Extractor fan for bathroom

[PeterC]

Looking to fit a fan in the bathroom. The room is about 10 - 12 cu. m. so not very big. I'd like to put it in the ceiling then take the trunking to the soffit; said soffit slopes up to the fascia at about 20 - 30 deg. from horizontal - this might help or hinder according to fittings used. It'd need, I feel, an in-line non-return flap of some sort as the more usual type of outlet might not function too well at that angle.

Anyway, looked at some and Vent-Axia seem very expensive so looking at possibly Manrose. Which type and make of fan would be reliable, not too dear and also suitable for a room of this size. Not too worried about a timer as I have some and have drawn a circuit for it. Air inlet isn't a problem as I leave the door open a bit - not much open otherwise the mist can trigger the smoke alarm on the landing! The loft is partly boarded so I can use a ceiling- or loft-mounted fan.

Thanks.

[Tim Watts]

I used an axial (inline in the loft) Soler Palau fan with run-on timer.

of the duct is rigid 100mm. For the bit that went over the wall plate I used rectangular (flat) 100mmx50mm flexi duct which connected to a square brown soffit vent with flyscreen.

No draught flaps - it does not seem to be a problem with 5m of ducting.

Bathroom end: 90 deg round duct elbow straight onto a round ceiling vent.

The only issue is the vent is a bit noisy (wind noise) - the solution is one of those "mushroom" vents you see in office loos.

(11393, 18065, 11439)

(11416, 16363, 13623, 16369)

and duct tape of course...

Cheers,

Tim

[Mike Lane]

PeterC wrote on Jan 8, 2012:

I fitted a 150 mm Vent-Axia in my slightly bigger bathroom (15 cu.m.) nearly

12 years ago. It was quite expensive but it's worked faultlessly ever since. It's a bit noisy but is powerful enough to clear the air in a few minutes, so doesn't have to be run for very long at a time.

It was money well spent, I'd say.

[stuart noble]

I replaced an old Aidelle Loovent with a Manrose. Big mistake. It whizzes round quietly enough but takes forever to effect an air change

[The Medway Handyman]

TLC have a good range of fans & stuff.

My experience with Manrose has been very positive, very helpful company, good parts availability etc.

[ARWadsworth]

It would be normal to use a fixed grille in such places

Anyway, looked at some and Vent-Axia seem very expensive so looking at

Of course any bathroom fan will only clear the steam after the bath or shower is over.

How long is the ducting going to be? The length and type of ducting makes the real difference as to how a fan performs.

And avoid this sort of thing

they are s**te.

I do have a core drill you can borrow if you want a wall mounted fan:-)

[Andrew Gabriel]

I think you pretty much get what you pay for in this market. Vent-Axia and Expelair are reliable makes, but probably the most expensive too. I found Deta reliable too, but they seem to have vanished about 10 years ago. I fitted a low profile Vent-Axia about 10 years ago, and that has a backdraft excluder built-in on the rear. None of the axial fans are good a driving any appreciable length of ducting, particularly the concertina type (smooth pipework is probably slightly better). I've never fitted a Manrose, but I have taken two out with open circuit motor windings.

Also note that condensation will form in long lengths of ducting, and think where that's going to end up.

[PeterC]

That's useful, thank you. I'd wondered about wind noise - the main reason that I didn't want a closing vent flapping around - but had forgotten the mushroom type. Just one thing: is duct tape suitable for this application?

[PeterC]

Is that an axial one? A centrif. should keep up to spec.

[PeterC]

That's worth knowing, as after-sales service is important to me.

[PeterC]

About 3m.

Yes, looks it. Any form of corrugated pipe or hose will reduce flow and increase noise, as I found out many years ago with CO2 and lN2.

Thanks, but the only useable wall faces SW - could get a bit breezy at times!

[Steve Firth]

I've not had experience of the after sales service from Manrose but their pre-sales service was good and I'm satisfied with the 150mm axial fans that I installed. They can clear condensation and "organic smells" from the bathroom very quickly. They were installed using 150 mm single wall stainless flue through the wall which resulted in a tidy and clean job.

[Steve Firth]

What diameter? Having installed 3x150mm humidistat fans in bathrooms I'm quite impressed by the ability of a 150 mm core drill to stand still while I went round and round on the other end.

[ARWadsworth]

:-)

I suppose it depends on the type of brick, the local g on your planet and your mass.

The toughest ever hole I have ever cut was into wet sandstone.

[BraileTrail]

Could you elabrate on that comment please? Is it quality of the parts, the flexiable ducting?

Thanks, BraileTrail

[ARWadsworth]

Both.

The fan is underpowered and flexible plastic ducting is made by the devil.

[ARWadsworth]

Manrose make two types of fans.

A cheap one that will last just long enough for the installer to get into the van and bugger off before the fan fails and a Gold Range that has a 5 year warranty.

[Tim Watts]

Yes, indeed. All my joints are duct-taped, including the 1m of flexi.

Except for the elbow onto the ceiling vent, which was too fiddly, so I filled the joint with silicone.

[Tim Watts]

I do have a core drill you can borrow if you want a wall mounted fan:-)

My vent is on a south facing soffit, but the vent louvres are angled towards the wall (you can install either way around) and being horizontal, I do not find any hint of draught, even with the gales we've just had. 5m of duct, 2 bends and a fan in the way seem to be enough to sort out the wind. However, when the fan is going, it moves quite a lot of air, judging by the significant blast that comes out of the exhaust vent.

It can "de-smelly" the bathroom in a few minutes after a significant No 2, prevents the hall getting smelly during same and almost completely keeps the condensation in check even with a steaming hot bath - though there can be a bit on the bog cistern of it's been flushed a couple of times and refilled with freezing cold water. This bathroom has no windows.

[NT]

Duct tape is not suitable for duting, despite the name. Its often used, but tends to fall off after a while.

thing not yet mentioned: the nearer the loo the vent is, the quicker it clears the loo smell.

NT