Will a towel rail heat a bathroom?

Will a towel rail heat a bathroom? Do heated towel rails function as radiators or is there a need to install additional heating in a bathroom?

You can use a heated towel rail as the only heat source in a bathroom, provided it gives out enough heat.

Towel rails fall into two categories: those used solely to warm towels (where a separate radiator is used to heat the bathroom); and those used to both warm towels and heat the bathroom.

All too often, people swap a bathroom radiator for a towel rail, without taking account of heat output.

This can result in warm towels in an otherwise cold and miserable bathroom - especially in winter.

With a bit of expert advice, this scenario can be avoided.

Once it is known what heat output the bathroom needs, then it's a case of matching this to the right heat output.

If the bathroom is compact and well insulated, you shouldn't have a problem in finding a towel rail that will heat the bathroom adequately.

If the bathroom is large and not well insulated, most towel rails will not have the capacity to keep a bathroom warm, or may need to be ridiculously big in order to give out enough heat.

The good news is that the radiator industry is finally responding to this problem.

There are now several stylish and compact towel rails on the market, designed to maximise heat output with integral hanging rails.

Back to top