional installation, and for Hospitals, the lack of dirt traps.

 

Alan

[bottle]

Finrads are rated at 500 watts per metre and as far as I can find out these 'skirting board' rads are only 236 watts per metre

 

Finrads are now available 'covered' so all being equal and enough space Finrads would be better.

 

Edit : to add link to Finrad covered

Edited January 15, 2011 by bottle

[Biggles]

I considered them in my build. I had samples sent and they are certainly a quality product. I discounted them as my primary heating is by a Mikuni and it was my opinion after asking lots of questions that it would cause the heater to cycle too much and as we all know this is a killer for these heaters. The problem was the low volume of water in the system.

 

Just because the NHS has bought loads of it don't make it good. Remember the debacle over their massive computer system that costs billions and has never worked properly?

 

TBH I would consider it again in a house situation if it was a new build.

 

Biggles

[w4ddy]

Hello,

Martin Wadsworth from DiscreteHeat, manufacturers of the ThermaSkirt heating system.

Just wanted to point out that we have succesffuly supplied more than a dozen new build or refurbished narrowbaots with our ThermaSkirt system. We have targeted the Narrow Boat builders this year, and we have 4 manufacturers already using/building into their projects.

Dont forget that the heater (Webasto or similar) provides the hot water as well as the heating, and that the alluminium skirting really chucks the heat out. The improved efficiency means that a smaller unit can be used, to run at maximum output. Very often conventional towel rads are used in the bathrooms to act as a heat sink also.

Happy to hear from the Canal Boat community with any technical suggestions. We do do a double height system for boats with limited wall space.

For the record, we have done some NHS projects but its not our main business. It is predominately residential, although we are doing more and more in the leisure market - caravan and park homes, log cabins and yachts, where space is a premium.

You can see some images at discreteheat.com website / Thermaskirt reviews.

Thanks for reading.

 

Martin Wadsworth

Managing Director

Discrete Heat Co Ltd

[Guest]

Hello,

Martin Wadsworth from DiscreteHeat, manufacturers of the ThermaSkirt heating system.

Just wanted to point out that we have succesffuly supplied more than a dozen new build or refurbished narrowbaots with our ThermaSkirt system. We have targeted the Narrow Boat builders this year, and we have 4 manufacturers already using/building into their projects.

Dont forget that the heater (Webasto or similar) provides the hot water as well as the heating, and that the alluminium skirting really chucks the heat out. The improved efficiency means that a smaller unit can be used, to run at maximum output. Very often conventional towel rads are used in the bathrooms to act as a heat sink also.

Happy to hear from the Canal Boat community with any technical suggestions. We do do a double height system for boats with limited wall space.

For the record, we have done some NHS projects but its not our main business. It is predominately residential, although we are doing more and more in the leisure market - caravan and park homes, log cabins and yachts, where space is a premium.

You can see some images at discreteheat.com website / Thermaskirt reviews.

Thanks for reading.

 

Martin Wadsworth

Managing Director

Discrete Heat Co Ltd

 

It's neat looking that's for sure, I just wonder about the heat dissipation without 'fins' like on fin rads...

[bottle]

Martin

 

Welcome and it is brave of you to stick your head above the parapet.

 

I have a total of two metres of free wall space in my saloon, the saloon is 6 metres(l) by 2 metres (w) by 2 metres (h)

 

Can you heat that volume?

 

ps. I realise you can but just how many 'Thermaskirts' would I need.

[Biggles]

The solution to rainy days is to wash the boat, went to do just that this afternoon, shifted it to the side away from all the other boats, in the rain. Connected up the power washer, filled the bucket, sponge in hand approached the boat, rain stopped, sun broke through, the bloody thing was dry in seconds. Spent three hours washing it, put it back on its mooring, rain started!

 

Ken

I did consider it it but it's very expensive. Tech support were keen it could be done, but in the end I went for trad radiators after speaking with the diesel heater manufacturers. All thought the low volume of water in the system would cause high cycle rates, just what these types of heater hate.

 

Very nice product though. Would definitely consider it in a new build property.

Edited July 17, 2011 by Biggles

[w4ddy]

Hello Keith,

How are you heating the space now?

2m is not a lot. A double height heater will give you about 600w, but of course the distribution will not be as good as its concentrated in one area.

If you look at our website, you will generally heat along 1 side of the boat or beneath fitted units & furniture. This gives a good even spread of heat, that makes the space feel more comfortable, even if the total max output is mathematically less than the standard rad its replacing, which tends to create drafts and hot spots.

Good luck

Thanks

 

Martin

[bottle]

Thanks Martin

[starman]

Anyone got any further info on Thermaskirt? I'm thinking of going for skirting rads in a couple of areas of the boat - bathroom and under-deck bed space. The heat source is a back-boiler Refleks in the saloon, the stove directly heating the saloon.

 

Reason for going skirting rad is to take up less wall space and also to let me mount the system header tank lower down and less conspicuously. (And, no, there are no wall cupboards I can hide it in).

[bowten]

The new finrads give a good heat output per metre and very cost effective,they look good and can be sprayed in different colours.If used in conjunction with good sized towel rail as a heatsink I think they look much better than domestic radiators.