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we just bought a mid century house with two of the most awesome bathroom vents, I hear it's typical of the area. I mean these things don't do a thing! They make noise like a fan is running, but water condenses on the walls and ceilings like mad. How do we fix this? I actually just skip the stupid fan and leave the door wide open when I can.
The vent/fan in our bathroom has an attic access next to it so I imagine it'd be easy to access, but what/how do we replace it? The other bathroom is just the kids' bath and has a window, so I'm not quite as worried. But I do need to know if semigloss or gloss latex paint will hold up in these bathrooms, or what else I need to know about these bad venting situations. Any advice would be great. thanks.
we just bought a mid century house with two of the most awesome bathroom vents, I hear it's typical of the area. I mean these things don't do a thing! They make noise like a fan is running, but water condenses on the walls and ceilings like mad. How do we fix this? I actually just skip the stupid fan and leave the door wide open when I can.
The vent/fan in our bathroom has an attic access next to it so I imagine it'd be easy to access, but what/how do we replace it? The other bathroom is just the kids' bath and has a window, so I'm not quite as worried. But I do need to know if semigloss or gloss latex paint will hold up in these bathrooms, or what else I need to know about these bad venting situations. Any advice would be great. thanks.
You should check where they are venting to. Are there vents directly to the outside? If not then check the attic and see if they are venting in the attic. If into the attic then they might be covered with insulation and going nowhere. Even if you do have vents going directly outside make sure the fan is routed properly to the exterior vent. That again will require potentially checking in the attic.
These vents should not be venting into the attic area and should be venting directly to the outdoors, and not through soffit vents either. From your description you can see just how much condensation occurs. Picture that being blown into your attic area and the potential damage it can cause.
escanlan is so right. We had a similar experience some years ago only to learn that the original exhaust fans were venting right into our attic - BIG mistake. We corrected the problem, but also bought exhaust fans that were a bit more powerful given that we live in Florida.
Just Google bathroom vent fans and find the formula that tells you how much power you need. Then get the fan- there are dozens. Turn the power off, remove the old fan, and then put the new one in. Or get an electrician to do it for you if you are cautious
Now, what they said about venting is important. Do you have an attic that is accessible? If so, you can buy a venting kit at any hardware store. However, if you have cold winters get a duct that is insulated.
You connect the duct to the fan. Then use a hole saw to cut a hole in the side of the house (easy) or the roof (tricky) and put the vent piece through the hole and seal it with caulk.
Many people go to the store and see 10 vent fans ranging from $8 to $60 and wonder why that one is $60. The answer is because it works. Those weak $8 fans can not even hold up a tissue. Go do the tissue trick. Turn on the fan and put a tissue on the fan opening. If it does not hold then your fan is either a cheapie or as others have said, the vent is clogged.
Many fan housings are interchangable with eachother so you only have to change the motor and fan assemby. If not the whole box is easy enough. Any handyman should be able to do it.
Getting up there to check is easy. Run the vent outside and not just into open attic space. My last advice you aint going to like. Dont take such hot showers. It's not healthy and uses too much energy anyway.
Use semi gloss for the walls. Gloss is for the trim.
Ok, we just looked and the fans are venting into the attic and going nowhere. Now what? We're headed to the hardware store this weekend, I'm hoping they can help us out and tell us what we'll need to get the bathrooms vented to the outside. Sounds less easy than we'd hoped. Attic doesn't seem damaged from having the vent inside there, probably because the fan doesn't actually vent anything and all the moisture (or smell or whatever) just stayes in the bathroom anyway. Hope it isn't too hard to fix!
What state? A damp attic will varry in terms of damage and venting depending on climate. Most attics say in New Enland are cold roofed and vented, meaning insulation lays above the ceiling and the wood above that at the inside roof is bare. Vents would be in the gable ends that way.
Wyoming. dry and cold here. The attic has insulation all over the floor of it.
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