Aluminum radiators appeared 30 years ago and immediately won a significant market share from the usual steel and cast-iron batteries. These products gained popularity due to their unique appearance, increased heat transfer and low weight. In terms of heat transfer, aluminum batteries are undoubted leaders, but due to the peculiarities of the behavior of the material from which the product is obtained, the use of these devices is not always possible.
The device of aluminum radiators
Aluminum heaters are produced in two technologies:
- The finished product is cast in molds.
- The radiator is assembled by extrusion.
In the first embodiment, a monolithic product is obtained that perfectly withstands the pressure of the network due to the absence of connecting seams and joints.
In the second embodiment, aluminum shaped blanks are used, which are processed using a press. The individual sections obtained in this way are connected to the battery by welding. To ensure tightness, the connection of the sections is performed using seals and special gaskets.
A prefabricated radiator is cheaper than its monolithic analogue, but, subject to the requirements of the production technology, has the same strength characteristics. The advantages of monolithic models include the possibility of operating the product without additional maintenance, while prefabricated models are subject to periodic technical inspection and maintenance work.
Specifications
Aluminum refers to metals with a high degree of thermal conductivity. This feature allows you to create a powerful heat wave from the battery, which is evenly distributed in the space of the heated room in the apartment.
Thermal power is measured in watts and amounts to at least 180 watts for a single section of an aluminum battery. This product has a mass within 2 kg, the thickness does not exceed 110 mm. To completely fill such a radiator, you need 0.4 liters of liquid. The maximum limit on the temperature of the carrier is +90oFROM.
Advantages and disadvantages
The advantages of aluminum batteries include the following:
- Due to the rapid heating of the material, the process of heating the room occurs quickly (for living rooms it’s enough 15-20 minutes to get a comfortable temperature), which allows significant (up to 35%) saving on payment for the coolant;
- to regulate the flow of coolant in each product there is a special thermal valve that allows you to reduce or increase the flow of fluid in the radiator, which also leads to
- saving resources for heating;
- aluminum radiators look very attractive in appearance, even elegantly - small, but powerful in terms of heat transfer products perfectly fit both in the interior of a private house, summer cottage and
- administrative premises;
- if necessary, the owner of a private house can independently add sections to pre-installed prefabricated heating radiators (it is better for professionals to work with cast models);
- due to their small size and weight, these products are easy to install in any room and on any surface.
Aluminum radiators also have negative qualities. These include the following points:
- aluminum not only quickly heats up, but also cools quickly, which is why, to maintain a comfortable atmosphere in the room, it is necessary to constantly maintain the required level of coolant supply;
- radiators made of this metal do not withstand high pressure in the heating system, therefore they are not suitable for use in apartment buildings - they are often placed in wooden country cottages or in small autonomous structures;
- prefabricated structures are equipped with rubber gaskets, over time, these elements wear out and require replacement, which creates some inconvenience for the owners, this feature also does not allow the use of the considered types of batteries when using special fluids with aggressive chemical composition, such as antifreeze, as a coolant;
- if the coolant has a high content of alkaline compounds, the material is destroyed and the radiator breaks down, therefore it is advisable to use aluminum products in small private buildings, where there is no problem with excessive concentration of foreign substances in the water;
- when water and aluminum are combined, a weak process of gas formation occurs, therefore, to bleed air and remove plugs on products, it is necessary to install Mayevsky taps.
Bimetal radiators
Bimetal radiators visually have no differences from aluminum products. They are also compact and aesthetic, but due to the use of steel in the construction, the weight of the bimetal heaters is slightly larger.
Which radiators are better - aluminum or bimetallic, you can understand if you deal with the device of each system and compare them.
So, due to the strengthening of the product design with a steel base, bimetallic radiators can absorb higher pressure of the coolant without damage, which significantly expands the scope of their application.
Device
To obtain a high-quality radiator using two metals of steel and aluminum, a complex casting process using high pressure is required. Due to the distribution of metal under pressure in the mold, a dense bond of two different materials is achieved, which is necessary for high-quality heat transfer.
The steel core accepts the pressure of the coolant and, through contact with the aluminum shell, transfers energy to the room.
Specifications
It is not clear to the average consumer how bimetal radiators differ from aluminum ones, as they look completely identical. But there is a difference, and a significant one.
The bimetallic product has a significant ability to resist aggressive environments and can cope with a network pressure of 20 atmospheres.
The heat transfer of one section ranges from 190 watts. The weight of the metal alloy radiator will be 1.5 times more than a similar-sized aluminum. The maximum limit on the temperature of the carrier is +100oFROM.
When using stainless steel in the design of the radiator, its service life is increased by 20-30%.
Advantages and disadvantages
The positive qualities of bimetallic radiators include:
- ability to withstand increased pressure in the heating network;
- high degree of heat transfer;
- ability to withstand high temperatures of the heat carrier;
- corrosion resistance.
Negative properties of bimetallic batteries:
- rapid heat loss when disconnected from the carrier;
- high cost of the product;
- the likelihood of a reaction of the interaction of metals with the formation of gases inside the radiator, which leads to damage to the material.
Comparison of aluminum and bimetal radiators
Outwardly, both types of heaters are exactly the same, and an unprepared consumer will not be able to distinguish an aluminum product from a similar one of two metals. These types of batteries differ solely in terms of parameters:
- the heat transfer of aluminum radiators is higher than that of bimetal radiators;
- the ability to resist network pressure is almost two times higher for bimetal products;
- the ability to resist corrosion is higher for bimetallic radiators in which the core is cast from stainless steel;
- the service life of aluminum products is about 10 years, and bimetallic radiators are designed for 25 years;
- the cost of bimetallic devices is 30% higher.
How to distinguish aluminum from bimetal radiator
Knowing the differences between the batteries in question, you can easily determine which product is offered in the store. It is necessary to pay attention to the following points:
- connecting thread in a bimetallic radiator is made of steel;
- the weight of the bimetallic battery, with the same dimensions, will be significantly higher than the aluminum radiator;
- the easiest way is to check the material with a magnet: the magnet will not be attracted to the product cast completely from non-ferrous metal - this method of verification is convenient for determining
- material of an already installed battery.
What to look for when choosing
To determine the optimal radiator model, you need to know the characteristics of the coolant and take into account the negative and positive qualities of each type of battery. To determine which batteries are better, aluminum or bimetallic in each case, the following information will be required:
- coolant pressure level and pressure limit values during hydraulic shocks in a given network;
- chemical composition of the coolant;
- degree of coolant contamination with foreign substances.
Given these indicators and comparing them with the technical characteristics of the considered radiators, it is possible to identify the most suitable models for a particular room.
What radiators, for which systems are better suited
Which heating radiators are better, aluminum or bimetallic, depends on the characteristics of the room, the coolant and the climatic conditions of the area. In case of doubt and uncertainty, it is best to contact professionals who will help determine the type of product.
How to choose the right option, if at the moment you can’t get in touch with a specialist? In this case it is necessary to build on pressure in the coolant network. As mentioned above, the difference between these types of radiators is the ability to maintain their qualities at different levels of network pressure.
For private boiler houses, where the pressure does not exceed 2-6 atmospheres, inexpensive aluminum batteries are perfect, and it is better to use prefabricated products that can be independently maintained, and for the arrangement of apartments in multi-storey buildings, bimetallic batteries definitely need to be used.
It is also important to consider the chemical composition of the coolant. Exceeding the standard norms of alkalization of water will adversely affect aluminum and lead to its rapid destruction. For bimetallic products, this danger does not exist.