When air from your bathroom is ventilated out via your exhaust fan, do you know where it goes? And just what does your fan do for your home anyway? If you’re not sure, you’re not alone. Many homeowners don’t know how their bathroom ventilation systems work and whether or not they’re up to par. Read on to learn all that you need to know about properly venting your home’s bathrooms.

A Closer Look at Bathroom Ventilation

We all know that the excess moisture and humidity generated within a small, enclosed bathroom can lead to damaged wood and drywall, and the growth of mold and mildew. The purpose of a bathroom fan is to evacuate the moisture-saturated air from the space. In some cases, though, the fan may be set up to ventilate to the spaces between ceiling joints or into an unheated attic. This only creates problems elsewhere. The best course of action is to install a bathroom fan that exhausts outside of your home.

Understanding Air Flow Capacity

Not every exhaust fan is ideally suited for every bathroom. The fan’s efficiency and effectiveness depends on air flow capacity, which is measured in cubic feet per minute (cfm). To determine the proper cfm for your fan, you’ll need to measure your bathroom’s floorspace in square feet. Your fan should have 1 cfm per square foot. In cases where your bathroom exceeds 100 square feet, additional considerations must be made. Tag on an additional 50 cfm for toilets, an extra 50 cfm for bathtubs, showers, or shower/tub combos, and an added 100 cfm for each whirlpool.

Consider Noise Levels

If noise is a factor for you, it’s very important to be aware of noise level ratings. Those who desire an extremely quiet bathroom fan should look for a unit rated between 0.5-1.2 sones. Be aware that fans rated above 4.0 sones are the noisiest.

Start improving bathroom ventilation today by reaching out to Powers Heating & Air. We serve Peachtree City and the surrounding areas.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Peachtree City, Georgia and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).

Credit/Copyright Attribution: “Voyagerix/Shutterstock”