Hi all--We had gotten sidetracked with other house projects and I'm just now returning to this one--delighted to see all the comments here since it's been a while since I checked! Update: We did finally take a much closer look at the fan a couple weekends back, and confirmed that it is an 80CFM WhisperFit-Lite model (alleviating my biggest concern--that our electrician had installed the wrong size!) Our next step is to try testing with/without duct attached, which we haven't done yet (requires getting up into our attic, which is an afternoon's adventure). We did the venting ourselves, but did use rigid metal ducting with insulation and a 4" opening, and it's a very short stretch directly out the roof, so I feel confident (after all the research we did on it!) that we tackled that job properly. My partner did spend a while up on a ladder with the fan running and reported that he couldn't feel or see too much air flow through it--I figure with a room that small, he ought to be feeling *something*, right? I'm very interested to hear about the backdraft tape issue, though--hoping maybe something as simple as that could be our issue?? Here's another question: we purchased our fan directly from our electrician as part of a bigger job, which I think isn't uncommon (at least around here). If we do have a bad fan, what ramifications, if any, does that have for the warranty? Do we have to get the original purchase documentation from him, or will Panasonic just take the serial number? And in situations like that, does the electrician come out and remove/reinstall and get paid as a new job, or should we expect him to do that gratis? (As you can tell, we're new to the world of contracting and home repair--wasn't sure what the norm was for something like this, if it does turn out that the installation was fine but the fan was bad.) Thanks! Diana

For a bathroom of your size, a 110 cfm fan should be sufficient, providing it's actually exhausting 70 to 80 cfm. A part of your problem could be that the flex ducting is causing an increase in static pressure, which reduces the ability of the fan to move air. Changing the flex to smooth metal ducting might improve the fan's performance. You don't mention the type of roofjack or termination you have on the roof. Does it allow the exhaust stream to exit unimpeded? Does it have a back-draft flap? If so, is the flap opening properly? If it's stuck or doesn't open properly, that could be the source of your problem. Barring that, is the roofjack sized properly? If it's too small it could be constricting the air flow, which also increases static pressure, further reducing the efficiency of the fan. If you want to read a bit more about properly sizing a bathroom exhaust system, I recommend the Fantech website. It contains a great deal of good information for properly sizing and installing an effective bath exhaust system (be sure to check out the downloadable PDF files). The information you'll find there would apply in any setting, regardless of the exhaust fan brand you're considering or have installed. That being said, I have Fantech bath exhaust systems in all of my bathrooms. Not only do they operate in almost total silence, they are extremely effective. I never have a build-up of steam in my bathrooms, regardless of how hot or how long showers or baths go on. I haven't had a foggy bathroom mirror or condensation on windows in years. Here is a link that might be useful: Fantech Bathroom Ventilation

if you have an attic above that room get the kind that the motor is actually several feet away from the vent in the ceiling as they work great and are very quiet. I put a Solitube with a light kit and a Broan vent in one of my bathrooms with motor in attic and it is outstanding. You don't need a Solitube to use this type of vent fan. If you don't have attic space above, then I would go with the panasonic or a Nutone.

As for fan-lights in the shower, it seems ineffective to try to remove water vapor laden air from the shower since most of it will condense on the walls before that can happen anyway. My goal is to remove humid air from the vanity area and allow fresh air drawn from the door undercut to reduce fogging of the mirror and window glass. The entire bathroom will eventually dry out if you use a fan with a built in timer and/or constant low speed feature like Panosonic's WhisperGreen series. I have yet to find a fan-light combination that performs as well as separate units. Here are my criteria: no CFL or LED lamps (LED inappropriate in a bathroom; CFL inappropriate in a house) Max sound rating .8 sone max grille size 13x13 flush with ceiling variable speed fan with timer Panasonic makes a recessed spotlight-fan combination (FV08VRL1) but it uses a CFL. I suppose a halogen PAR lamp could be substituted because the CFL is probably only needed to get an EnergyStar rating but I am not comfortable recommending it. To reduce fan noise it is important to reduce back-pressure by using larger metal ducts.