Show Some Love For National Radiator Day
November 1st marks National Radiator Day, the one day of the year – above all others – on which you should be showing some love, appreciation and tenderness to your warmth creating, comfort enhancing, show-stopping ‘hot-boxes’.
But what on earth is National Radiator Day all about?
#LoveYourRadiator
Well…
I’ve been doing some scouring of the web and I can find very little info about it. The last time anyone really ‘celebrated’ it properly was in 2014!
That can’t be right can it? How can we have missed this momentous day for the last two years? We can’t allow this to go on!
That’s why we’re thankful that a big push is being made to bring the day, the celebrations and the great work your radiators do, into the public eye for 2016.
#LoveYourRadiator is a new campaign that has been launched by the Manufacturers’ Association of Radiators and Convectors – MARC.
The campaign asks for consumers – that’s people like you and me – to take a selfie with their radiator on the run up to the big day and share that picture on Twitter using the hashtag – #LoveYourRadiator.
Now that may sound a bit weird – I doubt any of you have ever thought of taking a selfie with your radiator – but this is the Twittersphere and if Ed Balls can have his own day, then why not the lowly radiator?
I happen to think that it’s a great little idea and Best Heating have proffered a few of our own pictures (with some of our staff) to raise awareness of the tough, underappreciated work that domestic radiators perform every single day, without so much as a “thanks”, a simple show of gratitude or a gentle pat on their shiny metal backs!
What Is National Radiator Day?
National Radiator Day takes place each year on November 1st in order to cast some much needed light onto the amazing work that your radiators and central heating do every winter in keeping you warm, dry and cosy when the weather starts to turn.
According to MARC there are 190 million radiators being used in UK households every day, and as the nation’s favorite heat emitters why on earth shouldn’t there be a day that celebrates their longevity, durability and style?
The last 40 years or so has seen a weird and wonderful transformation for radiators, so it’s fitting that they have a day to bask in their warmth-giving glory.
Isaac Occhipinti of MARC says: “The 1970’s witnessed the introduction of central heating systems with cast iron and steel radiators becoming common place in UK homes, the radiators of the 1980’s were merely a functional product that had a job to do. The 1990’s saw a boom in TV shows like ‘Changing Rooms’ that encouraged us to make over our homes and the humble radiator was more often than not regulated behind a radiator cover usually made of MDF.”
The Changing Rooms team – Making us (me) feel old.
“During the 2000’s the radiator has moved from being a simple heat emitter, to an integral part of the overall room design. It is no longer necessary to fit your furniture around your radiator the radiator can now be installed to suit the room, horizontal, vertical or even curved. Over the last few years this has led to an explosion in style and colours.”
In short, radiators have come a long way from the bland hot-boxes of yesteryear. They now command a lot of respect when it comes to interior design – with horizontal, vertical and electric designs offering consumers a wealth of style choices that arguably make radiators an integral part of a room’s overall look and feel.
They deserve their own day.
We should celebrate them.
Yes, they are just hunks of steel, iron or aluminium, but they remain the most cost effective way of heating your home, they adorn the walls of nearly every single household in the British Isles and can last a lifetime if you look after them – so stand up, take a selfie with your radiator and show some appreciation!
We’ve had World Plumbing Day, we’ve had Ed Balls Day, and we even have a day to celebrate reading in the bath! So come on, let’s make National Radiator Day a special one and get your #LoveYourRadiator selfies posted on Twitter!
Weird Radiator Facts
Because we totally love radiators and want you to really embrace the idea and celebrate National Radiator Day in style, here are a few facts about radiators to inspire you to take those selfies and show us that you love your radiator too!
- 95% of UK homes have some sort of radiator installed, most of them have more than one.
- Exactly one month before the ‘celebrations’ for National Radiator Day begin, October 1st is the day when most people in the UK have turned their heating back on after the summer.
- Radiators aren’t actually radiators at all. They transfer most of their heat through convection and not radiation (you can read more about that in this blog), so their name is completely wrong!
- One of the first radiators ever invented was called a ‘Hot-Box’ – which we think is a much better name for them.
- Ridley Scott – director of Hollywood epic Gladiator – came within seconds of calling his Oscar-winning blockbuster ‘Radiator’, but – as you can see from the picture below – Russell Crowe wasn’t best pleased with the name change so they stuck with the original plan*.
- And finally, if you say “radiator” five times whilst looking in a mirror, your radiator will come alive, fill your front room with bees and brutally murder you.**
Possibly the greatest film that never was…
*Please Note: ‘Fact’ 5 is not a fact at all, but it would be pretty amazing if it was and number 6** is simply my tribute to Candyman and couldn’t possibly ever happen…or could it?
To discover even more about the #LoveYourRadiator campaign, go and check out the Manufacturers’ Association of Radiators and Convectors, MARC homepage.
And for all your radiator needs, guides and tutorials, don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and check out our ideas boards on Pinterest.
Oh, and don’t forget, if you sign up to our newsletter, you could get 20% off your next order with a #LoveYourRadiator selfie.
Stay Safe & Happy Heating.
