Extractor fan in bathroom causing mould in loft

fto

Its more than possible the ducting was in place, just vented into the loft.

dampdaveski

fto wrote: »

Its more than possible the ducting was in place, just vented into the loft.

well in hindsight fto it is possible that ducting was in place, but in the same respect it isn't difficult to look outside to see an eaves vent or a roof tile vent, maybe there was a vent, maybe not, a competent sparky should check to make sure the ducting goes where it's meant to though and hasn't been crushed etc

lizzyshep

The electrician is a member of NAPIT, so should be competent. When I spoke to him he didn't give a good reason why he didn't check where the vented to. Should I complain to NAPIT, or try speaking to him again? Any advice on what I say to him? It sounds silly but I get nervous talking to tradesmen, probably because I don't know what I'm talking about!

sparkiedave

I regularly quote for doing things correctly, only to find someone else does the job for a fraction of the price.................... I used to wonder how, but this is a typical example of what shoddy c##p goes on, if I see a vent in a ceiling, I want to know where it's going before I mess with it

lizzyshep

dampdaveski wrote: »

Lizzy,
The electrician who changed your fan is an idiot.
He identified the fact that your bathroom fan needed replacing, he took the original one down and you would expect that as a competent electrician he would have noticed that there was no ducting from the existing fan to fit the new one to.

At this point he contacts you and puts you on notice of a problem he's found and that there is additional work to do (this is ignoring the fact that he should have looked in the loft when he assessed the job in the first place!)

Why didn't he contact you? either stupidity or the fact that fitting ducting into a roof space and fitting an eaves vent is a messy pain in the a#se job and he decided to keep quiet.
This is no grey area it is incompetence clear and simple (remembering you asked him to come round, relying on his professionalism to tell you what needed doing).

I'm not an electrician but I survey and specify this type of work daily for my electrical contractors

the drawing that spannerzone supplied is a good illustration, however if your eaves arn't big enough to fit a vent then you can get a tile vent fitted, subject to the type of roof tiles you have one of those could be fitted for under £50 (handyman rates)

Where possible try and avoid using flexiduct as it creates air resistance and will restrict the efficiency of the fan. The pipework should be something like Easipipe 100 or similar all available from Wickes, B&Q and unsurprisingly electrical wholesalers because guess what, this is something that sparkies do all the time!! (sorry for the soapbox! )
This error by the sparky is something I wouldn't expect from an apprentice

Just google 'easipipe 100' to get an idea, anything similar will do

Sorry for ranting, hope it helps
DD

Thanks for all the info, whoever sorts this out I'll make sure they do it right!

lizzyshep

fto wrote: »

Its more than possible the ducting was in place, just vented into the loft.

This is my thinking...

lizzyshep

sparkiedave wrote: »

I regularly quote for doing things correctly, only to find someone else does the job for a fraction of the price.................... I used to wonder how, but this is a typical example of what shoddy c##p goes on, if I see a vent in a ceiling, I want to know where it's going before I mess with it

The thing is, he really didn't seem the type to cut corners. He came round to do a full electrican inspection, he brought his apprentice and they were here a long time. He then quoted us what work needed doing, and when he and his apprentice came back, they again took their time. I was given receipts and a full detailed electrical report. He didn't seem like he was rushing or trying to get away quickly.

He is a NAPIT certified electrician and inspector, so I don't see how he can be incompetent.

I'm really not sure what to do now. I don't want to complain if it's not his fault, but if it is, he needs to sort it out.

budgetdiyer

I don't really see how the electrician can be called incompetent, i imagine there was ducting in place and he simply refitted the ducting when replacing the fan.

Do the electrical regs cover checking the ducting runs for extractor fans? If so you might be able to complain - although what benefit that will be to you i don't know?

I'm sure he is happy to return to fit the required ducting, but will inevitably be cheaper for you to get a handyman to do it.

All you need to do is run new ducting from the fan, probably the easiest place to vent is under the eaves, as per spannerzones article.

spannerzone

lizzyshep wrote: »

That's a very helpful diagram, thank you :-) Can I ask what your trade is?

Radio telecommunications

I got that picture from TLC where I got the extraction fan kit...

I have fitted a couple in my last 2 houses and they work well, the tricky bit was the gap between the joists and the eaves and trying to fit the hose between.

spannerzone

To be fair to the electrician, he may well have seen the ducting (if there was some) and made the assumption it went out outside via a vent. OK maybe he should have checked but I guess anyone makes mistakes (and assumptions!)

So if there was ducting wandering off into the loft he may have a bit of an excuse.