steamy bathroom

hotcookie101

Hi, we had our bathroom redone last year and had an extrator fan put in (manrose gold) The walls and floor are fully tiled. It wasn't too bad last year, but we recently got a new boiler which has significantly improved our hot water flow, and now the bathroom is like a steam room, and the extractor really doesn't seem to do ANYTHING. We have condensation running down the walls. OH and I could have showers in the morning, and by the time I leave for work an hour later the walls are still wet and I have to leave the fan running until we get home.
Is there a better fan we could get to try and help? and is it easy to DIY? The current one doesn't have a timer-just a pull cord to switch on and off.

diable

Get one with an over run timer or humidity sensor and when you leave the bathroom leave the door open as it needs a free flow of air to get rid of the moisture/warm air in the bathroom.

do you shut the door?

A.Penny.Saved

Is the boiler supplying the shower? Can't you adjust the heat of it and turn it down?

I think tackling the cause of the steam is the first thing to do. Do you need it so hot? I'm always surprised at how hot some people like their baths/showers/air temperature. Air flow will help dry the place up, opening a small window to dry the place out.

I wouldn't open the door because all that steam will go around your house which you don't want. You'll end up with wood rot in your timbers and dampness everywhere.

phill99

diable wrote: »

leave the door open as it needs a free flow of air to get rid of the moisture/warm air in the bathroom.

NO! NO! NO!

You should not leave the door open. This will only lead to condensation mould in other parts of the house - mainly the bedrroms. It is critical that the door is shut. The extractor will suck enough air through via the gaps in the door.

You also need to think about how hot the shower is. Can it be turned down so that there is less steam.

An extractor with an overrun timer is ideal and set on its maximum setting (up to half an hour), or a humidistat extractor.

You also need to think about background heating in the bathroom. You have condensation as the walls are cold and moisture condenses on them. Background heating will raise the temp of the walls and reduce the condensation.

diable

Only if you have a large gap under the door, each to there own though.....

keystone

Turn the DHW temperature down at the new boiler first and see what difference that makes.

If the bathroom was done last year your installer short changed you because he should have fitted one with a timer per Building Regs. Even if you free issued him with the fan he should have invited you to change it for one with a timer.

You could always call him back and discuss it with him.

Cheers

TimBuckTeeth

If the bathroom is warm before use there will be less steam and condensation, so try putting the heating on earlier to warm up.

Most of the wall mounted 4" extractor fans do not have a high enough airflow to be effective. The Manrose fans are average quality, try a better quality fan such as a Ventaxia or Xpelair with a higher flow rate.

If the fan vents to the outside through ducting of more than about 12 inches then a centrifugal fan should be used to overcome the restriction and back pressure.
Ideally a larger 6" fan should be fitted for adequate flow but would need the hole in the wall to be enlarged.

tanith

I don't have any extractor but always have the window open, the room is very steamy for 10 mins but dry in 20.. never have a problem with the walls running... so close the door and keep a window open while the shower is running.. also try cutting down the amount of time the shower is on... 5/6 mins should be adequate for a good shower... but if you have it going for 15/20mins then you will get the walls running..

violettasomerset

My bathroom gets quite steamy, and although opening the windows does dry it out in about 30 mintues, even in winter, what I've taken to doing is using a squeegee on the wettest walls - if you use it so you are sweeping the water upwards, it gathers on the blade and you can tip it down the drain. It doesn't clear the water totally, but it does help to reduce the amount that needs to evaporate away. It only takes 30 seconds to do the worst walls, and I find it quite fun (but then I'm a bit sad like that!)

hotcookie101

The water being hotter is a good thing-last year our shower was tepid at best in the winter

The builder supplied and fitted the fan-didn't ask us what we wanted, TBH was a bit surprised it wasn't on a timer. He said I didn't need a cert for it either.
The bathroom is downstairs, has a radiator which is on when heating is on (so it is on in the winter. There is one outside wall, one newly replaced stud wall, and one which backs onto the unheated cupboard under stairs (the last one is door to kitchen and backs onto boiler) The room isn't cold when we shower. Window is beside shower and its cold if you open it when showering. We do try to open it, but as we leave for work soon after shower don't really like to leave it open

Will look into changing it-the fan vents directly through wall to outside.

hotcookie101

Oh and we do shut the door when we shower (but not firmly as otherwise you can't see in the bathroom!) and its left open when we leave the bathroom. if you open window when showering and its cold the steam condenses really quickly and its like a fog!

and we only spend about 5-10mins max in the shower.