Towel Radiators

A towel radiator does two jobs: it warms the room and it dries your towels, and the first thing to sort is how it gets its heat. Central heating models plumb into your existing system and come on with the rest of the house. Electric ones run off a wired element on their own circuit, handy in summer when the heating is off. Dual fuel does both, so you can have warm towels in July without firing up the whole boiler.

The range covers heated towel rails and the electric elements and valves that go with them, in finishes from chrome and matt black to brushed brass and bronze. The short guide that follows takes you through heat source, size, finish and the extras, in the order that stops you buying twice, and the full range sits beneath it.

How to choose a towel radiator

Start with the heat source, because it changes what you buy. Everything else hangs off this decision, so make it first. A central heating rail joins your existing radiator circuit and heats whenever the heating is on, which keeps things simple but leaves you with cold towels in summer once the heating goes off. The Brushed Brass Straight Towel Radiator, from £110.99 in multiple sizes, is built for central heating systems in exactly this way. Go electric and a wired heating element does all the work, so the rail runs independently of your central heating. That suits an en-suite or a cloakroom where you want warm towels on demand without heating the whole house. The element is its own product, and there is more on choosing one further down.

Dual fuel gives you both: plumbed in for winter, with an electric element for summer, so you get warm towels year-round without the boiler. The Tailored Hastings Brushed Bronze 500 x 800mm ladder rail at £179 is listed as dual fuel compatible and backed by a 5 year guarantee, so it can run off central heating or an electric element. The Brushed Brass Straight carries the same dual fuel listing. On both rails the electric element is optional and needs fitting by a qualified installer, so budget for the labour as well as the part.

Size the rail for the wall and the heat. If the rail will be the only heat source in the room, as it can be in a small en-suite, check its heat output against the room before you fall for a finish. More bars and wider gaps mean more towels and easier hanging, so a family bathroom wants the bar space, while a cloakroom can get away with something slimmer. Shape matters as much as size. A vertical design like the 500 x 800mm Hastings goes up rather than out, so you get hanging space without giving up floor space, which suits a tight or awkward layout. Wider ladder rails hold more but need the wall to give. The Brushed Brass Straight comes in multiple sizes, so measure the gap first and pick the size to fit it.

Then choose the finish to match the room. Finish is the bit most people start with, but it is the last thing that matters for how the rail works, so settle the heat source and size first. Chrome is the safe all-rounder, matt black and anthracite suit a modern or industrial scheme, and brushed brass and brushed bronze are the warmer, higher-end looks. The Brushed Brass Straight rail (from £110.99) and the Hastings in brushed bronze (£179) cover one of those each. If you are building a whole brushed brass or bronze look, the Litchfield range carries taps and showers in both finishes, so the rest of the room can match the rail.

Don’t forget the element and the valves. Whatever rail you pick, it won’t work on its own: an electric or dual fuel rail needs an element, and a plumbed rail needs a pair of valves. Both elements linked here are Litchfield thermostatic elements and both are dual fuel ready, so the difference comes down to the control and the finish. The Litchfield White Weekly Thermostatic Element at £95.99 gives you weekly thermostatic control, while the Litchfield Anthracite Mini Round Element at £86.99 is the cheaper of the two, with a mini round thermostatic control. Browse the full electric elements range to match the wattage and finish to your rail. Valves are what connect a plumbed rail to the pipework and control it, and they sit in the radiator valves and accessories section as their own products, in finishes to match the rails. Buy them to match the rail, not as an afterthought.

Quick answers

What is a towel radiator? It is a heated rail that warms your bathroom and dries your towels at the same time. Most are wall-mounted ladder or vertical rails. They run off your central heating, off a wired electric element, or off both (dual fuel), so you can pick whichever suits how and when you want the heat.

Are towel radiators electric or do they run off central heating? Both, depending on how you set them up. Central heating versions plumb into your existing radiator circuit. Electric versions run off a wired element on their own circuit, so they work when the heating is off. Dual fuel rails like the Hastings Brushed Bronze at £179 do both. If summer towel-drying matters to you, go dual fuel or electric.

What is a dual fuel towel radiator? A rail that can run off your central heating in winter and off an electric element in summer, so you get warm towels year-round without firing up the whole boiler. On the rails linked here the element is optional and needs fitting by a qualified installer. The Hastings at £179 is one dual fuel compatible example.

What size towel radiator do I need? Match it to the room and the wall. A small en-suite or cloakroom suits a slimmer rail, and a family bathroom wants a wider ladder rail with more bars for more towels. If the rail is the room’s only heat source, check its heat output against the room size before you buy. For scale, the Hastings is 500 x 800mm, a vertical ladder design that goes up rather than out.

Do towel radiators come with an electric element? Don’t assume so. The rails linked here list the electric element as optional, and elements are sold as their own products so you can choose the control and the finish. Both Litchfield options are thermostatic: the Litchfield White Weekly (£95.99) gives weekly thermostatic control, while the Anthracite Mini Round (£86.99) is the cheaper of the two, with a mini round control. Check the rail’s listing for what is in the box before you buy.

What finishes do towel radiators come in? Chrome is the standard all-rounder. Matt black and anthracite suit modern and industrial bathrooms. Brushed brass and brushed bronze are the warmer, higher-end looks, covered by the Brushed Brass Straight rail (from £110.99) and the brushed bronze Hastings (£179). Match the valves to the rail, and the element too where your finish is offered.