These days an increasing number of people want to do up their houses in a historically accurate style, making original cast iron Victorian radiators in good working order highly sought after.

But properly restored examples capable of actually heating your home do not come cheap. Each ready-to-radiate, fully refurbished, standard-size model with eight sections will cost around £200. But by getting a radiator reconditioned yourself instead of buying one that has already been primed and polished, you stand to save yourself around £100 on that price.

The way to do this is visit a selection of grubby antique shops, scrap yards, house clearance specialists or even municipal dumps and have a good look around. Even if you have to pay for one, an example in need of reconditioning should cost a maximum of £60 - although you may even discover Victorian radiators thrown out by naive DIY enthusiasts at dumps, but that is becoming less and less likely as their value becomes known.

Finally, in order to get your radiator ready for action, a trip is required to a firm specialising in sand blasting. Depending on size and condition, about £40-£50 per radiator should get the job done.