Discovered en-suite extractor fan vents to attic

ThisIsWeird

dr_bogenbroom said:

ThisIsWeird said:

What are your options, DrB?
I
Do you have clear access to the eaves, for example, and could you cut and fit a grill to your soffit for this? By 'gable', do you mean core-drilling through the wall? If so, could you do this neatly?

No clear access to the eaves unfortunately- gable or roof are the only options. Could I core drill neatly?? I’d have thought not! But I can practise…

Do you have 'easy' access to the outside at this height? If so, you can do it neatly.
What finish does your gable have - brick, render, what?
Anyhoo, plan this carefully, and have the duct run at near loft floor height so it's largely horizontal. And, as said before, in solid ducting material.
Does your extractor otherwise work as well as you'd wish; it clears smells and - importantly - steam very reliably? If so, assuming it's a 4" jobbie, you should be safe continuing in this size, unless the new duct run is long? But 'consider' upping to 5" if you have any concerns. Yes, it'll be more tricky to drill, but ultimately far superior. 
What model extractor do you have? This can always be boosted by fitting a more powerful inline unit instead, suspended from the rafters to reduce noise travel.
Lots of options.
With the awkward drilling part, SDS drills can be very heavy, and are very powerful - eg, if it 'catches', it can nudge you off balance, which clearly isn't ideal. So you'd do 90% of the coring from the loft, with a solid base to kneel on, and finish from the outside with both ladder and you secured so there's no risk, not only from falling off, but even coming off a rung. Ie, the ladder is secured with it set at the ideal distance and position to allow you to drill holding it at roughly chest height (trial), and at the right distance from the wall that allows you to pass your 'supporting' arm through the ladder before holding the drill - does that make sense? Trial this at ground level. And then, in position, you clip/tie your waist to a rung on a short leash, obvs without a 'noose'-type closing!, one that allows only a few inches sideways movement, so the worse that should happen is that you wobble a few inches, but don't even come off. Then you core with gentle pressure.
You can even set yourself up like this first, and then someone else hands you the drill - or you haul it up.
Oh, and goggles...

dr_bogenbroom

GDB2222 said:

ThisIsWeird said:

GDB2222 said:

Can I ask a question to demonstrate my ignorance. What is wrong with venting into the roof space, assuming that it is well ventilated? Is it causing damp problems? Smells?

Both, I guess! But mainly the risk of damp - condensation.
But, as you suggest, with certain wind conditions, the air in the loft can be driven down to some rooms, but I guess DrB hasn't knowingly had that issue.

From his original post, he wasn’t aware of the problem until he started to put in some more insulation. Most lofts have plenty of air flow from the eaves. 

I was wondering whether a short length of duct to take the exit above the insulation but staying in the loft would suffice? If it saves hiring a scaffold tower, that’s quite MSE. 

You are correct there is no evidence of damp that I noticed - so this could be an option

Grenage

Leaving it venting into the loft is an option, but a terrible one.

Chickereeeee

dr_bogenbroom said:

GDB2222 said:

ThisIsWeird said:

GDB2222 said:

Can I ask a question to demonstrate my ignorance. What is wrong with venting into the roof space, assuming that it is well ventilated? Is it causing damp problems? Smells?

Both, I guess! But mainly the risk of damp - condensation.
But, as you suggest, with certain wind conditions, the air in the loft can be driven down to some rooms, but I guess DrB hasn't knowingly had that issue.

From his original post, he wasn’t aware of the problem until he started to put in some more insulation. Most lofts have plenty of air flow from the eaves. 

I was wondering whether a short length of duct to take the exit above the insulation but staying in the loft would suffice? If it saves hiring a scaffold tower, that’s quite MSE. 

You are correct there is no evidence of damp that I noticed - so this could be an option

There are many cold days with zero wind, which would mean no airflow from the eaves. Which would mean condensation. The next windy day would clear all apparent condensation, but not, immediately, that which had dripped through the insulation....

IF you also have ridge line ventilation, then maybe there would sufficient convection to get the moist air out before in condenses, but I would not trust it. In fact, adding insulation to the loft floor would reduce any convection process, so could make matters worse.

dr_bogenbroom

Thanks all still haven’t decided what to do yet but some really good suggestions and it does seem to be DIYable. For now I’ve turned off the fan and just open the window and will add this job to the backlog!