Decent extractor fans for bathrooms?

[Psyclist]

Hi all,

I'm just trying to get an idea of a few jobs I need to do with our house that we moved into in May.

Our shower room isn't exactly running with condensation when we use the shower, however, the extractor fan is on the other side of the room from our shower, and we clearly have a bit of a mildew problem from the shower as the paint was fine when we moved into the house but is showing quite a lot of black spots on it now and I'm just tempted to move the extractor fan either closer to the shower or put it directly over the shower so that the steam goes straight up and into the extractor rather than having to find it's way across the room and then out.

But I've also been told in the past as our last house had a really cold bathroom which was very wet whenever we showered that it's frugal to get a good quality extractor fan, but when I went to my local merchants and asked about high end fans they all just looked blank and said "fans are fans" and pointed at what they had hanging on the shelving units which were pretty much what was already in the house.

Can anyone tell me what a decent fan is and where I can find them? Our en-suite is only about 2m x 1.5m wide, but I will eventually be putting a shower in the family bathroom too so will need to improve the ventilation in there too and that's not loads bigger but probably just short of 3m x 1.5m.

Thanks for all advice in advance!

 

[foxhole]

I use something like this in the ceiling connected to two vents in the room which give a very efficient flow rate, but does need constant cleaning of vent as it's like a big vacuum cleaner and sucks up all the dust and fluff in the room as well as keeping the room well ventilated.

http://www.extractorfanworld.co.uk/airflow-av150t-240-p.asp

 

[Psyclist]

So would you recommend keeping the existing vent, but adding another closer to or above the shower cubicle and linking them up with this motor running them?

Also, noob question I know, but how do you support the weight of the motor?

 

[foxhole]

Yes, two vents , one fan and normally fixed to rafter in the loft[ they are not heavy] though I suspend mine from springs to reduce vibration noise when running.

 

[Psyclist]

Where do you get the spring supports from? Our current fans reverberate through the entire house and sound like the whole house is vibrating so any damping will be a blessing...

 

[foxhole]

I just hang on a couple of springs from the rafters, think they came off an old childs pram.You could hang from old tyre inner tube, cut in section to make everlasting rubber bands [though not really rubber].

 

[Psyclist]

Brilliant! Thank you so much for your help!

 

[phatboy]

I recommend these fans:

http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/SLTD160T.html

http://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/SLTD250T.html

The second is just a more powerful version of the first. They also have an option with no timer, but I doubt you want that! They are very smooth running so you barely hear it, just the air being extracted.

I would just have 1 vent into the room, near to the shower.

A good fan makes a huge difference, the ones I linked are 4 and 6 times as powerful as a standard through the wall ones. Hold tight when your on the toilet so you don't take off !