Bathroom Fan Review

Bathroom Fans – A fixture to move air, moisture, steam and odor out of the bathroom. This type of exhaust fan vents interior air and expels it outside. A good bath is energy efficient, exhausts a sufficient amount of air, and provides all the features you need to keep your bathroom comfortable.

Bath Fans with Lights – These combination fans have a light and a bath fan in one. Most can be wire to operate the light and the fan one switch or they can be separated. These are great space savers for small bathrooms, or adding a little more light above the shower.

Bath Fans with Heaters – A bath fan with a heater warms the air as it passes through the fan, thus reducing moisture and warming the room. The heater warms the bathroom so you don’t get shivers once you get out of the shower. Bath Fans with radiant heaters are mini built-in heaters. There are also blub heaters, which provide heat from a warming lamp blub.

Energy Star Bath Fans – Operates on extremely energy efficient motors.

Humidity Sensing Bathroom Fans – These fans feature sensors that detect raising levels of humidity. The advantage of these bathroom exhaust fans is there ability to automatically turn on and off based on the amount of moisture in the room. This eliminates the hassle of remembering to turn the fan on, and save money on the electric bills so you don’t have to leave the bathroom fan on all day.

CFM Rating – CFM is the acronym for cubic feet per minute and it is defined as the measurement of air volume that is moved in one minute. The higher the CFM, the more powerful the exhaust fan.  Based on a room with 8 foot ceilings, it is recommended to have at least 1.1 CFM for every square foot of floor space. For ceilings taller than 8 feet, or high humidity areas, you may want   1 1/2 CFM/sqft or higher.

For example, a 10′ x 10′ bathroom with 8′ ceilings would require a 110 CFM exhaust fan.

Sone – A Sone is a measurement of sound used to determine how much noise your new exhaust fan will produce.  The lower the sone, the quieter the exhaust fan is.  In everyday terms, one sone is equivalent to the sound of a quiet running refrigerator in a quiet kitchen.  A new low sone exhaust fan means quieter air movement while creating a peaceful, fresh environment.

Why do I need an exhaust fan?

Bathroom exhaust fans provide ventilation for your home, helping to clear the room of steam and odors. Properly ventilating a bathroom helps deter the growth of mold and mildew by removing potential problems before they invite themselves into your home. There are two main features to consider when choosing an exhaust fan: CFM and Sones.

Is there anything else I should consider?

The Home Ventilation Institute (HVI) recommends you leave your bath fan on for 20 minutes after getting out of the bath or shower.  Today’s bath fans have many features to provide proper ventilation and make life easy for you.  Consider upgrading to a timer control switch when purchasing a new fan.  This provides an easy way to ventilate your bathroom without having to come back in the room.  Plus, most new fans are so quiet, you may forget it’s on!

Many manufacturers also provide models that have humidity sensing and/or motion sensing features.  Units that provide both of these features can even be installed without a switch! Why worry about proper ventilation? Purchase a humidity and motion sensing exhaust fan and let it do the work for you!