Steampunk Radiator

[AlexH]

New to the forum, so hello!

Thought I'd post pics of a couple of radiators I have made that fit the description of Steampunk.....I think!
I have a couple more radiators I could share, and one or two other things if anyone is interested!

Free standing radiator:



Same radiator in the dark, showing internal lighting:



And one on the wall in my home:

[AlexH]

Ok not sure why images aren't showing, that should be straight forward but doesn't seem to be working!.
The links are definitely there....sorry but seems to be beyond my control.

[von Corax]

You need to use the BBCode under the Share button.

[AlexH]

You need to use the BBCode under the Share button.

Not seen a 'share' button. I clicked the add image icon and pasted the url in the popup. Don't know what BBCode is I'm afraid.

[AlexH]

Read the instructions on posting images, and what I have done looks right to me....so sorry once again!

[von Corax]

The Share button is the one that looks like this:



on the YourImageShare image page, in the toolbar to the right, just above the comment box.

[AlexH]

Sorted now, thanks for the help!

[RJBowman]

Aren't all radiators steampunk?

[SeVeNeVeS]

I can for one see the amount of thought, planning and execution involved here.

would love to see the other radiators created if you would be so bold.

It is such a large feature piece I would maybe suggest a change of the wall background to a different colour than the rest of the room to make that bugger pop.

Welcome aboard.

[AlexH]

Taking pictures of these is a big problem as I have little space big enough! That rad is too tall for my house (2.4m or so), so I stood it in front of a white piece of wood, with a bit of old skirting and a mat to stand it on in my garage! Not ideal I agree!


Got another of pic of that rad in the garage where it was made, also a pic with a mirror pair of wall mounted rads, still on the stands they were made on. So again, not ideal pics, but you get the idea!

[SeVeNeVeS]

Holy Crap! You own Yorshire fittings and pipe company or something?

That is alot of pipework, umm, just as a question do they actualy work as central heating radiators or just for wall art? Either way I'm impressed.

[J. Wilhelm]

Definitely has quantum computer vibes (or is it the other way around?), especially the centrepiece. "International Babbage Machines, (IBM)." There a thread in Metaphysical where I broach the subject.

[AlexH]

...just as a question do they actualy work as central heating radiators or just for wall art?

They are 100% working! The gauges are pressure tested within their specified limits, but the rest of the rad is tested to 120 psi for several hours, twice during the assembly and finishing.
All gauges, thermometers etc work, sight glasses actually carry water, and there are many taps and valves to allow 'tuning' of the radiators to make sure they heat evenly. The free standing one also has very subtle lighting in the central tube (low voltage, waterproof and totally isolated from water).
Next versions will probably be lights with other interactive electronics rather than radiators. Not sure yet....

IMHO it is very important that things made have a function and work well. Sticking a few clock gears on a hat is no good, steampunk is all about machines and retro tech, so if your going to make something steampunk, it should have some kind of actual function or use. Just my opinion of course!

[SeVeNeVeS]

Yes but have they actually been connected to a heating system, all great pressure testing and having it working in theory.

Once connected to a working system you get sludge which will block stuff and make the sight glass black and could be a right bugger to balance when the other radiators in the house are also calling for heat and precious pump flow

Not a critism on design, they look fabulous but i know from previous experience in my own dabblings on a much smaller scale things don't always go as you planned it........ cold spots no flow and nightmare balancing the system.

There is no doubt about your ability and please do post any future projects.

[mizzarrogh]

I can not see the pictures.

[J. Wilhelm]

I can not see the pictures.

The images disappeared for me too.  I was able to see them yesterday.  I tried switching from 4g cellular service to local WiFi and got the same result, so the problem is likely at the image server.

[von Corax]

I can not see the pictures.

The images disappeared for me too.  I was able to see them yesterday.  I tried switching from 4g cellular service to local WiFi and got the same result, so the problem is likely at the image server.

I'm getting "Image not found" posters, so it's definitely the server.

[Sir Henry]

Those are spectacular (or were, when we could see them)!

I was lost for words when I saw them but sadly my wife wasn't. One look and "No!"
So it may be a couple of years of gentle pressure before I can order one from you. I'll have just the room for it by then.
You would make them for sale, wouldn't you?

[AlexH]

High guys,
Had a few problems with 'myimageshare' so have opened a new hosting account. I am re[posting the images from before again here:

Radiator on my wall at home, been running this for 4 years or so now:



Free standing radiator:



Free standing radiator in the dark showing the internal lighting:



Mirror pair of wall mounted radiators (still on the stands on which they were made):



Another single panel wall mounted radiator (also on the stand on which it was made):



And one more of the freestanding rad and the mirror pair, in the workshop:

[AlexH]

Yes but have they actually been connected to a heating system, all great pressure testing and having it working in theory.

Once connected to a working system you get sludge which will block stuff and make the sight glass black and could be a right bugger to balance when the other radiators in the house are also calling for heat and precious pump flow

Not a critism on design, they look fabulous but i know from previous experience in my own dabblings on a much smaller scale things don't always go as you planned it........ cold spots no flow and nightmare balancing the system.

The answer is yes, some have been on heating systems. You make good points about cold spots etc. and I had a learning curve on exactly this aspect! There are a number of taps and valves in all the rads that can be used to control flow and 'tune' the radiators to get even heating. Without these the hot water will just take the easiest route and leave sections cold, so it is important to ensure there are no direct routes for the water to flow that do not go through at least one set (ideally more) of regulating valves. You also need to ensure that no flow routes lead to an airlock or dead end, or just go back to the same place on the same pipe. So you don't have free reign on the design, it takes a bit of thought!
All gauges, thermometers, taps and valves, sight glasses etc function, I am a firm believer that things like this need to be function led and not just look the part.

The idea behind the design is to try to make them look they have been made from much older machines that were designed (in some great and specific detail) to achieve a very specific function, even if that function is not entirely clear now. That might have been something to do with distillation, chemical mixing or separation, creation of some type of mixture / compound / liquid that required controllable pressure, flow, temperature (and cooling), and that this process could be controlled by an operator using the various working taps and valves, with readouts from the gauges etc.

[AlexH]

Those are spectacular (or were, when we could see them)!

I was lost for words when I saw them but sadly my wife wasn't. One look and "No!"
So it may be a couple of years of gentle pressure before I can order one from you. I'll have just the room for it by then.
You would make them for sale, wouldn't you?

I have a couple on my walls at home, but the others are, in theory at least aimed to be sold. I have however struggled with getting decent pictures in the kind of context they would ideally be seen in. As a result they have been sitting around for some time while I try to sort out more space, and work out how to go about promoting them (I am no salesman!!). It took me about 4 years to make the most recent four, and I finished the last one (upright) about 2 years ago, and they have been sitting in my sitting room ever since, unconnected. Still not sure how to go about getting them in front of people who might want to buy them, they are not for everybody by any means, and as there is considerable cost and a huge amount of time involved in the making of them, they will end up being pretty expensive!

If anybody did want something like this I would be happy to custom make to size / shape and budget. Even something simple would be fine, I would be very happy to make something if anyone wanted one!

[Sorontar]

Very nice, but they must cost a lot with all that piping.

Sorontar

[AlexH]

Very nice, but they must cost a lot with all that piping.

Sorontar

Yes they can get quite expensive! A builder mate of mine gives me used pipe, taps etc sometimes, but mostly I end up buying it. There are also a lot of joints which also mount up the cost. There are also less obvious costs in some. The connection between the base and the rest of the rad on the upright one (that holds the whole thing together) is a large custom made part from a block of stainless that had to be made by a local engineering shop, and that was very expensive. Also the four backing flanges on the two antique sight glasses on the mirror pair had to be made from a 150mm brass rod, those also cost a lot! But the single panel wall mounted rad has no major custom  parts to add cost, so that one cost a lot less to make....

I've never sold one, I have been asked how much a few times by the few people who have seen them, but I can't put a number on it. These took hundreds of hours, and I would be happy to put in the time for very little, but even if I do the work for nothing, they still end up pretty costly, which makes the idea of selling difficult!

So I guess they'll be staying with me for the foreseeable future. That's ok though, I like them, just don't have space to put them all to use!

I would be happy make one for someone at minimal cost, and as long as they are not too big, or massively complex, they would not have to be that expensive.

I am not trying to sell here BTW, I'm only mentioning it because there have been a couple of comments along those lines!