I haven't lived in a house with radiators for decades so I have no way of knowing what's out there for replacements (my house went from fireplaces to stoves to oil circulators & skipped over the radiator period). I sure didn't know the old ones were that expensive; the fancy ones, yes, but the plain ones??? I DO know that radiators will freeze in an unheated house & since yours are leaking on the coldest side, that may be what happened (is happening?) to yours if the area is drafty/uninsulated.

This may be stupid so forgive me. Were the leaks from sections of the radiators or the valve? Did your HVAC guy recommend new radiators?

I ask because we had a similar problem. In the house that we recently purchased there are 10 radiators and one baseboard radiator. When two of the radiators starting leaking after we installed a new high-efficiency boiler, our HVAC guy said the leak was from the valve--specifically the gasket inside the valve. As a result, he had to get us two new valves at a cost of $100 apiece.

Just figured I'd ask in case your leaks are coming from there.

I thought radiators are 200$ tops.... So ignorant! The radiators we have are not ornamented (ike the rococos)however they are still considered antiques and "old" looking. They are big cast iron and weight a ton (literally...)

Anyway, the leaks are not in the valves or the joints of the sections. Some of the radiators have big cracks I am sure due to freezing and some have pin point holes. All leaks are old because there are signs of rust and signs of lame attempts to patch. Actually some of the small holes can self-patch but you have to very carefully monitor the radiators because it is a disaster waiting to happen. Anytime something change (pressure, rattling, temperature, anything) those will be the first to go. I 've been already through water damage from the roof and water damage from broken pipes so I can not deal with monitoring holes in the radiators...
I 've been calling suppliers yesterday and today and the cheapest I can get is a modern looking radiator that cost 480$. I also placed a call to the "antique" store to see if I can bargain an old one for less.
Due to this disaster I am 5K off my heating budget. Darn...
This is also my first huge budget mistake. I had thought of boiler disasters and maybe of a couple of radiators and added a 20% error but now I am in number five radiator and had not budgeted for the delivery fee either (did not know there was one....).

I hope someone chimes in with a helpful solution - your frustration level must be through the roof. Any chance that the leaky radiator is in a room that can be heated with an alternative heat source for the winter? This would buy some time to find a reasonably priced replacement. Just a thought - Do salvage dealers charge more for radiators in winter or is the price more negotiable other times of the year???

Hi,
As long as you still are making hot water, you could replace the faulty cast iron rads with steel ones, which are much more low-profile, in addition to being lightweight and low-cost. I am using one in my bathroom, and the space savings was my motivation. Here's the link to the ones I use (I recommended one to a client this summer, another instance where space saving was the governing value).

Here is a link that might be useful: Myson Select Series hydronic radiators

ok. Did I really needed to see this gorgeous bathroom right now???????????? LOL

My only question is if you can mix old radiators with modern ones. I was told that the "european" radiators have a different flow than the old cast iron ones and some times you get problems if you mix them up in old house with the larger pipes. Pardon my ignorance if what I said is stupid....

By the way how much does this rad cost?

European flat panel type radiators are more efficient than American sectional tube radiators and are intended to operate at lower temperatures.

You can buy new radiators or old ones from many sources; just google it.

Don't paint the radiators with aluminum paint if you want them to be able to efficiently emit (radiate) infra-red heat energy. Any color of paint or powder coating will work fine.

Here is a link that might be useful: New England Demolition & Salvage

As a temporary measure hot water radiators can sometimes be repaired with a steel-modified epoxy compound like JB Weld Steel.

They could also be puddle brazed, but that is a VERY difficult procedure to do correctly, and is often a failure.

In the mid 1980s patched several steam radiators and pipes in the home where I grew up using an epoxy putty. When my parents sold the home in 1999 those patches were still holding.

Is called stitching.

Google "cast iron stitching" and you can see suppliers and the process.

I've never done it, but I know people who have and, if some attention is paid to the process, it works.

I ll check it out! The last radiator only has a pin hole leak (not crack) so it might work.
Thanks

If you live in a densely populated area, consider looking for demolition companies that advertise via email. I'm signed up with one in my area (Chicago) and just today I got a notice that there's a home demolition in a nearby suburb on Saturday - and there will be several large cast-iron radiators selling for $60 and under.

We recently(1.5 yrs) replaced an old radiator with a new, modern Runtal. No issues what so ever.