Those long, luxurious showers, that are enjoyed the most, could be harmful to most homes. Yes, it is unfortunately true. While enjoying showering the air of the bathroom unavoidably takes up a lot of vapor. This humid air in a concentrated space, such as bathroom wet rooms etc. turns into a perfect breeding space for mold and mildew. in addition to that moist air condensate on virtually any surface that leads to further damage of the furniture in these areas.Fortunately, there are many ways to tackle this phenomenon. One of the simplest and most common practice is the use of bathroom exhaust ventilation fan. Using even a smaller cost friendly extractor fan in these areas can achieve dramatic improvement, and prevent condensation or mold growing. In some cases, extractor fans are required by building regulations, especially where there is no operable window.
There is no need to be worried about size or appearance. Nowaday’s extract fans have gone through a long evolution. They have become not only smaller but quieter, more energy efficient and more stylish. There are many features that can be selected with different products, such as motion activated lights or heat exchanger ventilation.The first step in purchasing a ventilation fan is to survey the size of the room it will be placed to, to make sure the adequate type could be selected. Beside knowing necessary performance, noise rating and actual energy consumption are also needed. to be taken into consideration.
Proper Venting
When it comes to designing and installing the route of the ducting, inlet and outlet points, the most important is to extract moist air directly to the extrenal spaces. Unfortunately, in many cases, the fan system gets fit out wrongly and the fan extracts moist air into a ceiling or loft spaces. Lofts or gaps between timber joists are the worse places as there is not much natural ventilation or light, and they also favor for condensation. These factors together lead directly to mold growing and other moisture-related corrosion. It can not only damage the ceiling but walls and even structural elements of the building.
Therefore, the best way is to make sure that all moist air is extracted directly to the outdoor. In some cases when direct outdoor connection can not be established fans can be connected to ventilation ducts.
With the extracted air, unfortunately, a lot of heated air is going to be extracted through your bathroom as part of the process. A remedy to this problem can be the use of a, so called, heat-exchange ventilator fan.
The air flow capacities are key factors when it comes to bathroom ventilation fans. It varies from type to type and it measured in cubic feet per minute (cfm). Home Ventilating Institute set out a guide line to can help in selecting the right fan for your bathroom: Ideally, your fan should be able to ventilate 1 cfm for every square foot of floor space in your bathroom. If your bathroom is larger than 100 square feet, there are additional requirements as per the followings:
50 cfm for every toilet
50 cfm for each shower, bathtub and or combo
100 cfm for each whirlpool
The speed of the fan can be pre-set so that suits the desired use the most.
The Noise Level
Fan noise is normally rated by Sones, that is a scale that shows the degree of loudness. A typical rating of 0.5 to 1.2 Sones means that the fan is exceptionally quiet. Rating between 1.5 to 2.0 Sones means very good. Finally, fans that are rated in excess of 4.0 Sones are the noisiest.
The Smart Options / Features
Motion sensor activation is a feature that turns on the fan every time when someone enters the room.
Overhead lighting that can even be part of the fan, can be switch or motion sensor activated.
There are models with equipped with Night light using low-wattage light as a guide in the dark.
Automatic Humidity Sensor is also available with many models that makes sure that the fan turns on automatically when it detects high-level humidity.
Built-in heaters could make sense and provide a simple solution when a little extra instant heat is required.
