yes it is. all the moisture will hang out up there and allow for mold growth in the summer and ice in the winter. plus it will add to you heating and cooling costs.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 2:45 pm ·

rjackal
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2012-Dec-18 2:45 pm

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Yes, yes it is.
Water belongs on the outside of your house, not in the attic where it can cause mold, condense on surfaces and drip down...

actions · 2012-Dec-18 2:45 pm ·

alkizmo
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2012-Dec-18 2:45 pm

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said by SuperNet:

(i believe)...

Better confirm it vents in the attic and not that it goes THROUGH the attic and directly to a vent leading outside.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 2:45 pm ·

SuperNet
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2012-Dec-18 2:49 pm

said by alkizmo:

said by SuperNet:

(i believe)...

Better confirm it vents in the attic and not that it goes THROUGH the attic and directly to a vent leading outside.

I don't see a vent tube anywhere from the bathroom fan.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 2:49 pm ·

alkizmo
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alkizmo

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2012-Dec-18 3:10 pm

So you see your attic through the fan?

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:10 pm ·

SuperNet
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2012-Dec-18 3:14 pm

said by alkizmo:

So you see your attic through the fan?

No,I have NO idea where it is venting.. But I looked at the roof and side the house and can't find a vent for it at all.. So I am guessing it is going in to the attic.. I will take a pic later...

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:14 pm ·

alkizmo
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2012-Dec-18 3:18 pm

Just go look in your attic instead of making us guess your situation.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:18 pm ·

SuperNet
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2012-Dec-18 3:22 pm

said by alkizmo:

Just go look in your attic instead of making us guess your situation.

I did look in my attic many times... I don't see a vent tube anywhere for it.. I will take pics

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:22 pm ·

sempergoofy
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sempergoofy

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2012-Dec-18 3:26 pm

Consider also that some vent fans may vent through a soffit vent. Going up and out is more likely, but sometimes they go laterally to the soffit then down.

If you can get to and touch the fan box in the ceiling, you will know for absolutely certain whether or not there is a vent tube from the box up or sideways.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:26 pm ·

HarryH3
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2012-Dec-18 3:44 pm

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You could possibly just have a filter-fan that pulls air in, runs it through a charcoal filter (to supposedly reduce the odor) and then pushes the air right back into the bathroom. Pull the cover and have a peek inside and see if there is an outlet or just a filter.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:44 pm ·

alkizmo
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Pierrefonds, QC

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2012-Dec-18 3:45 pm

Oh man that would be the most useless bathroom vent ever.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:45 pm ·

HarryH3
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2012-Dec-18 3:47 pm

Yep, but some builders use them to save $10.

They're sometimes found in the "powder room", just a toilet and sink.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:47 pm ·

alkizmo
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2012-Dec-18 3:53 pm

What's the point of them? There's nothing to filter.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:53 pm ·

HarryH3
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2012-Dec-18 3:54 pm

said by alkizmo:

What's the point of them? There's nothing to filter.

Odors, or as I heard one guy say, they're "poot fans".

actions · 2012-Dec-18 3:54 pm ·

SuperNet
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2012-Dec-18 7:38 pm

Here is the pics... The Fan is on the right side about 1 foot of the 2 tubes you see.. I checked the opening of the fan vent, it is facing the left toward the tubes..

actions · 2012-Dec-18 7:38 pm ·

ArgMeMatey
join:2001-08-09
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2012-Dec-18 11:38 pm

Have you gotten on the roof to check both of those gray pipes? Or do you already know what they're for?

Could one of them be the exhaust from that fan? I've seen 3" PVC used for fan exhaust "duct".

I don't know a lot of plumbers who would run two sanitary system vents out that close to each other unless there were some code issue involved.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 11:38 pm ·

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2012-Dec-18 11:41 pm

said by ArgMeMatey:

One is for the heat/hot water. Other one I believe is the tube for water smell? I don't know the correct term.

actions · 2012-Dec-18 11:41 pm ·

robbin
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2012-Dec-18 11:45 pm

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Can you mark a pic of the attic to show where the fan is?

actions · 2012-Dec-18 11:45 pm ·

MrFixit1
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2012-Dec-19 4:29 am

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Hate to say it , but it just might be time to go digging in the insulation

actions · 2012-Dec-19 4:29 am ·

Bob4
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2012-Dec-19 4:58 am

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Every place I've lived that had a bathroom fan, vented into the attic. It's not a big deal. Just don't run it in the winter.

actions · 2012-Dec-19 4:58 am ·

rjackal
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2012-Dec-19 7:02 am

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1) Turn on fan.
2) Go on roof to see if any forced air is coming out of those pipes, or nearby soffit vents.
3) If not, then it's not even venting into the attic since it appears to be totally covered with cellulose insulation.

That is an old fan. You might want to budget the time/money required to properly install a newer, quieter, more efficient one anyway.

-edited to add possibility of soffit vent-

actions · 2012-Dec-19 7:02 am ·

nibyak
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2012-Dec-19 9:19 am

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I have seen bathroom fans that were vented out to the soffit. If that’s the case, the duct could be under the insulation.

actions · 2012-Dec-19 9:19 am ·

cdru
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2012-Dec-19 9:45 am

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said by Bob4:

Every place I've lived that had a bathroom fan, vented into the attic. It's not a big deal. Just don't run it in the winter.

My 33 year old house was originally this way. Both upstairs bathrooms just had vertical pipes that went a few few feet into the air in the attic. No mold anywhere in the attic and that was with using it year round.

When I redid the siding two years ago, I added a vent out the side of the house. Didn't bother to attach it at the time as it wasn't moldy after 33 years, a little while longer wasn't going to hurt. When I remodeled a bath and replaced the fan, I finally bothered to venture up into the attic to hook everything up.

actions · 2012-Dec-19 9:45 am ·

UHF
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2012-Dec-19 3:29 pm

said by cdru:

My 33 year old house was originally this way. Both upstairs bathrooms just had vertical pipes that went a few few feet into the air in the attic.

Mine was that way from 1962 until a few years ago. No mold. I did have a problem with ice dams after heavy snowfalls, which was the reason I finally vented it outside. The outside vent ends up buried in snow so the end result isn't a whole lot better unless I use a roof rake to clear the snow around the vent.

actions · 2012-Dec-19 3:29 pm ·

cdru
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2012-Dec-19 3:56 pm

said by UHF:

The outside vent ends up buried in snow so the end result isn't a whole lot better unless I use a roof rake to clear the snow around the vent.

That's one of the reasons why I didn't take it straight up through the roof (aside from not wanting another roof penetration. I went horizontal to a gable end and had a dryer vent through the siding. If snow is up to the vent 20' in the air, we have bigger problems to deal with than venting the bathroom.

actions · 2012-Dec-19 3:56 pm ·

UHF
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2012-Dec-19 4:05 pm

said by cdru:

said by UHF:

The outside vent ends up buried in snow so the end result isn't a whole lot better unless I use a roof rake to clear the snow around the vent.

My house doesn't have any gables, it's a hip roof. For some reason they are extremely popular here, it's rare to see a gable roof.

actions · 2012-Dec-19 4:05 pm ·

alkizmo
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2012-Dec-19 4:22 pm

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said by UHF:

The outside vent ends up buried in snow so the end result isn't a whole lot better unless I use a roof rake to clear the snow around the vent.

That sounds bad.

My roof has a pair of these

They never get covered in snow.
As for the louvers, well, they are vertical, so no snow.
And then there are the soffits.

However, my bathroom has no vent, we just open the little window and that's good enough in the summer.

In the winter, we open the door after a shower (or during the shower if we have privacy). The air in winter is already pretty dry, so we benefit from the added humidity after a shower.

actions · 2012-Dec-19 4:22 pm ·

ArgMeMatey
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2012-Dec-19 4:36 pm

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said by Bob4:

Just don't run it in the winter.

Is this the DSLR version of "My sh** don't stink" or what?

I harp on people 365 days a year, to TURN ON THE FAN if they're doing #2 or aerosolizing decomposition byproducts with a methane propellant. Of course the shower steam is not much of a concern in the winter.

And how do you control whether people can turn it on? Just put a piece of electrical tape over the switch?

To each his own, but if this were my house, I'd have been up there during the contingency period looking for that duct. I've gotten closing credits for similar omissions.

$0.02

actions · 2012-Dec-19 4:36 pm ·

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