For bathrooms or en-suites that suffer from excess condensation, installing an additional extractor fan may be an option to consider. For example, as you can see in the above image, we were tasked with the job of installing two fans within a bathroom in one of our rental properties. The reason for this was due to a tenant having to regularly remove mould upon the walls and ceilings due to the condensation not being fully extracted from the bathroom.
In this particular case, the bathroom didn’t have a window and it was large enough to warrant installing two extractor fans. However, installing multiple fans isn’t always the solution and it may not even be possible depending upon your bathroom. For example, you’ll need to install the extractor fan correctly and take into account the wiring and ducting.
If you are considering installing an additional extractor fan to tackle excess condensation, below we walk you through some factors to consider before the installation.
The Installation Of Multiple Fans
Due to the fact that the wiring is already in place and doesn’t need any major modification, installing an additional fan is relatively straightforward. All that’s required is an extension of the wiring and new ducting (more on the ducting below).
However, it’s important to note that you’ll also want to take into account the positioning because there are strict guidelines to where an extractor fan must be placed in your bathroom.
If you have never installed a fan before, read our guide to the installation of a bathroom extractor fan here.
Avoid Putting The Fans Into The Same Common Ducting
Although putting two extractor fans into the same ducting may make the installation easier, it isn’t recommended. Ideally, you’ll want each extractor fan to have its own ducting that outputs excess humidity outside.
Attempting to combine the two extractor fans into the same ducting can result in an imbalanced system (positive and negative air pressures) and the fan malfunctioning, which will inevitably cause it to break.
It’s also important to note that an incorrect installation may invalidate warranties with the brand that you bought the extractor fan from in the first place.
Therefore, the correct method of installation would be that each extractor fan has its own ducting to run into the atmosphere. By doing this, each fan will have improved performance and the ducting won’t collect additional humidity/vapour, which would happen if you were to combine the fans into the same ducting.
If you do go ahead with installing two extractor fans in your bathroom, we highly recommend using two equally powered units that operate at the same time.
Upgrading The Existing Fan
Although installing a second extractor fan may solve the issue, it’s not always the best solution. For example, replacing the extractor fan with an upgraded unit can be a simple yet effective solution that doesn’t involve another fan.
If you want to upgrade, we’ve written a roundup of the best rated bathroom extractor fans based upon our testing, experience and the latest research.
Is Your Unit Malfunctioning?
In some cases, you may not even need an upgrade because your extractor fan may only require a little “TLC”. For example, overtime it can accumulate dust and debris that needs to be cleaned for efficient running.
Alternatively, the extractor fan’s motor may have worn out, which is common for older fans. Sometimes, you may even have a faulty motor out of the box and you didn’t even realise. Therefore, before installing a new or second extractor fan, we highly recommend that you give your current unit a thorough inspection.
Conclusion
Hopefully our guide to installing additional bathroom extractor fans has answered all of the questions you may have. However, if it hasn’t, feel free to get in touch with our team and we will try to help out where possible. Over the years, we’ve installed plenty of extractor fans and gained a lot of experience with their faults and the best units to use. Therefore, we should be able to help out with any questions that you may have with your extractor fan or installation.
