01
System design and heat-loss calculation
Every installation starts with a proper heat-loss calculation, room by room, rather than an estimate. We factor in floor area, wall construction, glazing, insulation standard and exposure: a solid-walled Victorian terrace near the seafront loses heat very differently to a cavity-wall 1970s semi further inland, and the design has to reflect that.
This calculation determines radiator sizes for each room, the pipework sizing needed to deliver adequate flow, and the boiler output required to serve the whole system without oversizing or undersizing. Skipping this step is the single biggest cause of underperforming heating systems we're asked to fix.
For extensions and loft conversions, the calculation also has to account for the additional heat demand being added to an existing system, and whether the current boiler and pipework can support it or need upgrading alongside the new radiators.
02
Pipework: copper, plastic, and pipe sizing
We fit both copper and plastic pipework depending on the installation. Copper remains the standard for exposed runs and boiler connections, while plastic pipework (in an appropriate system) can speed up first-fix work in new pipe runs and is less prone to noise from expansion.
Pipe diameter matters as much as material. 15mm pipework suits most single-radiator branches, while 22mm is used for main flow and return runs feeding multiple radiators or longer distances, to avoid restricting flow. Microbore pipework (8mm and 10mm) can work well for individual radiator connections but performs poorly when used to feed too many radiators from a single run: a common shortcut on older systems that leaves distant rooms underheated.
Getting pipe sizing right at design stage avoids the classic symptom of a system that heats the radiators nearest the boiler quickly while the furthest rooms barely get warm.
03
Radiator sizing and selection
Radiators are specified to match each room's calculated heat loss, not chosen to fit available wall space. Undersized radiators are one of the most common causes of a room that never quite reaches a comfortable temperature, however long the heating runs.
Where wall space is limited or a particular look is wanted, vertical radiators give the same output as a traditional horizontal model in a fraction of the floor width, and suit narrow hallways, small bathrooms or feature walls in living rooms.
Low-surface-temperature radiators, which limit the maximum surface temperature to reduce burn risk, are available where needed and can be specified as part of the design without compromising heat output for the room.
04
Zoning, TRVs and system balancing
Thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs) fitted to individual radiators allow different rooms to be heated to different levels, a bedroom kept cooler than a living room, for example, without one radiator's setting fighting against another's. Zoning can go further, splitting the system into separate heating zones controlled independently, which suits larger properties or homes with distinct living areas.
Balancing is the step most commonly skipped or done poorly. It involves adjusting the flow through each radiator so that heat is distributed evenly across the whole system rather than concentrated in radiators closest to the boiler. A correctly balanced system heats every room at a similar rate and avoids the common complaint of radiators being scalding hot at one end of the house and barely warm at the other.
05
System cleaning, inhibitor and magnetic filters
New pipework and radiators are flushed before the system is filled, and every installation is dosed with inhibitor to protect against internal corrosion. Where we're connecting new radiators into existing pipework, we assess whether the wider system needs flushing to remove sludge already present before it can contaminate the new components.
A magnetic system filter is fitted as standard on every installation. It captures ferrous debris circulating in the system before it can settle in radiators or damage the boiler's heat exchanger, and is one of the most cost-effective ways to protect the system's working life.
06
Controls and smart thermostats
A well-designed system is only as good as the controls managing it. We commission room thermostats, programmers and, where suitable, smart thermostats to reflect how the household actually uses heating, not left on factory defaults that ignore the property's real heating pattern.
Smart thermostats add remote control and more responsive scheduling, which particularly suits households who want heating ready for irregular working patterns, or second homes and holiday properties along the coast where occupancy varies week to week.
07
First-time gas installs, older terraces and extensions
First-time central heating installations, properties moving off electric storage heaters onto gas, need a full design from scratch: gas supply, meter position, pipework routes, radiator positions and flue location all have to be planned together, which is more involved than a like-for-like system replacement.
Blackpool's older terraces and 1930s semis often have solid walls, awkward pipe routes through original joinery, and layouts never designed around a central heating system. We plan pipe runs and radiator positions that work with the property's actual construction rather than forcing a generic layout onto it.
Extensions bring their own challenge: heating has to be extended from the existing system without starving the original rooms of flow, which usually means reassessing pipe sizing and, in some cases, boiler capacity as part of the design rather than simply running a spur off the nearest radiator.
