Table and Radiator Question

Bill Grumbine

Member
Messages
252
Location
Kutztown PA
Greetings all

We are doing some rearranging here in the house, and a space has opened up that might be put to more efficient use if it had a long narrow table in it. The (potential) problem is, there is a long narrow radiator there. I know there are wood radiator covers out there, and we have had a stunning piece of melamine over this radiator for 1 1/2 winters now, but I am wondering if there would be a way to build a table that would not suffer the ravages of heat during the winter months. If anyone here has experience with building tables of this sort, I would be glad to read about it. For the record, this radiator is one of those large cast iron jobs, not some wimpy baseboard thing. :D

Bill
 
Not sure this applies completely but maybe there is something you can take away from this. My Grandparents have the large radiators built into the walls. Above them there is a marble platform/top. My thought is that maybe you could build a wood frame and then top it off with a natural like marble or granite.
 
What style are you going for? What size does it need to be? I made a nice one for my father out of oak with stamped metal for the front and sides. It has held up for two years now without any problems.
 
Thanks for the responses guys. The table would be made of wormy maple, walnut, or possibly cherry. I have one wide walnut board I have been saving that would do the job, although I am not sure it is long enough. The design will be something on the order of a simple sofa table, probably with turned legs, since I have a lathe. ;) I am figuring on dimensions of 60" x 18" give or take a few in either direction and dimension. It will sit right behind my seat at the dining room table and will do duty as a sideboard for serving dishes and such. One suggestion I got on another forum was along the lines of something I had been considering, attaching a piece of insulation to the underside of the top to reflect the heat back away from the table.

I will probably have to saw two of the legs short to get it to sit level, although that remains to be seen. The house is around 200 years old, and there is some sag in the floors here and there. And since I mentioned saggy floors, just in case anyone is wondering about my waterbed post a while ago, it is in, and being used, with no problems at all. In fact, I am finding it a lot more comfortable than the air bed was.

Bill
 
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