Does your exhaust fan sound like an Airplane? Time for a new one?

Quick, name the top 5 reasons people do not use their bathroom exhaust fans:

1. It's too loud

2. It's too loud

3. It's too loud

4. It's too loud

5. It doesn’t work anymore

Unfortunately, not using the exhaust fan in your home can cause some serious issues with mold, mildew and indoor air quality. We get it, if it sounds like an airplane engine in your bathroom, you don’t want to turn it on.

The first thing to do is determine if the problem might be able to be corrected or if that is just how loud the fan is. Air King offers many troubleshooting tips in the FAQ section at www.airkinglimited.com. Common issues include blockages in the ducting, build up of debris on the blades of the fan and mechanical issues such as broken welds on the fan housing.

If it is not a problem with the fan, it might be that the fan just is that loud. Many times in new construction, not a lot of attention is given to the exhaust fans, so less expensive – louder operating models are used. On most models there will be a label that tells you the sound level. If your model doesn’t have a label, you can try and find the model number and the manufacture to see if they have any information online.

Sound is measured in sones. A rating at or below 1 sone will be very quiet. 1 to 2 sones will still be quiet but anything over 4 sones starts to get loud. If your fan’s normal operating level is higher than what you want, or any of the troubleshooting tips do not solve the issue, you might want to consider replacing it. An exhaust fan replacement can typically be completed by a homeowner with some electrical and general handyman skills in an afternoon. There are many factors that can influence the ease or difficulty of the installation including the size of the ducting, if the new fan is larger than the existing one and if you can access the fan from above.

Air King always recommends consulting a professional if you are unsure about any aspects of the installation. Air King has a large selection of energy efficient, quiet exhaust fans to meet the needs of almost any home. To learn more about Air King’s bathroom exhaust fans, visit www.airkinglimited.com.