Improperly vented bathrooms are a huge source of moisture in the home. Hot steamy showers create plumes of vapor and it must go somewhere. The safest place for it to go is outside. But if your bathroom vent isn’t installed properly that moisture ends up where it’s most dangerous, your attic.
Hidden spaces make for hidden mold
Hidden spaces like attics are a prime location for mold to grow uncontrolled. Most of the time our technicians are one of the few visitors. And when we show up to crawl around your attic, it’s too late. What troubles us most about these types of jobs is when we find the whole mess could have been avoided with proper bathroom venting.
It’s not enough that your fan is whirring above your head when your taking that hot steamy shower, that fan must direct the steam to the outside. This whole system consists of a fan, a lined piece of flexible vent tube, and a roof vent. Together these three items make sure your attic will not become home to massive mold colonies.
Inspecting your bathroom venting
If you’ve never had your bathroom venting, we encourage you do it as soon as possible. A trained technician will be able to tell you quickly if you’re in need of further help. And while it may cost you a few bucks to have it done, consider this: Moisture in your attic does more than just create mold, it can ruin your entire roof.
A simple check you can do is locate your home’s bathroom vent on the roof, most likely you can see it from ground level. Simply run the shower and depending on the type of day you’re looking you may see vapor being released to the outside.
If you can’t find your vent, or you don’t see any vapor you should look deeper.
Properly venting a bathroom
Taking a deeper dive into your bathroom ventilation system, you’ll find there are three components: a properly sized fan, an insulated and lined flexible vent pipe, and a roof or soffit vent.
First, the bathroom fan needs proper sizing. Fans are measured in the volume of air they move in a minute, or CFM (Cubic Feet per Minute). Larger bathrooms need a fan with high CFM ratings, smaller bathrooms of course, can use smaller CFM vents.
Next, the vent needs to connect to the roof vent. This connection is best done with an insulated, lined flexible duct. The lining makes sure the vapor remains in the vent; the additional outer insulation lining adds extra protection.
Finally, the duct connects to the roof or soffit vent. The vent pops through to the attic space. The duct work connects to the vent in the attic and when the fan runs, the steam exits through the vent.
Let us help you protect your roof
Our job at RestorePro is helping you find, remediate, and remove mold damage. We are trusted restoration company in the New England area, and have earned that trust through decades of service. Founded in 1997, our commitment is to helping customers through difficult times.
Give us a call at 1-800-847-0014.
