hydronic plinth heater for kitchen

GeX · 24 Jan 2017 at 20:08

There's no space in the kitchen for a radiator, and the floor is tiled on top of concrete. Cold kitchen is cold.

It has an electric plinth heater - but I need to remember to switch it on, it smells, and makes the meter spin like crazy.

I've looked around and found some similar heaters but they connect to the central heating system, the fan only comes on when the water reaches a certain temp.

Seems ideal - why are they not more popular, any one got any experience of them?

SPG · 24 Jan 2017 at 22:03

Cold house = Electricity or GAS...

Your plinth heater is old, replace it. Plenty now with timer and thermostat....

peterwalkley · 24 Jan 2017 at 22:53

Our kitchen was done about 11 years ago and a Myson plinth heater connected to the central heating system put in. It was the logical choice for us as we were losing a radiator and it saved capping off pipes. It does an 'ok' job, but its still a cold floor in there as all they can really do is blow warm air straight out. Like you, we are tiles over concrete.

Next time I would go for underfloor heating. It would cost more, but absolutely worth it. Very jealous of a friend who did that for her kitchen - strangely enough that's the room everyone congregates in at her house. Not the case at ours.

FlyingFish · 25 Jan 2017 at 07:06

I put one in our kitchen, and it seems to work fine. Works as expected, but the high fan setting can be noisy. The kitchen floor is Amtico not tiled, seems fine to me. I didn't bother fitting the external control, just have the switches on the front of the unit, if I need to turn it off I just flick the switch with my toe

GeX · 25 Jan 2017 at 07:18

SPG said:
Cold house = Electricity or GAS...

Your plinth heater is old, replace it. Plenty now with timer and thermostat....

I am looking at replacing it, hence the thread - but instead of electric, I'm considering one that it is connected to the central hearing sysyem!

peterwalkley said:
Our kitchen was done about 11 years ago and a Myson plinth heater connected to the central heating system put in. It was the logical choice for us as we were losing a radiator and it saved capping off pipes. It does an 'ok' job, but its still a cold floor in there as all they can really do is blow warm air straight out. Like you, we are tiles over concrete.

Next time I would go for underfloor heating. It would cost more, but absolutely worth it. Very jealous of a friend who did that for her kitchen - strangely enough that's the room everyone congregates in at her house. Not the case at ours.

I totally agree wrt underfloor heating and that is what will be going in when we redo the kitchen, this heater is more of an interim thing. I'll take a look at the Myson heaters, thanks. One thing that puzzled me with them - how do you bleed them, or is it not an issue?

FlyingFish said:
I put one in our kitchen, and it seems to work fine. Works as expected, but the high fan setting can be noisy. The kitchen floor is Amtico not tiled, seems fine to me. I didn't bother fitting the external control, just have the switches on the front of the unit, if I need to turn it off I just flick the switch with my toe

As I say, we already have that but I want something to take the chill off the kitchen and for that to happen when the rest of the house warms.

The kitchen ends up feeling a bit damp as it's an outrigger building, my hope is that by added a heater connected to the CH system it'll improve this a bit.

FlyingFish · 25 Jan 2017 at 07:42

That's what I'm saying. I plumbed one into the heating circuit, as we had insufficient wall space for a radiator, and it works fine. Had its own inbuilt thermostat that kicks the fan on when the heating circuit warms up, and warm water moves through the plinth heater

GeX · 25 Jan 2017 at 09:20

ah, I thought when you said about the switches on the front I thought you meant the heat levels on an electric. My bad!

peterwalkley · 28 Jan 2017 at 09:14

Forgot this thread. I don't think you can bleed them but I doubt its really an issue anyway as air would get pushed to a normal radiator. In my house its always the same one upstairs that accumulates the trapped air.

Shekar · 12 Dec 2020 at 12:44

I have the same situation with my kitchen floor.Did you go for plinth heater and what has been the experience?

SoliD · 12 Dec 2020 at 18:11

I put an electric plinth heater in my old kitchen which was ground floor in a townhouse with a poorly insulated garage and only had 1 radiator in the hallway. Worked just fine left on the relevant heat setting when I was downstairs, easy to remember to turn off as it was loud enough to remind you.