Should You Hang Curtains Over a Radiator? Here’s What the Experts Have to Say About This Common Design Conundrum

A bedroom with blue grasscloth wallpaper, a wooden dresser upon which rests a clock and a lamp, a hanging pendant lamp, a large bed with white sheets and pillows, and two windows with long curtains and radiators underneath them.

In the bedroom of my first apartment, I was lucky enough to have a large, double-hung window that overlooked the city below me. As much as I loved the view, I knew I needed something to hang in front – a set of curtains to decorate the space and provide some level of privacy. I initially wanted a long, billowing style, but I was met with one concern – the radiator beneath the window.

Back then, I thought any curtain idea that could shield the unattractive look of a large and clunky radiator was a good one. But should curtains hang in front of a radiator? And would that affect radiator efficiency, or worse, become a safety hazard? These were the questions I asked myself back then, and because I didn't know where to find the answers, I left my window as it was.