So how does this heat thing work then?

[ScotHill]

My radiators are at about 60C, measured by an infrared thermometer. Air temperature in the room is about 20C, and most of the objects in the room are around 20C on the IR thermometer too, even ones really close to the radiator (<12 inches to the side, there's nothing in front of it).

So why are people worried about putting stuff near a radiator? *On* a radiator I can understand, because stuff heats up quickly through conduction, but convection seems a rubbish way to transfer heat, and a radiator gives off only about 20% of its heat as radiation (despite the name). The plastic TRV knob right on the side of it only gets up to 20C!

Might have a warranty claim where they cite the nearby radiator as a reason to refuse, but unless there's some unmeasurable heat absorption thing going on I don't see how it can be affected.

Edited by ScotHill on Friday 15th December 20:31

[Beati Dogu]

Are people afraid of putting things near radiators?

I'd only be wary of electric heaters for fear of something falling in it and catching fire (as my idiot former neighbour did once)

Convection is a perfectly adequate means of heating an enclosed space like a room.

[ScotHill]

Things made of materials that might warp, bend, crack or melt due to the heat (and/or probably lack of humidity too, hadn't thought of that). But yes, things like guitars will die near a radiator, it's just the definition of 'near' that I'm looking for. i'm thinking it's probably a very short distance.

Is there a formula for how much heat you receive from a heat source, that takes into account the distance the measurement point is away from the heat source? Or some kind of heat-dissipation-by-distance formula.

[jet_noise]

ScotHill said:

Things made of materials that might warp, bend, crack or melt due to the heat (and/or probably lack of humidity too, hadn't thought of that). But yes, things like guitars will die near a radiator, it's just the definition of 'near' that I'm looking for. i'm thinking it's probably a very short distance.

Is there a formula for how much heat you receive from a heat source, that takes into account the distance the measurement point is away from the heat source? Or some kind of heat-dissipation-by-distance formula.

Radiant heat is just another frequency of wave, like sound or light so it's inverse square law isn't it?
Also the colour/texture of the receiving item is relevant to how much heat is absorbed.

With something like a guitar it may be a combination of radiant heat, convection and evaporation. Especially if accelerated by an artificial and/or uneven heat source so the wood dries out.

IMHO etc

[Gandahar]

Shows how things have dumbed down since I was growing up. We had a 3 bar electric fire in the kitchen as no central heating. We also had a brass toasting fork. So one night, aged about 12 I decided to do some toast on the fork.

Put the prongs far too far through the bread and they connected with the electric bar so sending all the current up my arm....

So think yourself lucky and don't worry too much

[Zetec-S]

At my last company H&S got very upset because we had a stack of archive boxes next to a radiator.

Fire risk, apparently...

[jet_noise]

Zetec-S said:

At my last company H&S got very upset because we had a stack of archive boxes next to a radiator.

Fire risk, apparently...

I read this as anchovies (my brain!) and thought, phew,what a stink.

[Thorodin]

Non-scientist about to provoke much laughter: convection currents are absorbed by the whole environment of the room together with loss through cold walls and ceilings (much more 'demanding' than minor objects). Rising heat takes much longer to circulate (up, across and downwards) than radiation.

[Simpo Two]

Zetec-S said:

At my last company H&S got very upset because we had a stack of archive boxes next to a radiator.

Fire risk, apparently...

Tell them to sit and watch it, until it catches fire, and when it does, then they can go home.

[BoRED S2upid]

Beati Dogu said:

Are people afraid of putting things near radiators?

I'd only be wary of electric heaters for fear of something falling in it and catching fire (as my idiot former neighbour did once)

Convection is a perfectly adequate means of heating an enclosed space like a room.

I’m a bit concerned to put our 2 year old too close to a radiator they are hot not so worried about the older one as he knows better.

[tumble dryer]

Gandahar said:

Shows how things have dumbed down since I was growing up. We had a 3 bar electric fire in the kitchen as no central heating. We also had a brass toasting fork. So one night, aged about 12 I decided to do some toast on the fork.

Put the prongs far too far through the bread and they connected with the electric bar so sending all the current up my arm....

So think yourself lucky and don't worry too much

Yeah well, at around the same age, I'd guess, I watched the coiled rings of my mums cooker go from cold to hot when they were turned on - in fact you could turn them on and touch them and feel them heat up for a second or two, before they became too hot to touch. The thing was though, you could definitely feel them heat up as you switched the 'ring' on.

Electric three bar fires? Notsomuch.

Edited by tumble dryer on Saturday 23 December 20:45

[anonymous-user]

Gandahar said:

Shows how things have dumbed down since I was growing up. We had a 3 bar electric fire in the kitchen as no central heating. We also had a brass toasting fork. So one night, aged about 12 I decided to do some toast on the fork.

Put the prongs far too far through the bread and they connected with the electric bar so sending all the current up my arm....

So think yourself lucky and don't worry too much

Thanks for a good laugh!

I like your style though. Why bother using electricity to heat the air around the element and radiate heat out etc when you can apply the electricity directly to your body and get a more efficient heating affect that way. I bet you didn't feel cold after being thrown across the room.