How To Fix A Noisy Bathroom Fan

Set up a Noisy Bathroom Fan

Updated: Jun. 07, 2022

Easy set up for an abrasive exhaust fan

bathroom fan Family unit Handyman

If the bath fan in your home is more than 20 years old, chances are it's pretty loud. A loud fan may be proficient for masking bathroom noise, merely the jet engine roar is downright abrasive the rest of the time. Worse nonetheless, your former bath fan may not be moving enough air to go on your bathroom free of mold and mildew.

Replacing a noisy bath fan

Newer-style bath fans, on the other hand, are and so quiet you lot tin can hardly hear them running, and they cost very little to operate. It's easier than yous call back to swap out that noisy, inefficient bath fan, specially if you lot choose i that'due south designed to be installed without ripping out the bathroom ceiling.

Of the many replacement models to choose from, nosotros picked the NuTone No. RN110 Ultra Pro Series because the fan tin exist installed from inside the bathroom. It's non the quietest model available, but at 0.6 sones (near 25 decibels), it's a huge improvement over the old 4-sone (about lx decibels) fan we're replacing. If you lot tin can locate a joist, cutting drywall and handle basic electric work, you can do the whole job in about two hours and save nearly $200 on the installation. Y'all'll demand a stud finder, a drywall saw, a drill and screws, and aluminum duct tape.

Purchase the right size for your bathroom

There'due south no such thing as a '1-size-fits-all' bath fan. For bathrooms up to 100 sq. ft., summate the required cubic feet per minute (cfm) by multiplying the room's length x width ten pinnacle. Multiply that consequence past .13 and round upwards to the nearest ten. Case: 10 ft. broad ten 9 ft. long ten 9 ft. high x .13 = 105. Round up to 110 and purchase a 110-cfm bath fan. For bathrooms larger than 100 sq. ft., but add up the cfm requirements for each of these plumbing fixtures: toilet, 50 cfm; shower, fifty cfm; bathtub, 50 cfm; jetted tub, 100 cfm.

Plow off the power before proceeding

You'll take to remove the power cable from the erstwhile unit and connect information technology to the new fan. This must be done with the ability off. Don't rely on turning off the fan switch; flip the breaker also. Then double-check that the power is off with a voltage sniffer. If you lot're not comfortable working with electricity, hire an electrician to remove and connect the wires.

Find the joists and duct and enlarge the opening

Photograph 1: Find the joists

Slide a stud finder along the ceiling until you discover the joist nearest the old fan. Marker the location. And then discover the joist on the opposite side of the fan.

Photo 2: Mark and cut the ceiling opening

Using the template provided, trace the new opening onto the ceiling. Then cutting along the lines using a drywall saw. Cutting shallower strokes around the flexible duct and then yous don't puncture it.

Most bath fans are mounted to a ceiling joist with the duct running parallel to the joist. Start by locating the direction of your ceiling joists (Photo 1). Then locate the damper (you may accept to remove the fan motor and blade from the housing). That'll tell you where the duct lies in the ceiling. Marker the duct location. Then overstate the opening (Photo 2).

Remove and replace the housing, duct and fan

Photo 3: Disconnect and remove old parts

Unscrew the old fan housing from the joist. So disconnect the electric cable from the housing. Finally, slice through the duct sealing tape with a utility knife and disconnect the duct.

Photo four: Mount the bracket

Slide the subclass through the opening and extend information technology so it contacts the joists on each side of the opening. Secure both sides to the joists with drywall screws.

Photo 5: Connect the duct

Pull the quondam duct through the housing and into the room. Then tape the duct to the damper assembly. Slide the damper onto the flange and secure with aluminum duct tape. Push the duct, damper and flange back into the ceiling and secure the flange to the housing using the screw provided.

Photograph vi: Connect the wires

Secure the hot (black), neutral (white) and footing (green/bare copper) wires with wire nuts. So slide the metallic electrical box into identify in the housing and attach it with the spiral provided.

Photo 7: Install the fan and grille

Slide the fan assembly into the housing until information technology snaps in place. Secure with screws. Plug the electric connector into the electrical box mounted earlier. And then spiral in the dissonance-reducing muffler. Squeeze the grille springs and snap the grille into place.

With the opening now enlarged, you'll have room to disconnect the old duct, electrical cable and one-time housing (Photograph three). Install and secure the new mounting frame (Photo 4). Connect the electrical cablevision to the new housing and snap the housing into the frame so the duct opening is facing the existing duct. Then connect the duct, damper and flange using aluminum duct tape (Photo 5). Cease the rough-in by connecting the power wires and ground to the electrical box provided (Photo 6).

Then simply slide the fan into the housing and add the muffler and grille (Photo 7). Plow on the power and test. Apply a bead of fire-resistant (intumescent) caulk around the fan housing and drywall to preclude wet intrusion into the attic.

Replacement process

Installation

Install the new, quieter fan and motor associates inside the existing fan housing.

Broan or Nautilus bathroom fan grille

Look at your fan's grille to determine the fan blazon. If it looks like this 1, it's probably a Broan or a Nautilus.

NuTone grille

If the grille looks like this one, it's most likely a NuTone.

A new kit from Broan and NuTone lets you cut fan noise nearly in half (meaning the fan is barely audible). Installing the new fan and motor only takes most 10 minutes, with no rewiring or duct work required. The kit works on nigh Broan, NuTone and Nautilus bathroom fans—most bath fans are i of these brands. The Bath Fan Upgrade Kit is simply a quieter replacement fan that fits in the existing housing, so at that place's no need to rip up the ceiling, and the new grille gives your fan a new look.

The more powerful motor in this quieter fan ways the fan will do a ameliorate job of ventilating the room. Buy the kit (No. 690) on Broan'southward Web site (broan.com) or at well-nigh home centers. Everything you lot need is contained in the kit, including the wrench.

If y'all take a grille other than the two shown here, the upgrade kit won't work on your fan.

Required Tools for this Project

Accept the necessary tools for this DIY projection lined up before you start—you'll save time and frustration.

Required Materials for this Project

Avoid final-infinitesimal shopping trips past having all your materials prepare ahead of time. Here'southward a list.

Originally Published: Nov 28, 2018

Source: https://www.familyhandyman.com/project/fix-a-noisy-bathroom-fan/