Every room is different when it comes to radiator installation. Whether you’re getting radiators for your first home or need one that will fit perfectly in a workspace, the first thing you have to do can be a stumbling block if you don’t know what you’re looking for.

The humble act of figuring out what size of radiator you need can get confusing if you don’t know where to measure. Luckily, two little pipes are sticking out of the floor (or wall) that will tell you exactly what to do. 

Customers at Trade Radiators can now search for radiators by pipe centre. If you know the measurements, we’ll help narrow down the thousands of radiators we have in stock to those that will fit perfectly. 

What are radiator pipe centres?

Radiator pipe centres make up the measurement of your radiator installation. Knowing what the distance is will help you understand what size of radiator you can get.

How do I measure radiator pipe centres?

You simply get a tape measure and check what the length is from the centre of the left pipe to the right pipe. This measurement lets you know what size of a radiator can fit in between easily. You don’t want to overshoot or else you’re going to have to get valves and possibly pipework coming out at all angles.

Do I need to measure the width of my radiator? 

No. A common misconception is that your radiator width will help you figure out your pipe centres, but you could be out by a few centimetres depending on what your current radiator set-up looks like. 

My pipes don’t come up out of the floor. What do I do? 

When a radiator is connected from the side with an angled valve, you might be a little puzzled trying to figure out where the centres are. In cases like this, all you need to do is measure straight across from the outside edge of one pipe to another.

Is there a default length for pipe centres in the UK?

While pretty much every measurement on a radiator, from the 15mm radiator valve to plugs and caps, is set to a standard, the same can’t be said for pipe centres. 

Now, in most cases, you’ll find that pipes are usually 45mm out with your radiator size (e.g. a 1000mm wide radiator would tend to measure 1090mm in total). This isn't definite though, so don’t think you can buy based on an estimate. It’s always more important to measure. 

My pipes have seen better days. What can I do?

If you’ve got down there and measured everything up, you may have noticed that your pipes aren’t looking as lovely as they should. Without getting any restoration work, you can get some cheap radiator pipe sleeves which will pop in place and help give a clean new look. 

Trade Radiators Delivery Guarantee 

Getting a new radiator doesn’t have to be as tedious as working out measurements. When you’ve found the right radiator for your space, we’ll aim to get it delivered as quickly as possible. In many cases, when orders are placed before 2 pm, your radiator will be delivered by the next working day.

It all depends on the make of radiator, and you can find out more about how long delivery takes here.