I am looking for a timer switch, does that exist?

[HammerJoe]

Hi,

I have one of those ceiling fans in the washroom and right now I have basically a light switch on/off to start it.

I would like to change the switch to a timer one for example a switch with multichoice that would run the fan for 5minutes or 10 minutes or

15 minutes and then stop it. Anything out there?

Another idea that I had was to automate the fan.

The washroom is not very big and when someone has a shower there is alot of moisture in the air. Usually I turn the fan on after I am done having a shower to suck that moisture out.

It would be cool if I could have a humidistat to sensor humidity in the room and then automatically start the fan till it drops to the desired humidity setting.

The complicated part is that I would like the fan to only come on when there's nobody in the washroom ie when the light is off. The reason is because especially in the winter I dont want the fan on when someone is in the room, sucking heat.

Is this possible?

[Tony Hwang]

Hi, Turn on and twist kind? The spring wound kind?

[RicodJour]

Yep. Intermatic makes a couple of different models of timer switches. The most common one is the one with the rotary dial where you turn the dial to the numbers representing the number of minutes you want the fan to run.

other type is a push button switch, which fits in more nicely with the Decora line of switches, nothing protrudes like the dial switch does. caveat, I called Intermatic yesterday about installing one of these switches on an unusual wiring situation, and was told that they were replacing the push button model with a new version due to too high of a failure rate with the existing push button switch. They said the new switch would be available this summer. Unfortunately, I don't recall the exact model number which was causing the problems. You could call up Intermatic's tech help and ask which timer switch has experienced problems and is being replaced - I'm sure they'll tell you straight.

Like this?

I don't see a simple way to have it both ways.

R

[Bud--]

You could use a 3-way switch. Common pole to hot, up position to light, down position to fan. Then use one of the timers from the down position to the fan. Or down position to humidistat to fan. Or down position to timer to humidistat to fan to set a max time on.

bud--

[Joseph Meehan]

Sure, just have the person hit the timer as they leave.

However, that fan is going to such heat even if no one is in the room.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Thee are plenty of timer switches that can be put in. Any electrical supply house will have or get them for you. I don't know how your wiring is, but you will have to separate the fan from the light if not already.

As for sucking out the heat, that is not a problem. When the shower is on, the hot water is giving off a lot of heat as well as moisture so you really want to start it when the shower starts. With the door closed, it will not suck that well, but will still prevent some of the fogging up you normally would get. IMO, leaving the door partly open works even better, no fan needed.

[PaPaPeng]

A simpler solution is to connect the fan in parallel with the light switch. The fan is on when the light is on. The amount of heat sucked up is a very minor problem compared to retained moisture and toilet smells when the toilet is in use. Mine are all set up that way.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

That is what he has and does not want.

[ameijers]

Chuckle. I just rewired my main bath to split the circuit and put the light and fart fan on seperate switches, because I hate listening to the damn thing. And when there is enough light from window, I don't turn the lights on anyway.

aem sends...

[trader4]

I'm with you on that one. I'd much rather have them on seperate switches. Two obvious problems with a single switch are:

1 - When someone is in the bathroom, but not taking a shower or using the toilet, a lot of conditioned air is gonna be sucked out needlessly. Think about how much time women can spend in the bathroom, for example. 2 - Usually you want the fan to run longer than you need the light to be on.

I think the best combo is light on one switch, timer for fan on other.

[Joey]

Yes, such an item just for ceiling fans does exist. It is a remote control unit where the module is installed at the fan--four wires to be connected if I remember right.

And what do you get for this.....(1) you can turn on the fan light remotely and even dim it. (2) you can control the speed of the fan and lastly (3) you can set the fan to run a certain number of minutes (or) program when the fan should come on and go off and...you can even set a temperature goal to reach before turning on or off.

This device is sold by Home Depot and Lowes in the ceiling fan department.

J

[e-mail] wrote:

[RicodJour]

Ouch. Not a great idea to dump all of that humidity into the house. If you're in a cold climate and don't have a perfect vapor barrier (no such thing), the moisture will condense in the insulation and you'll get mold growth and wood rot. In a heating climate that extra humidity and latent heat will cost a lot more to get rid of with the AC than with the bathroom fan.

R

[Random Netizen]

The problem is that most bathroom fans are not run nearly enough. Especially in a cold- weather climate, it's a good idea to run a bathroom fan during a shower, and for at least

15 minutes afterwards. This doesn't usually happen if the fan and light are both controlled by the same switch.

The best option is to have the fan controlled by a dehumidistat. The second-best option is a timer switch.

[PaPaPeng]

Oops missed that first sentence. My bath is in the middle of the house and does not have a window. The fan is the only way out for moist or odorous bathroom air. I find that most visitors forget to turn on the fan, or if they do, leave it on after a pit stop. A sensible thing to do to avoid embarasssment. But until I switch it off there's that heated air being sucked out. The light+fan ON link is the best compromise.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Not really. In a cold climate the air is usually dry and the added humidity is quickly dispersed in the home with no ill effects at all. It has worked for us that way for 40 years now. The typical shower adds far les moisture than running a humidifier and getting it dispersed is far better than saturated walls in a closed up bathroom with a poor venting system.

[KLS]

Yes, that's correct, and in older houses, very common in the Northeast, the humidification gets mixed with the air that enters these houses naturally since the houses aren't as tight as newer ones. So rot is not an issue for us in these cold climates.

[HerHusband]

A few options:

1. A light switch that turns on the fan when you turn the light on. Turn the light off, and the fan keeps running for a preset period of time.

1. Timer switch with choice of 5, 10, 15, or 30 minute delays.

2. Or the old fashioned spring wound type

1. A fully automated 24 hour timer. Set it to come on and off whenever you want. We use one of these with the fan in our laundry room, as it also does double duty as a whole house ventilation system.

2. A motion activated switch. Fan would come on when someone enters the room, and shut off after a preset time when they leave the room. (might need to double check if it can control a fan motor).

As for the noise, replace your fan with a quieter fan. We have Panasonic bath fans, and you can barely even hear them running.

Hope this helps,

Anthony

[Tom]

I was looking for the same, I purchased a 'twity model'. I can turn the timer to how long I want my fan to operate, or I can prematurely turn if off, by turning the knob to off.

I was in HomeDepot yesterday, and saw a swich with several buttons, an could fit in a decora faceplate. It had 5 mins, 15 mins, 30 mins, of and constantly on(if memory has failed me). It was marked up such it looked like it was for an outside light, I found it next to panel surge arestor, so it looked like they just tossed it there, so ask about it.

hth,

tom @