What Size Should My Bathroom Ventilation Fan Be?

July 28, 2017

Average tasks like showering, bathing and shaving can put home-harming humidity into the air in your Muskogee home. There’s good news still—a modest bathroom ventilation fan can save you from distorted wood, mold growth, broken drywall and other issues connected with a humid bathroom.

Even if you have ventilation fans in your bathrooms, do you know if they’re the proper size? Are they as quiet and energy efficient as they could be? Hix Air Conditioning Service, Inc. is here to answer your questions.

Today’s bathroom ventilation fans are small and smooth and they run more quietly and economically than ever before. You’ll find a hefty range of choices, from classic fans that will get the job done to fans with built-in heat lamps, motion sensors and heat-exchanger ventilation that helps block warmed air from leaking through your ventilation. While you can find a lot of bells and whistles to choose from, the most imperative characteristic of your fan is whether or not it’s big enough to do its job.

Assessed by the cubic feet per minute (CFM) of air they move, a bathroom ventilation fan should be able to replace the air in a bathroom at least eight times an hour. With a normal 8-foot ceiling, your ventilation fan should have a CFM rating almost as high as the number of square feet in your bathroom. Thus, if your bathroom is 5 feet by 8 feet, a CFM rating of 40 would be sufficient.

If you have a taller ceiling, the equation gets a little more complicated. You’ll want to multiply the width of the room by its height and length, divide it by 60 and multiply by 8. Or, to keep it straightforward, you can use HGTV’s tips for bathrooms larger than 100 square feet – verify your CFM requirements by increasing 50 CFM for every toilet; 50 CFM for each shower, bath and combo; and 100 CFM for each whirlpool.

If you’re unsure if your bathroom ventilation fan is the proper size, or you know it’s the occasion for a new one, give the professionals at Hix Air Conditioning Service, Inc. at call at 918-682-8238. We’re here to help you guarantee you have a ventilation fan that will work hard to protect your home and keep it cozy.