If you consider giving your home a makeover, home ventilation is a frequent debate you’ll be having as it should be. Your home is your sanctuary. So it only makes sense that it should be comfortable.
While you ensure your bedrooms, living rooms, kitchens, and washrooms are well ventilated, ventilating the half-bath is a bit of a grey area. But let us tell you this, your half-bath does need an exhaust fan.
If your partner disagrees or you’re still unsure, fear not. We have you covered. Here are all the good reasons you can use in your argument to help you bring it home!
7 Compelling Reasons to Install an Exhaust Fan in your Half Bath
1.Effective Odour Control
Ever walked in the bathroom only to rush outside because the smell was so bad? Or have someone else go to the bathroom immediately after you just took care of business? If you have, then you know what embarrassment feels like—both first-hand and second-hand.
All of this can be avoided by turning on an exhaust fan. The basic principle all exhaust fans follow is creating a change in air pressure. This change will cause the influx of fresh outdoor air and remove the indoor air.
As a result, all the stale air and odor inside your bathroom will be removed within minutes—all with nothing but the push of a button.
2. Save yourself a Paint and Repair Job
Home remodeling is fun for no one. It is a dreadful chore which anyone would do their best to avoid. Unfortunately, if your bathroom is unventilated, you are in for even more frequent home repairs.
Now you might ask, what does bathroom ventilation have to do with home renovations?
The answer to that is simple. Unventilated bathrooms will have a significantly greater moisture accumulation. If this is happening to you, brace yourself as this is nothing short of Pandora’s box. Add peeling paint, rusted metal wear, molding, mildew, swollen woodware, and the list goes on and on.
Although half-baths do not have bathtubs or showers, they still have toilets, flushes, and skins. All of these will contribute to the moisture, which will cause the wear and tear of your humble abode.
3. A Great Money Saver
Did you know that the renovations of a 1500 square foot home coasts about $37,500 on average? That’s how much you’ll be spending if you do not properly ventilate your house. And this includes your bathrooms.
Ask yourself, what would cost more? Your wallpaper and paint peeling off every 2 months? Or an exhaust fan installed in your half-bath?
We imagine the answer will be the latter. After all, an exhaust fan will last up to a good 10-15 years. Plus, it is only quarterly that they ever need cleaning.
Our final verdict is that bathroom fans are an excellent investment.
4. Ensure Comfort
On a hot and humid summer day, do you see yourself going about your day in your living room without a fan or air conditioning?
If you answered no, then your guests would also not find your half-bath very comfortable. Especially since, in summers, the moisture in your bathroom will worsen the already humid environment.
Humidity control is essential for any room’s maintenance. An exhaust fan in your half-bath will suck the air and humidity in your bathroom out and replace it with fresh air. The overall comfort of your bathroom will thus be improved without a whole lot of effort.
5. Protect Your Health
Whenever we enter a room that has been shut for a long time, many of us experience allergies: cough, runny nose, watery eyes, and whatnot. This happens because closed spaces have dust and stale air build-ups. This build-up is a significant health hazard. Unventilated closed rooms may have several adverse effects on your health. Like headaches, allergies, and asthma can even worsen.
Bathroom ventilation is also something you should emphasize upon since cleaning agents produce potentially harmful fumes. The removal of these fumes can be made possible by removing the stale air trapped inside your bathroom.
A well-ventilated half-bath is essential to ensure the health of you and your loved ones.
6. Bye-bye foggy Mirrors
We’ve already covered how excess moisture is damaging your walls and furniture. But it doesn’t end there. The humidity in your half-bath does not pick where it will land and accumulate. It will also sit on your glass and mirrors. These surfaces are generally cooler. Therefore, the condensation will cause all such surfaces to fog.
Foggy mirrors are particularly a significant problem during winters. This is the time when people typically make use of hot water in bathrooms. As a result, the steam settles on the mirrors, forming a dense fog.
Your exhaust fan will promote ventilation. This will keep the excess moisture far away from your mirrors. And there you have it—no more foggy mirrors to bother you.
7. White-noise to Peacefully Take Care of Business
Home is where you can peacefully use the toilet. Most of us suffer from the anxiety of using a bathroom in someone else’s house. And while achieving ultimate comfort might not be possible, everyone desires a little bit of white noise. So it is safe to say that your guests will always appreciate the exhaust fan in your half-bath as a luxury.
How much does it cost?
Exhaust fans cost you anywhere between $50-$200. The prices vary depending on the type, make, size, and overall functionality of the fan. The labor cost-which includes electricians and handymen-is somewhere in the ballpark of $165-$350. The process will take only about 3-4 hours.
Finding the Perfect Exhaust Fan
Now that you’ve been convinced to get yourself an exhaust fan for your half-bath, there are a few things that you should consider.
To select the exhaust fan that works best for you, you should bear the noise and the speed. The ideal fan will have a perfect speed you need for your bathroom while causing minimum noise at the lowest price.
You can determine the size you need by calculating the CFM value based on the size of the room. The noise of a fan is measured in either decibels or sons and should be labeled on the fan.