
Radiator feet. - Do you need them, and what to do if you don't want them.
I'm writing this post due to the amount of times we have after sales questions regarding feet on column radiators. All ourradiators come supplied with the appropriate amount of wall brackets for the size supplied. Our suppliers will provide more brackets on request if required.
The most common reason people ask about feet after they've made their decision is due to a conversation they've had with their contractor / installer. Whilst we supply radiators designed for wall fixing, the installer's job is to ensure they are secured to the wall. Here is where we have areas of disagreement. That said, there are situations where feet can be beneficial or even necessary for your project.
There are a number of reasons why radiator feet may be of benefit to you.
1: Cast iron. These usually come with footed end sections as part of the radiator. Depending on length, they may also have footed sections mid way through the radiator.
Cast iron radiators can be wall mounted however, they are heavy and it does make life easier to floor mount as the wall they are being fitted to has to be able to bear heavy weight. For example, I've just removed a cast iron radiator that was floor mounted in my hallway. size was 760mm (24 in) x 1000mm (40 in) it weighed 105kg or 231lbs / 16 1/2 stone. Fixing something like that to a wall is an engineering project. Feet are a no brainer and the product by default includes them. These will still require retaining stays which prevent the radiators from falling on their faces.


2: Walls:
2a: Plasterboard. Fixing any radiator to a piece of plasterboard is a no no. I don't really feel I need to go into the whys and wherefores, but fixing something that's filled with water from copper pipes that will most likely break if the radiator comes away from the wall is a disaster waiting to happen and best avoided.
2b: Studwork. A good way to fix to an internal wall. If it's a new wall, the installer can fix a stud (piece of 4x2) for the brackets to be screwed to. There may well be a stud already in the wall that they can fix to. Most installers carry a beam finding tool in their kit.
2c: Lath and plaster. Again, not a great fixing. I'd suggest taking out a portion of the wall and fixing a new piece of plaster with a sheet of plywood fixed to the back of the ply. Here, you'll be making a solid fixing with some weight distribution for the load of the radiator.
2d: Solid walls. Mostly very easy to fix to. Some exceptions do apply. For old powdery walls, the company, Rawl Plug have developed a range of resins to create a solid fixing.
https://rawlplug.co.uk/rwl-categories/epoxy-resins/
3: Feet. Our main supplier of column radiators, Irsap.co.uk supply their products across Europe and beyond. Feet are only sold in the UK and represent 1% of their business. This gives an indication of how many are wall fixed.
Sometimes, feet are not only a installation requirement, but also a nice aesthetic. I have a mix of wall fixed, welded feet and slip on feet in my own home. Some were for visual reasons, although for my latest install I opted for slip on feet as we had a number of logistical hoops to jump through with deep insulation to meet new building regulations and the fact that they were 1800mm tall and lining these up to fit on the wall equidistant whilst avoiding joists etc.
Oh, OK. I couldn't be bothered to do all the work involved and feet were a simple solution.
The difference here is that I made this choice. I wasn't forced into having something I didn't want because the installer didn't want to do what I asked.

Another reason to avoid feet is if you plan to use valves coming out of the wall. Unless the entire radiator is wall mounted, corner valves are pointless.

Do bear in mind that your installer will have costed your installation based on fitting the standard panel radiators and radiator valves that he fits every day. I’ve had an installer actually refuse to take on a complete system install for me as I wanted to supply the radiators from the manufacturer I was working for at the time.
As far as he was concerned, he wouldn’t make a profit on supplying the radiators and his labourers would need to measure up for something they didn’t ordinarily fit and probably make costly mistakes in the process.
So, whilst you can theoretically have what you want, this may come at a cost and you may find you’ll need to look around for a plumber to take on your project.
We do use a number of great installers who will accommodate the ideas above. If you’re in Portsmouth, please feel free to pop in and grab some cards. We don’t directly appoint installers ourself, but we’re happy to recommend the guys we do use.
Please see below the IRSAP radiators we had installed by Thane Gas Services Ltd.
https://www.checkatrade.com/trades/thanegasservices


