Spanky67- I saw the same Finehomebuilding article. I couldn't find the switch they mentioned in the article locally so I went with the motion detector version. I might upgrade to the toggle switch someday if I ever get around to ordering it online ($30?), but for now the fan works great and I don't have to remember to go down and see if someone left it on which was my main pet peeve. It does go on every time someone enters the room, which can be a pain if you are just replacing towels or to empty trashcan. The toggle like yours (wired just to fan) would allow me to leave the switch off, change out the towels, trash and no fan running for extra time. Teaching the kids to turn on both switches is a little trickier (one for fan, one for lights) turn both off (fan still runs) turn on only lights (no fan continues to run). I know I could wire both fan and light onto one switch and use a blank over the other faceplate but then I am back to the same problem of the fan running too long if I only needed to drop off some TP, soap, etc. This is a ½ bath so no moisture to worry about. In the meantime this works out 90% of the time just the way I need it to. When we redo the kids & master bath upstairs I will start this mental dance of the electric switch plates/ fan/ vent/ moisture/ odor/ how many buttons to turn on/ off and not think about it again Âall over again. LOL Our fan is a Nutone 1.0 sones much quieter then any of the older bath vents we have upstairs which you can hear running from across the hall when the door is closed. The 1.0 is a very soft white noise you hear while in the room but cannot hear it running at all from out side the room when door is closed and can barely hear it outside the room when door is open unless standing close to doorway. I hope this helps. I know how hard it is to get an idea about these things until they are already installed and itÂs too late. I donÂt think you can go wrong with a fan 1.0 or less but definitely not more than 1.0 you wonÂt be happy.

The problem is almost certainly the insulation. Non insulation contact lights require that the "attic" insulation be pulled back 3" and the top be open to the attic space. If a non IC can is enclosed in a box, either in the attic or between floors then the box must be large enough so that the heat can disipate thru the sides of the box. Pulling the insulation back 3" from a non IC can installed in your first floor ceiling is not nearly enough. Instalation instructions may not mention this because insulation between floors is rare. There is no definite recomended size for how big a box is needed to disipate the heat because it depends on how well the box is insulated. I have heard recomendations of 2' x 2' x 2' and 2' x 2' x 4' for boxes over attic installed cans. presumably these boxes would be covered with insulation. Whats happening in your lights is that a 15 cent thermostatic switch over heats and turns off your light before it gets hot enough to melt the wiring insulation or start a fire. If one of these high quality 15 cent switches fail then you will have a real problem. I hate people that point out problems and then don't offer any solutions. So I'll offer one, although you probably won't like it. All cans are designed so that the housing can be removed to access the wiring connections. Remove the housings and pull out the insulation. use a coathanger hook to pull out everything within 2' in the cavity where the light is mounted. This may be easy or tough depending on how the insulation is fastened in. Another possibility is that the same brand IC contact housings may be able to be retrofitted into the existing non IC frames that are in your ceiling. That's a long shot but may be worth looking into.

The Halogen bulbs are probably casting a wider circle of light than the R30 (IC) bulbs did. In designs that I do in kitchens, I purposly place recessed cans so the light will catch the cabinet fronts. It helps illuminate the cabinets which lightens up the space and also put more light on the counters. The halogen bulbs are much brighter than the IC bulbs were so you will notice the shadows more. What do you object to? Is it just the light falling on the cabinet fronts? You may be able to use a bulb with a more narrow beam pattern. First you need to know what the beam pattern is with what you are using. Look for a measureent in degrees or the packaging may just say Flood, narrow flood, spot. Start with that information and let me know what you are using and what the objection is. And yes, the placement has everything to do with the lighting. ginger@yourlightsite.com

My lights are a different brand, I think they are Juno. I hoped most worked the same way. I did do a search on your lights. Most of the trims available for them do say they have dual position socket supports and the diagram seems to indicate one position makes the bulb sit up higher in the can. So, making sure yours are set so that the bulb sits as high as possible in the can might be all you need to do. You can purchase new trims for yours and some might make the bulbs sit up higher in the can. Try the link below and click on the spec sheets for some of the different ones. If they were installed recently, and you told your electrician you wanted to use the CFLs he might have installed the wrong trims. If they are lights that were already there and you just wanted to change the bulbs, that might be where the problem is. If changing the position of the trims you have now doesn't do it, you could try replacing one of the trims with one that might allow the bulb to sit even higher up. You might have to talk to a lighting store or electrician who is familiar with your lights, though, to see if that would do it and make sure you get the correct one. I will keep my fingers crossed, because it would certainly be preferable to just change the position of the ones you have now. But at least if that doesn't do it, the new trims might be a solution much cheaper than new lights or higher electric bills. :) Let us know how you make out. The High Coilex baffle trim looks especially promising. Sue Here is a link that might be useful: Halo H5T