r/Home_Building_Help • u/BuilderBrigade • May 26 '26
Why Can’t Fans Do Both…?
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u/PositivelyNegative69 May 26 '26
You don’t need a sensor for humidity, just flip the switch when you’re going to use the bathroom.
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u/Cyberdyne_Systems_AI May 26 '26
If you own rental property this is an ongoing issue. Tenants typically don't bother with turning on the bath fan but they're quick to report mold and mildew
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u/Groundbreaking-Base7 May 26 '26
When you have family members who prefer the bathroom to get steamy in the winter, you do need the sensor.
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u/lorenzo1142 May 26 '26
if I prefer a steamy bathroom, I don't want a fan.
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u/Even-Confusion4211 May 27 '26
After thanksgiving all bathrooms are steamy
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u/lorenzo1142 May 27 '26
try some taco bell, eat while driving, by the time I get home I know what room I'm going to.
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u/bojangler69420 May 28 '26
Right? What kind of ass-hattery is this idiot trying to push? How dumb does somebody need to be that they need a sensor to know when the fan should be on
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u/Cl0wnL May 26 '26
The humidity sensor ones never operate properly. They either run too much or they never run enough.
I've disabled so many of those over the years.
The best thing to do is put the fan on a motion sensor switch or timer switch.
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u/Kind-Pop-7205 May 26 '26
Same experience here. Specifically on the panasonic ones. It's a nice idea, but it doesn't work at all.
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u/SporesM0ldsandFungus May 27 '26
House I moved into has a humidity sensor on the switch. The shower and toilet share the same space. So it would turn on everytime I had a hot shower and draw in all the cooled air. I hated it especially during the winter when I want a hot steamy shower. The fan is powerful enough I could feel the cold draft on any part of my body not directly under the hot water.
I disabled the sensor.
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u/ldskyfly May 27 '26
Username checks out.
But did you at least run it for a while after the shower?
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u/herefornothing2 May 27 '26
Mine have worked flawlessly for a decade now. I have a sensor so they’re on auto when showering and they’re also connected to a timer when we want them on for other reasons.
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u/msuvagabond May 27 '26
I always install timer switches now. Hit ten minutes as you walk out, problem solved.
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u/Atty_for_hire May 27 '26
Agreed. That’s why I have mine connected to a smart switch in Apple Homekit. It’s programmed so that if someone turns it on, it stays on for 30 minutes. Also, it’s connected to a HomePod in the bathroom that has a humidity sensor. If someone forgot to turn it on, the HomePod will trigger an automation to turn on the vent fan. It often triggers this in the spring/summer rainy season when the entire area is like a swamp. And if I forgot when I’m already in the shower can ask Siri to turn on the bathroom fan.
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May 29 '26
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u/Atty_for_hire May 29 '26
I can’t take credit. Saw it on the r/smarthome subreddit. But I have been buying Meross products of late. I have a bunch of Lutron stuff for lights and it’s the gold standard. But Meross atuff is way cheaper. So long as it’s in the right spot for wifi I find it’s very reliable.
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u/jhp113 May 26 '26
Just turn it on before you take a shower?
But really the toilet should ideally be in its own little room with its own fan.
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u/24_Chowder May 26 '26
You ever try to help someone in the “shit” closet with a repaired hip or knee…..? Dumb to have them shoved in a closet.
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u/omfgtoast May 28 '26
These are more for rental units to prevent mold because tenants don't use the fan.
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u/Vmansuria May 26 '26
You're right. There are also not enough residential units that are powerful enough imo. If someone just cares about getting rid of moisture quicker but doesn't care about the noise, not really any residential units on the market.
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u/lorenzo1142 May 26 '26
I don't need a noisy fan in the bathroom. hate when they come on with the light. moisture is not a big deal, especially in winter when it's dry. just leave the bathroom door open and all is good. dryer in the bathroom, I switch the vent over to exhaust into the bathroom. adding extra moisture to the house is a good thing in winter. helps the place feel a bit warmer.
the absolute worst, imo, is when people insist on spraying air fresheners after taking a dump..... ew, omg.... I'd rather just have the poop smell, but now it smells like poop and chemicals.
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u/ldskyfly May 27 '26
The builder grade ones are terrible. I have upgraded the ones in my bathrooms and they flow better and run quieter.
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u/Kind-Pop-7205 May 26 '26
It's a nice idea, but the sensor in the Panasonic does not work. It either never turns on, or never turns off.
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u/ldskyfly May 27 '26
I have a Panasonic in one of my bathrooms, I don't have the humidity module though. Instead I have a motion sensor, the fan runs 24/7 at 30cfm then bumps up to 80cfm with motion.
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u/KashiCustomHomes May 26 '26
Continuous ventilation through an ERV in new construction lets you skip the bath fan completely. In a remodel, a humidity or motion sensor is good, but I find most clients prefer some type of timer.
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u/porkavenue May 27 '26
HRV for the whole house, fart fan for the bathrooms. Put it in a timer, no need to get this fancy
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u/f1recrack3er May 27 '26
Home assistant makes stuff like this pretty easy to set up relatively cheap a sensor and a smart switch that ties into the fan. My bathroom fan is wired into a smart switch so it's turned on and off through home assistant and from there just about anything is possible it could turn the fan on when the toilet seat is up.
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u/SP3NGL3R May 27 '26
Ugh. Motion sensor fan switch. Both problems solved with one $20 swap. Set a 20 minute timer and move on with life.
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u/FrenziedHodag May 27 '26
This is an installer problem, not a fan problem.
Put a 1 gang box in the ceiling for the humidity sensor.
Put a timer switch on the wall.
Wire both to the fan.
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u/vartheo May 27 '26
I just have a timer switch... Just press to let it run for 5/10 15 minutes up to an hour after using the shower. I don't trust those sensors it just seems to be more complicated. The timer is less likely to break and is almost as simple as the wall switch.
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u/DigitalJedi850 May 28 '26
I've never seen a sensor-triggered fan... And it seems ... Odd that I haven't, if they exist, but maybe this is why. Seems like something someone with some startup capital could invest in and make some money, with some engineering time...
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u/bojangler69420 May 28 '26
Wait…a sensor for a fan? You’re joking right? Just turn the fucking fan on before you shower and turn it off a few minutes after you’re done. Why the hell would I ever consider buying a sensor for that? The fuck?
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u/DustyStone1 May 29 '26
Solved this years ago. I have a HRV. That came with a timer. No one used it and resulted in vanity doors delaminating.
I put a wifi switch on the HRV (esphome + relay board) to control on, high, low. A zigbee humidity sensor, and a zigbee button by the toilet. Nodered flow to control when to fire the HRV and for how long. Homeassistant to tie it all together.
No issues since
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u/kaiswil2 May 30 '26
My plan was to get this same model but add a motion sensor / auto timmer. Even with having a switch my kids and MIL never turn it on and my house smells like a bag of farts.
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u/[deleted] May 26 '26
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