Extractor without a vent to the outside

[WabbitPoo]

A friend of mine says her builder fitted an extractor over the shower that doesnt need a vent to the outside world. I assume it must condense the steam in some way, or perhaps soak it up in silica gel or something.

Was he putting her on or do they really exist and indeed work?

 

[45yearsagasman]

Not heard of a condensing extractor. If your fan is venting moist air directly to the roof space, then expect problems with rotting timber in later years. A better description and possibly a pic would help.

 

[WabbitPoo]

As I said, its not mine....she is a lady on her own and I reckoned she might have been told porkies by the builder, although he assured her it did not need a vent out.....

If a device such as I described does not exist, why not?!

I will get into her loft and take a look for her - maybe he just couldnt be bothered to do it properly

 

[ajsdoc]

I've an awful feeling this will be a vent pipe simply terminating in the loft space.
Lazy shoddy and potentially damaging.

 

[WabbitPoo]

to be fair, it does sound like such a device OUGHT to exist, a bit like a condensing tumble drier....you can see why she was convinced

 

[ree]

Where would the condensing water be stored? If the device was in a loft who and how to empty it? Many householders wont even clean the lint filters in dryers.

How large would it be - most extractors in bathrooms are almost faceplates or small boxes.

There's no doubt, however, that given that in-line motors do the best job but can be tricky to position and vent, a better device/arrangement would be welcomed.

 

[TeaTime]

I will get into her loft and take a look for her - maybe he just couldnt be bothered to do it properly

If it were a friend of mine, i'd be round to have a look straight off the bat to check.

Additionally, have you ever seen how fast a dehumidifier fills up it's catchment? As Ree stated, it would need emptying regularly.

 

[stem]

to be fair, it does sound like such a device OUGHT to exist, a bit like a condensing tumble drier....you can see why she was convinced

It might help with the steam, but if the shower is in a bathroom, it wouldn't do much for the smells!

Oh, and by the way, what you describe does exist. Click here.

 

[WabbitPoo]

thanks. she says he is coming back this week to fit a rad so she will tackle him on the subject.

tempted to name and shame if it turns out she's been tricked

 

[WabbitPoo]

Where would the condensing water be stored? If the device was in a loft who and how to empty it? Many householders wont even clean the lint filters in dryers.

How large would it be - most extractors in bathrooms are almost faceplates or small boxes.

There's no doubt, however, that given that in-line motors do the best job but can be tricky to position and vent, a better device/arrangement would be welcomed.

I think she said he said the water is stored in chemical gels, which can be dried out... hmmmm. Sounds to me like he ought to invent it, then.

 

[Burnerman]

Never heard of that one.....chemical gels can absorb water, but they need to be dried out or drained when super saturated- so we wonder where the water goes then?
John

 

[joewa]

I've done some research on this previously. The only similar thing that exists is for a tumble drier, and this involves adding ice blocks to condense the moist air every time its used.

Sounds like a builder telling porkies, I would get it remedied asap.

 

[WabbitPoo]

And the answer was......vermiculite


Apparently it soaks up the steam, swells, and releases it slowly, allowing the vapour to be handled by loft-space ventilation.


Ring any bells?

I think I am going to have to get up there and take a look.

 

[WabbitPoo]

anybody come across this before? I still reckon he is spinning a line as he couldn't be bothered to get the vent out thru the wall or roof....

 

[stem]

I have come across desiccant dehumidifiers that use absorbent materials that look similar to vermiculite. They normally consist of a slow rotating disc made from said desiccant that the wet air stream passes through and gives up its moisture. As the disc rotates it then passes through some form of heater to dry it out before entering the wet air stream again.

The system you describe though raises for me, the following questions:

1. If the desiccant has to have sufficient capacity to absorb the steam and moisture from a shower, or several showers and yet dry naturally, how much of the stuff is there up there?

2. If it has to dry naturally at a slow rate, how is it arranged? I fail to see how a mass of the material packed in a dustbin sized container will ever dry naturally, especially in a roof that is only a few degrees above freezing in the winter.

3. What's the point of it? a dehumidifier is used to return the dry air to the room it came from, so that heat is not lost, with what you describe the air enters the loft and is wasted anyway.

4. Will it really completely remove all of the moisture? I'm uncomfortable with the idea of the air just being blown into the loft space, and some lofts are insufficiently ventilated already.

So here's what you need to do. Instead of all of this guessing and supposition, go around, look at the unit and post back on here the name of the manufacturer and the name of the product, as you said you were going to do last Tuesday.

I will get into her loft and take a look