Air brick for extractor fan

[Saycheese5]

Hi,

Just wondering if I can replace an air vent with an extractor fan having a 9" x 6" teracota ordinary air brick on the outside of the wall? Should that be enough for the air to be expelled properly or would I need to replace it with something else?

Thank you.

 

[jj4091]

That will be ok if the void is sealed through the cavity. I would suggest you use a fan with an in-line or built in back-draft shutter & a cowl on the outside if possible.

 

[Saycheese5]

The hole in the cavity is bigger than the extractor fan, so I'm wondering how to fit it. Could I screw a small piece of mdf board around the cavity, make a hole through it and then screw the extractor fan onto the mdf (if wood is compatible)?

Thank you.

 

[jj4091]

Screw a batten to each side of, or top & bottom of the inside of the aperture.

 

[EFLImpudence]

The hole in the cavity is bigger than the extractor fan,

Correct sized duct and cement.

 

[RF Lighting]

Soil pipe and expanding foam...

 

[jj4091]

Soil pipe and expanding foam...

Can you get a fixing for the fan in expanding foam?

 

[JohnW2]

Soil pipe and expanding foam...

Can you get a fixing for the fan in expanding foam?

Obviously not (well, at least, not a very satisfactory fixing). RF's suggestion would presumably be combined with something like your suggestion of battens, the expanding foam dealing with the space around the soil pipe.

Kind Regards, John

 

[jj4091]

Not necessarily "obviously not", it is something I've never tried or thought about & I just wondered if I was missing a trick. But thinking about it now the fan would probably stick pretty firmly to the foam if installed before it dried

 

[JohnW2]

Not necessarily "obviously not", it is something I've never tried or thought about ...

As far as I am concerned, it's 'obviously not' - since I have thought about it and have tried You cannot get a sensibly strong fixing with any normal 'fixing device' into PU foam.

... & I just wondered if I was missing a trick. But thinking about it now the fan would probably stick pretty firmly to the foam if installed before it dried

That's different, and I've done things like that in my time, too. The foam itself would very probably give adequate 'fixation', but that's different from try to 'put fixings into the foam'

Kind Regards, John

 

[bernardgreen]

Hi, Just wondering if I can replace an air vent with an extractor fan .

What room is this air vent in. ? If it is a room with an open fire or a gas fire that is not room sealed then you CANNOT fit an extractor fan.

An extractor fan would lower the air pressure in the room causing fumes from the fire to come into the room instead of going safely up the chimney.

 

[Saycheese5]

What room is this air vent in. ? If it is a room with an open fire or a gas fire that is not room sealed then you CANNOT fit an extractor fan.

Apologies for late reply. I've got air vents in every room. I am replacing the extractor fan in the kitchen. I have a woodburner in a different room but will not turn the extractor fan on when the fire is burning in case smoke gets pulled down from the chimney.

Another question: I've checked the wires within the extractor fan and these are both black with a sticker next to it saying 1.Permanent Live, 2.Neutral. I presume that should work with a switch??? As both wires are black, is one really only for a live connection and the other one only for neutral? I'm just thinking it's so easy to make a mistake in comparison to a blue and a brown wire.

Thank you.