Adding Central Air to Bathrooms?

[JAG]

The previous owner of my house had C/A installed 2 years ago but didn't put it into the bathrooms (2 fulls and half bath).

I'm now considering adding it to the bathrooms. I called the company that installed the system. The guy said that C/A vents in a bathroom are not a good idea b/c

1) you'll freeze when you're wet, coming out of the shower 2) in the winter when the system is off, the moisture will rise up into the ducts and possibly create a mold problem, unless I'm super careful to close the vents. 3) He recommended to instead install exhaust fans to suck the moisture out after a shower. He said it'll put some of the C/A out if the door is open but he still feels it's better.

Any ideas? Does this make sense?

Also, if I do install exhaust fans, do they need to vent outside? I thought I once read or heard that there are fans than can exhaust right into the attic. I have a crawlspace attic that currently houses the blower and the ducts. I may use for storage one day but don't currently.

[Bob in CT]

I just vented two bathrooms to the roof. It's not that hard, although it is time consuming (and brutally hot at this time of the year). Personally, even if code says that you can vent to the attic, I wouldn't do it. I replaced fans that were not only vented into the attic but vented into insulation. The insulation was black with mold. You want the moisture outside.

[SQLit]

Simply the guy is a hack. Find a real A/C contractor. I live in Arizona and we have vents and exhausts in the bathrooms. I have stayed in lots of hotels in CA and there are vents in the bathrooms. I use the exhaust during showers, not baths. Do these bathrooms have windows? Adding vents to the bathrooms may create other problems. First is the unit big enough to add in the extra sq ft? Is there enough air flow to add the extra sq ft? Is the old duct work in an configuration as to add in the new vents?

How is your home heated? Through the same duct work as the a/c? Some how if there was that much moisture in your home you would be having more problems than mold just in the bathrooms.

Just my opinion, take it for what you paid for it.

[CAStinneford]

We have two houses with central AC and in both cases, there are AC vents in the ceilings of the all the full baths but not the half baths which are very small rooms. I've never noticed any problems with mold or being too cold coming out of the shower. If the baths are large enough rooms, I'd want a vent in there.

[CBHVAC]

Then sweat like a pig cause you have no air flow..

Bull

AND add a vent to each one.

No. It makes NO sense at all. Find a guy that knows what he is talking about since this guy does not have a clue.

YES.

Some people halfass it and do that..but its not correct.

[Joseph Meehan]

No, none of it.

First you do want to have an exhaust in the bath. It's required in most areas. You do want to get rid of the moist air after a shower, but be sure it is vented outside you home, not into the attic or some such shortcut.

You do want an A/C vent to your bath. I have them even to the half baths. You don't freeze. You want good circulation in the bath to prevent mold.

Find a new tech who knows what he is doing. The one you have is clueless.

[Tom Baker]

On one hand, I have centtral heat and air with supply & return in each bath. It has worked fine for the last 25 years. I run either heat or air almost every day of the year, because the climate is humid.

On the other hand, I have seen control temperature and humidity in baths with exhaust fans. The fans run constantly. There are fans ment to be mounted remote from the bath, which should be quiet.

I would never vent into the attic. If one vents an attic, it is to remove heat and moisture, so dumping moisture into one is, uh, conterproductive.

Tom Baker

[m Ransley]

Vent out side and put the vents in the bath, you wont freeze and need the ventilation.

Was that Daves Heating you called, he is a hack that hacks

[Wayne]

[e-mail] (JAG) wrote in news: [e-mail]:

First off, exhaust fans should ALWAYS be vented to the outside. Venting to the attic space can add unwanted moisture to the space and cause problems with insulation, not to mention possibly supporting bacterial and mold growth.

As to the C/A, I've lived in various homes with C/A since 1956 and in every single case the bathrooms were provided with their own a/c vents. There was NEVER a problem of any kind. If your preference is for a somewhat warmer bathroom, you can always cut down on the vent dampers or direct the airflow away from hitting you directly.

My dad was an HVAC engineer, and I'm sure he would have thought the suggestion and reasoning of the company who installed your system completely foolish.

BTW, though I currently live in hellishly hot Phoenix, other homes I have lived in were in Cleveland, Memphis, and St. Louis. The climate doesn't really make a difference.

[Arthur]

I don't know where you are but here in Florida we highly recommend grilles in the bath areas. They can help in keeping the moisture levels down. Those that didn't install outlets later had wished they had. My thoughts are many as to why they didn't do it and up toward the top is it is cheaper NOT to install them forgetting your comfort. Now the problem will lie in where the bathroom ducts are to be run from. You have to go where the volume of air will also be for bathrooms and not rob from other grilles. Also if though most bath areas don't have large BTU loads the house was calculated taking bath areas into account.

Don't tell me what I can understand, tell me what I can't mis-understand (Gen. Douglas McArthur)! No matter what you do you are a problem solver....what do you do? Arthur, Website:

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