Drying towels in the caravan?

[Paul1957]

If you go for a towel radiator it is better to get a white one since they give out a lot more heat than a chrome one of the same size.

[Ukzero]

9 minutes ago, Paul1957 said:

If you go for a towel radiator it is better to get a white one since they give out a lot more heat than a chrome one of the same size.

 

Not sure I understand the above statement.

 

A normal domestic radiator which you want to radiate heat into your room (though of course they work by 90% convection so calling them radiators is questionable anyway) will be best with a matt black finish (best surface for radiating and absorbing radiated heat) and chrome (aka mirror finish) is the worst. White is still not brilliant, but matt black radiators aren't a popular aesthetic choice!

In a radiator with water flowing through it the efficiency of the unit can make a very big difference because heat not transferred and given out by the radiator into the room can simply stay in the water and flow on through the system.

If an electric towel radiator has a 150W element it will generate 150W of heat which can't flow anywhere else. The thermostat could kick in reducing output, but with towels on it the heat will be transferred mostly by conduction so the amount of surface contact will be a bigger issue. In this instance the bare metal may even be better than metal with a white plastic powder coating.

 

Of course, if I have missed the point, which is quite possible I apologise.

[Jaydug]

16 minutes ago, Paul1957 said:

If you go for a towel radiator it is better to get a white one since they give out a lot more heat than a chrome one of the same size.

 

That's true.   Although a chrome rail may look smarter, on a caravan sized electric rail, there could be around 25% more BTU output on the white model.

[Paul1957]

13 minutes ago, Ukzero said:

 

Not sure I understand the above statement.

 

A normal domestic radiator which you want to radiate heat into your room (though of course they work by 90% convection so calling them radiators is questionable anyway) will be best with a matt black finish (best surface for radiating and absorbing radiated heat) and chrome (aka mirror finish) is the worst. White is still not brilliant, but matt black radiators aren't a popular aesthetic choice!

In a radiator with water flowing through it the efficiency of the unit can make a very big difference because heat not transferred and given out by the radiator into the room can simply stay in the water and flow on through the system.

If an electric towel radiator has a 150W element it will generate 150W of heat which can't flow anywhere else. The thermostat could kick in reducing output, but with towels on it the heat will be transferred mostly by conduction so the amount of surface contact will be a bigger issue. In this instance the bare metal may even be better than metal with a white plastic powder coating.

 

Of course, if I have missed the point, which is quite possible I apologise.

You are correct in what you are saying, chrome is not a good emitter of heat to the air/surroundings so it can not give out as much heat as a white or black radiator. A look in catalogues shows the difference. I recently replaced a chrome towel radiator in a static which was not warming the room and its label said 350 w output. I replaced it with a same sized white one at 500 w and this difference was enough so the room was nice and warm. You could feel the difference when stood near it.

[MalH]

You learn something new every day.  I just wish more people would learn how to stay and keep others safe when let out.

[GaryB1969]

Sometimes a solution stares you in the face, “clip” style clothes hangers:

 

 

[swirly182]

Exactly what we use in the shower as I previously said! There's a removable rail in there to hook them all over 👍

[Jacko1]

1) Microfibre towels are great and dry quickly. OH hangs them on hooks on the back of the toilet door.

2) my version, don’t shower, keeps the towels nice and dry😜

[GaryB1969]

1 hour ago, swirly182 said:

Exactly what we use in the shower as I previously said! There's a removable rail in there to hook them all over 👍

That’s something ours hasn’t got but there’s a hot air outlet just out of shot that dries them nicely. The larger clip hangers keep the towels opened out fully thus allowing them to dry properly. Thanks for everyone’s input.

[ericfield]

We have one of these...

 

https://www.robertdyas.co.uk/status-100w-heated-towel-rail-aluminium?source=&gclid=Cj0KCQjw8rT8BRCbARIsALWiOvRuTFvEaYoZKrTN0i9yEPhjQYj4aw2yN930z1LAnVlrLUUJV6wXbo8aAjZPEALw_wcB

 

Stands in the shower when not showering. Stands next to the toilet when showering. 

[Bergamo]

I purchased these towels which we use if not sunny.  Purchased the large ones and they are really soft and dry you easily.  The water is absorbed and they do dry quickly.  They also come with a storage bag which doesn’t take much space so just leave in the van.  

 

https://uk.dockandbay.com/collections/essential 

 

 

Bergamo

[Ukzero]

19 hours ago, Paul1957 said:

You are correct in what you are saying, chrome is not a good emitter of heat to the air/surroundings so it can not give out as much heat as a white or black radiator. A look in catalogues shows the difference. I recently replaced a chrome towel radiator in a static which was not warming the room and its label said 350 w output. I replaced it with a same sized white one at 500 w and this difference was enough so the room was nice and warm. You could feel the difference when stood near it.

 

Ah - makes complete sense now. Thaks for clearing that up. A 500W element will of course give out 150W more heat than a 350W element whatever the colour. 

 

PS - fixing to the GRP skin is not a major problem if care is taken. The rail is quite light and by drilling pilot holes, using good deep thread screws and screwing them in at angles gives a good strong mount.

[ericfield]

One of the big issues in drying towels and heating washrooms in a caravan is using too big a towel.

Unless we are showering we use small ‘guest’ towels (not that much bigger than flannels!) rather than big bath towels for hand washing during the day.  They dry quicker, block off less room heat from the radiator, less weight to carry than a locker of bath towels ....and they get complete use (not just the same corner of a big towel) before being replaced every couple of days.