Hi All,
We have a NuTone range hood, and its two-speed fan is incredibly noisy (10.5 sonnes at high speed, 8 at low speed), and we're trying to figure out a cheap way to deal with the problem (cheap = not replacing the entire unit).
The fan rocker switch has three wires coming into it, so we assume the fan itself is limited to two speeds. Is this correct? Would that preclude us from replacing the rocker switch with a rheostat?
Thanks in advance for any info.
John
A new range hood can be had for under $40.
From where specifically?
30", 4 sonne models start at $120, 1 sonne models are 3x as much.
If you slow it down enough to keep it quiet, why have it at all? It is not going to move enough air to bother with if you get it that slow.
I would not just put a control on the motor. While you can get away with that with some motors, I doubt if that builder's $9.95 special is one of them.
The only real fix is to get a good quiet hood. I finally got one about a year ago. It made a word of difference, it is not only quieter, by a lot, but it also works better and looks better.
thats not what he asked
Have you tried balancing the fan and lubricating the bearings? I have seen some incredibly noisy fans quieten with a bit of TLC.
That's not the problem. It's a relatively new unit, and as I mentioned the fan is rated at 8 sones for low speed, 10.5 for high. Compared to the best hoods these days which run at 0.8 or 1.0 sones.
If it was a cheap fix, the factory would have done it. You have to change the dynamics of the air flow both in the ducting and the blower wheel size and blade configuration.. That is why the better hood cost much more. I've seen heating/cooling units that were so quiet you could not hear them run at all, but there were extremely expensive and usually larger than competing units to move the same CFM.
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