Why Do You Need To Get Behind Your Radiators

The main reason people need to get behind their radiators is to paint or wallpaper. When decorating the radiator can be a frustrating obstacle that if not manoeuvred around properly causes future problems.

A proportion of people that have children with severe respiratory problems such as asthma go to every length to ensure the house is rid of triggers. The dust that sits behind your radiator accumulates over time and becomes a trigger for such illnesses.

The only way to get a thorough clean behind the radiator is to remove it from the wall, which is quite a big task if you need to do it often. The drop-down radiator removal kit has helped families make this an easy task, allowing you to ensure dust doesn’t build up.

Below is a customer picture who brought Rotarad as members of his family suffer from asthma so he wanted to eliminate any triggers.

Another customer had the genius idea of hiding a wall safe behind his radiator - discover more here.

 

Decorating Behind Radiators

Radiators are a common obstacle when it comes to redecorating whether it be painting or wallpapering.

Tip: If you’ve just moved into a house then consider getting your phone camera down the back of them to see what’s lurking there. As it will need a thorough clean as well as a fresh lick of paint.

Some radiators sit differently against the wall than others, with some allowing for more space. This makes it tempting to paint around, which if you’re painting a similar colour or just touching up is normally easy enough to do.

However, if you’re having a complete makeover or changing the colour drastically then removing the radiator from the wall will be the best option. Read our blog for a step by step guide.

It will not only make for a quicker and less stressful experience, but it will look better (especially if you have the whole house to do!)

 

Painting Behind Radiators

Painting behind radiators can easily be done if the radiator isn’t sat too close to the wall.

The only problem is by manoeuvring into awkward positions to get paint behind you can end up getting paint on the radiator itself without realising.

If the radiator is positioned low so people can see down the back when walking past then consider that people will also be able to see the bits you’ve missed.

The best way to properly paint behind a radiator is to remove it from the wall, read our blog for a step by step guide. 

 

Wallpapering Behind Radiators

Wallpapering is one of those jobs that you can easily tell if it not been done properly, with one of the difficulties being the application of wallpaper behind a radiator.

Depending on how close your panel radiator sits against the wall, you may be able to stick some wallpaper down the back of the bit you can’t see.

The only problem with this is you can’t see or stick the wallpaper properly to the wall so it’s only a matter of time before the heat causes the wallpaper to lift.

The easiest and most logical way to wallpaper behind a radiator is to remove it from the wall to wallpaper.

It gives you full access to the area you want to wallpaper and will save you a lot of time as you can apply the wallpaper with no obstacles.

 

Removing Wallpaper Behind Radiators

Not only applying but removing wallpaper from behind a radiator can be really tricky if you can’t physically get to it all.

Old wallpaper often hides mould, damp, cracks and even flaking paint, so it’s best to remove it properly.

With long handheld tools and a bucket of soapy water, you may be able to get rid of some wallpaper behind the radiator. However, there will always be patches that you can’t get to which can be extremely frustrating when trying to finish a job.

To get full access to the area behind the radiator to remove wallpaper its easiest to remove the radiator from the wall. It sounds like a big job but it can be quicker and less stressful than trying to get around it.

 

Cleaning Behind Your Radiators

Cleaning behind your radiators is something that needs to be done at least once a year to remove the build-up from winter.

Even the cleanest of people forget to clean behind their radiators as it’s just a forgotten area that we don’t see so we don’t register it’s there.

It’s also really hard to get behind them, some sit so near to the wall that you can’t even get a radiator brush down.

There’s a lot of radiator brushes available and vacuum cleaner attachments that can get to the dust. Although the only way to get a full clean and actually remove the dust with a cleaner and cloth is to remove the radiator from the wall.

This sounds like a big task but it really doesn’t have to be.

After installing a drop down radiator removal kit once, you will have a lifetime of easy access for cleaning and decorating to this hard to reach, forgotten area.

Why Do I Need to Clean Behind The Radiators?

This area is a breeding ground for dust mites and dirt as it's warm and confined. If you have pets that malt chances are there will be an accumulation of pet hair behind there too.

A lot of people also use radiators as a place to dry clean clothes. Doing this means the water from the clothes evaporates out the fabric where it turns into moisture in the air.

Too much moisture in the air leads to condensation, causing damp conditions in your home, which could lead to mould growth.

The area behind your radiator is ideal for mould growth as it thrives off humidity. Due to their high levels of moisture, bathrooms are the most likely rooms to harbour mould, although it can grow anywhere.

To give you an idea, here’s a picture of what’s behind someone’s radiator in their bedroom.

 

There are brushes you can buy that will reach down the back and even between the fins of the radiator. Sometimes these are great, and sometimes it just pushes the dirt further down.

Even if you can remove the dust it really needs to be cleaned with disinfectant to get rid of all the dust and prevent it from building up as quickly again.

With the cleaning trend dominating the UK at the moment there are so many hacks on how to get things clean.

Although, we are yet to see one that can also give you full access behind the radiator as Rotarad can.

Removing the radiator from the wall allows it to be cleaned properly with your favourite cloth and cleaning product (we all have one). Read our blog to find out more.

 

How Central Heating Is Damaging Our Health

Central heating radiators create ideal conditions for dust mites, mould spores and microbiological infections to flourish, creating higher levels of allergens that are then circulated into the air we breathe.

There have been studies that show we spend 90% of our time indoors, making our indoor air quality a bigger priority to our health than outdoor air quality.

The dust mite is the most common cause of allergy symptoms in the UK and a common trigger for rhinitis, asthma and eczema.

Poor indoor air quality is contributing to respiratory illnesses and also causes symptoms such as sneezing, coughing, watery eyes and wheezing.

 

Conclusion

Cleaning behind your radiator may not be a priority or may not have even occurred to you, as it is a genuine area that people just forget about.

If you’re planning on removing your radiator for a deep clean or to redecorate, we highly advise installing the drop down removal kit when you return it to the wall.

It will mean you’ll never have to remove it from the wall again for cleaning or decorating as you’ll be able to drop it down in seconds!