To date, the heated towel has become a familiar element of the bathroom equipment. Basically, it performs two functions: it maintains a normal room temperature and allows drying towels, socks, underwear, bathrobes and other small items. It is important that the heated towel rail fits harmoniously into the design of the bathroom. It should complement the general notes of the design of the room, rather than appear as an isolated element. In the building materials market today, you can meet a large selection of dryers of different shapes and colors. Thanks to this diversity, everyone can choose the right option. But it can be difficult to choose. Therefore, it is worth considering this issue in more detail. Also in this article I'll show you how to connect a heated towel rail in the bathroom.
Contents
Basics of the right choice
Basics of the right choice
When carrying out repairs in the bathroom, it is often necessary to replace such dryersare connected to the heating system or to pipes supplying hot water. Therefore, you should carefully consider the quality and strength of the purchased product. When choosing a new dryer, it is worth paying attention not only to the external appeal, but also to the strength of the materials from which it is made. The operation of heating systems allows the occurrence of pressure drops up to 10 atmospheres. Dryers must withstand such fluctuations, and do not break. It is worth considering when choosing a device.
In particular, it is recommended to learn more about the characteristics of the product, which you need to pay attention first. In addition, you should have an idea of the process of installing the heated towel rail in the bathroom. Installation of the dryer is most often done before the final finishing of the room is started. This reasonable step allows you to save your time and money.
In general, all the heated towel rails in the bathroom are divided into three main groups:
- water,
- electric,
- combined.
Water towel rails in the bathroom are often installed in new apartments by default. They look like a curved pipe with hot water. Technical parameters of water dryers for towels should correspond to the level of the pressure and working pressure. According to the SNiP, all the water valves must operate at a pressure of 6 atm.and higher. In fact, the pressure in the system should not be more than 4 atm. In water supply systems of country houses, the pressure usually does not exceed 2-3 atmospheres. Therefore, for this case, choosing a water dryer is much easier. But remember that this type of product is quite dependent on the stability of the supply of hot water.
If the device has a connection to the heating system, then it, in fact, only works until the heating is switched off, i.e.in the heating season. Therefore, towel warmers, which are based on water, do not work for more than 3 months. That is why many people are looking for a replacement for such products.
As an alternative to water it is often used an electric heated towel rail for the bathroom, which, in fact, is a simple electric heater. This option can be successfully used regardless of the operation of other systems in the apartment. In addition, it can be installed in almost all areas of the room. What is required for the normal operation of such a dryer is the source of uninterrupted power. The main disadvantage is an increase in electricity costs, and, consequently, financial costs. Similar products consume almost as much as ordinary light bulbs, i.e.from 30 to 100 watts. The connection of these dryers can be done through an outlet( open method) or by laying the wiring in the wall( hidden method).
Various colors, shapes and sizes of heated towel rails for the bathroom give a great choice for buyers. Therefore, you can easily select what suits your design. Often, electric dryers have the ability to adjust the temperature, usually it can be done in the range of 30 to 60 degrees. It should also be noted that such products are not attached to one place as water units, which allows one dryer to be used in different rooms, simply moving it to the right place.
Combined towel warmers can work in two modes and therefore combine the design features of electrical and water units. In form, such dryers are more like water. In this case, the structure has an electric heating element, like electric ones. This allows the product to work even in the summer, when the heating is switched off. The main disadvantage is their cost, which repels many owners of the premises. Next, consider some of the features of the operation of the units and how to put the towel in the bathroom.
How the material of the product affects the life of the product
It's no secret that the water used in our water pipes is far from the best quality. Therefore, the material from which the device for drying things is made must withstand such an environment. With this task, a towel warmer in the bathroom made of stainless steel works well. The front surface of the product can be either painted, or polished or chrome plated. The cheapest option is a painted version. More expensive are polished towel rails. Not so long as steel models, can serve products made of brass, copper and other non-ferrous metals.
There are a lot of different impurities in the water flowing through the pipes. If it is used as a coolant, these harmful substances form a sediment on the inner walls of the pipes. Black metals are particularly sensitive to this deposit. Therefore, the dryer of these materials is best not to use in the apartment of a multi-storey building. They are suitable only for country houses, where the quality of water in a water pipe is usually better.
How to install a heated towel rail in the bathroom
If replacement is required, first remove the old heated towel rail. Then the bypass and ball valves are installed. After that, a new device is mounted. Now consider these stages in some detail.
Installation procedure:
- Dismantling begins with the shutdown of hot water. Therefore, these works require agreement with the home management organization.
- When this is done, you can clean the old towel warmer. If necessary, all threaded connections in the structure are unscrewed and dismantled.
- If the device is welded to a pipe, then it is necessary to use the bulgarian to cut it off. Cuts should be made in such a way that the length of the pipe is sufficient for threading. After that, it remains to remove the old device from the brackets.
- Next, we'll look at the jumper assembly, which is also called the bypass. It is a piece of pipe, at the ends of which there are connecting elements. Immediately it should be said that if you do not have the experience and skills for the equipment of this element, it is recommended to entrust this work to specialists, so that there are no adverse consequences that may affect the entire riser.
- To install the bypass at the end of the dryer, you will need ball valves, which are usually included in the kit. With the help of them, if necessary, it will be possible to block the circulating water in the device. At the same time, the installation works will not interfere with the operation of the riser. Thus, ball valves allow repairing, if necessary, without blocking the water for the whole house.
- The system often accumulates air, which must be lowered. This can be done, for example, by mounting in the bypass another ball valve, which will ensure a normal circulation of water in both the dryer and the pipeline. As a result, three valves will be installed on the bypass. Two of them are located at the points of connection with the dryer. Tritium valve serves to shut off the water in the jumper itself. If it is necessary to dismantle the dryer it will be sufficient to cover only the valves, and the riser will continue to function.
- Next, we'll fix the brackets and mount the towel to the wall. First, the bracket is bolted to the device, which should be included in the kit. Next, you need to put it to the attachment point, and mark with a pencil the place where you need to make holes. Align the device alone will be difficult, so it is better to enlist help.
- Then in the wall you need to make holes. Since the walls in the bathroom are usually covered with tiles, then for punching holes, you need a special drill. Next, we need plastic dowels, which are inserted into the holes.
- The dryer is then attached to the wall. The available holes are aligned with each other. Then the device with screws is attached to the wall.
- When this is done, the towel heater should be carefully connected to the riser. This is easy enough. It is necessary to attach it to the valves on the bypass by means of straight or corner feints. The type of feints depends on the type of connection of the dryer.
After installing the heated towel rail in the bathroom, it should be connected. For this polypropylene pipes are suitable. Why is it better to give preference to this particular material? The supply pipes are often made of copper and propylene steel. Structures made of steel are quite heavy and are susceptible to corrosion. In addition, for their installation requires the presence of a welding machine. As for copper, this metal does not rust and is not so heavy. At the same time, it is more expensive and for the installation of a heated towel rail in the bathroom, soldering is required.
Polypropylene pipes are free of these drawbacks - they do not rust, are inexpensive and have a low weight. Modern structures of this material are additionally reinforced with a special fiber, which makes them stronger and more resistant to high temperatures. In addition, they are easy to install. In particular, various fittings make it possible to easily connect them to metal pipes. For ease of installation, there are welding devices designed for such purposes, which you can quickly learn to use yourself. Therefore, it makes no sense to buy them for a rather high price. It is much more reasonable to hire equipment in shops that sell building materials. This service is relatively inexpensive.
The work on connecting and installing a heated towel rail in the bathroom with your own hands is quite simple. Only in this case, in the direction of the water flow direction, the slope of the supply pipe must be maintained. To do this, the feeder pipe is connected to the upper bell of the dryer.
There are rules and regulations that regulate that a certain distance, depending on the diameter of the pipe, must be observed between the dryer and the plastered wall. If the diameter does not exceed 23 mm, then the permissible maximum distance is 35 mm. For large dimensions, the distance should not be more than 50 mm.
To ensure that the walls are not too loaded with pipes that deform as a result of heating, the fixture is fixed on supporting containers. When the work is completed, all connections must be inspected carefully. The main thing is that they are dry.
Towel rails in the bathroom: photo
