With a growing number of families owning rental properties or being part of a service
like Airbnb there are always things to take care of. Is the rental clean, did
anything break, when are the next guests coming and so forth. Then there are
things that are not as much at the forefront of our minds but could have an
impact. One of these is the ventilation in the rental. Yes, we are talking about
the exhaust fans in the bathrooms. Now before you just tune this out with an
“Are you kidding me” hear us out on this one.
We have already addressed the
importance of proper ventilation within a home and especially in the bathrooms
in some of our previous posts. Now we want to apply that to a rental property.
It’s just a fact that most people are not going to take care of the place they
are renting as well as if it were their own home (for those who do – thank
you!). That means things like exhaust fans probably are not going to be used to
their fullest potential – as in they won’t be turned on. This can lead to
problems such as mold, mildew, or moisture damage in and around the shower. No
one wants to have to spend extra time and money cleaning or repairing something
that could be avoided.
Here are a few things to consider on how to combat the
issue:
NOTE: All electrical work must be done in accordance
with all local and national codes. If you are unsure, hire a licensed
electrician to do the work.
1.
Add
a motion sensor (or occupancy sensor) to control the exhaust fan. There are
models that have this function integrated into the unit or you can add this
feature as a wall switch. This will ensure that the
exhaust fan turns on each time someone enters the bathroom.
2.
If
it is a fan/light combination, wire the light and the fan together. This way
every time the light is turned on, the fan will also be turned on. This can
usually be done very easily even after the fan is installed.
3.
Add
a humidity control to the fan. As with the motion sensor, there are many
exhaust fans that have this function built in but there are also wall controls
that can easily be added to most installations such as the Air King DH55.
4.
Install
a dual speed fan. These fans have a low speed that runs continuously, providing
constant ventilation. The high speed provides ventilation when the bathroom is
in use. A wall switch or a built-in humidity and/or motion sensor can control
this.
5.
Think
about installing a larger CFM exhaust fan. While the general rule of thumb is 1
CFM of exhaust per square foot, this is a minimum, not a maximum. Generally, rentals are going to be used a little harder than normal living. Instead of an
80 CFM fan for your 80 square foot bathroom, a 100 CFM fan will be more
effective. You don’t need to go crazy, but something in the 10% to 20% extra
ventilation should do the trick.
With so many
other things to be concerned with on your rental property, why not eliminate
one of them by ensuring your bathrooms are properly ventilated. Happy renting.
For more
information about Air King’s ventilation solutions including motion sensing,
humidity sensing and dual speed fans as well as wall control switches, visitwww.airkinglimited.com.
