Real Estate
What to do with vintage radiators?
BY LIZ SADLER CRYAN
If you’re buying a townhouse in need
of a big renovation, there’s a good
chance it has radiators that run on
either a hot water or steam heating
system. Deciding what to do with the
radiators — whether to replace, restore
or remove them in favor of a forcedair
heating and cooling system — can
have a major impact on the look of the
house, and on the budget.
The fi rst step is to settle on a type of
heating system. Most brownstones — in
particular, the classic Italianate homes
of the mid-19th century — were built
without central heating. Starting in the
1880s, steam systems, and later forced
air, began to appear in townhouses
and luxury apartment houses built
for the wealthy. Steam systems, along
with a few hot water systems, were installed
in the vast majority of brownstones
between 1910 and 1930.
“When I look at some four-story
brownstone that at some point was
converted to a rooming house, and the
pipes have been altered and just can’t
be put back, I sometimes tell people
they have to start over,” said plumber
John Cataneo, of Gateway Plumbing
and Heating, who specializes in heating
systems. “But most of the time, it’s just
a matter of some poorly done changes
that have been done over the years.
Most systems are restorable and can be
made to run quietly and effi ciently.”
An old steam system can be restored
for under $5,000, Cataneo said. Replacing
it with a new high-end hot
water system costs about $20,000 per
fl oor.
“Hot water is a much more fl exible
system, in that you can adjust water
fl ow, water temperature, radiator temperature.
There’s more adjustment
based on needs of the home,” Cataneo
said. “Steam works as one big system
that has much less fl exibility.”
A forced-air HVAC system is a third
option that blows dry, heated air into
the room through vents.
“Forced air is much drier, so I recommend
coupling it with a humidifi er,”
said architect Sarah Jacoby. “Sometimes,
we do a forced-air system combined
with small radiators, since people
like the quality of the heat it provides.”
Steam and hot water systems deliver
heat through radiators, which stay hot
for quite a while, even after the boiler
shuts off. Many brownstones come
with the original castiron radiators
intact. Whether to replace, restore or
hide them beneath a radiator cover is
mostly an aesthetic preference.
“With existing radiators, there is
no one-size-fi ts-all approach. It really
depends on what our clients want the
An image from a 48-page booklet by American Radiator Company — subtitled “Radiation and Decoration” —
extolling its radiators, printed in 1905. This image depicts a “cozy corner.” The company’s booklet boasted,
“Beauty in radiators began with us.”
space to be, and on the size, style, and
condition of the radiator,” architect
Sarah Jacoby said. “If we’re restoring
a historic environment, we typically remove
the covers, then clean and paint
the radiators, integrating them with the
interior design. If they’re in bad condition,
if the room has space constraints,
or if our clients are pursuing a more
contemporary atmosphere, we would
recommend switching them out.”
Some architects replace original radiators
with new cast-iron ones by the
brand Governale, which look similar
to the old radiators but with a slimmer
profi le. The radiator brand Runtal is
another option for those with hot water
systems.
“Runtals take up almost no space,
and they can be custom painted, so
they are a great option,” Jacoby said. “I
used them with a client in a Bed-Stuy
brownstone renovation, and because
of the minimal profi les, we were able
to optimize the layouts of the interior
spaces.”
Moving radiators under windows
is another way to tuck these heating
structures out of the way and increase
effi ciency.
“If the budget is available, I would
To cover or not to cover?
prefer to move them under windows
and keep them under the thickness of
the wall. It’s a natural space to do it,”
architect Bryan Natinsky said. “I put a
cover on them, or integrate them into a
cabinet with a cover that is fl ushed and
recessed into the wall.”
Natinsky also combines radiators
with forced-air systems that can kick in
PHOTO BY SUSAN DE VRIES
while the radiators heat up.
“I fi nd the best combination is radiators
as the main source of heat and
forced air as a supplemental source,” he
said.
This article fi rst ran in Brownstoner,
a Schneps Media sister publication of
The Villager.
30 August 29, 2019 TVG Schneps Media