Ventilation Problem in Bathroom
 

I have a very small ensuite bathroom (approx. 5 ft x 7 ft) and I
renovated it by replacing a tiled 5'x 2.5' shower with a 36" corner
shower. There is a small problem with this renovation that we did not
think of: poor ventilation causing severe condensation on the walls
and wrecking the paint.

This is the reason (I think): Normally, in most bathrooms, there is a
lowered portion of the ceiling that goes over the tub. In my
bathroom, this lowered ceiling was kept in tact and the new shower has
a higher shower door, so I think it doesn't allow the steam to
ventilate the same way. We installed a brand new, fairly strong fan
(which is rated to work for a bathroom 4 times the size of this one)
and checked that it is ventilating properly through the tube in the
attic and to the outside of the house. It is.

I have a couple of questions:

What is this lowered area of the ceiling in the bathroom over the
tub/shower typically for? Can you tear this out? Would removing this
solve my problem?

Should I just install I higher-powered fan to solve the problem? I
can buy a super-duper heavy-duty fan that is used for huge rooms.

This condensation problem is especially prevalent in the winter, when
the bathroom is cold and there is more mist generated from a hot
shower.

Thanks in advance for your help!
Paula

Ventilation Problem in Bathroom
 

Paula wrote in message
om...
I have a very small ensuite bathroom (approx. 5 ft x 7 ft) and I
renovated it by replacing a tiled 5'x 2.5' shower with a 36" corner
shower. There is a small problem with this renovation that we did not
think of: poor ventilation causing severe condensation on the walls
and wrecking the paint.

This is the reason (I think): Normally, in most bathrooms, there is a
lowered portion of the ceiling that goes over the tub. In my
bathroom, this lowered ceiling was kept in tact and the new shower has
a higher shower door, so I think it doesn't allow the steam to
ventilate the same way. We installed a brand new, fairly strong fan
(which is rated to work for a bathroom 4 times the size of this one)
and checked that it is ventilating properly through the tube in the
attic and to the outside of the house. It is.

I have a couple of questions:

What is this lowered area of the ceiling in the bathroom over the
tub/shower typically for? Can you tear this out? Would removing this
solve my problem?

Should I just install I higher-powered fan to solve the problem? I
can buy a super-duper heavy-duty fan that is used for huge rooms.

This condensation problem is especially prevalent in the winter, when
the bathroom is cold and there is more mist generated from a hot
shower.

Thanks in advance for your help!
Paula

Take it easy on the hot showers.

The soffit has nothing to do with it.

Keeping the door and window open helps.

What is the CFM rating of your current fan? It should be taking care of the
problem, but, if you're turning that shower into a sauna it you'd need a fan
big enough to suck your eyeballs out. Your likely remedy is shorter showers
and lower water temperature.

Ventilation Problem in Bathroom
 

Paula wrote:

There is a small problem with this renovation that we did not
think of: poor ventilation causing severe condensation on the walls
and wrecking the paint.

This condensation problem is especially prevalent in the winter, when
the bathroom is cold and there is more mist generated from a hot
shower.

This sounds like normal condensation with bad paint to me. When the
walls are cold any hot shower is going to cause a lot of condensation on
the walls. What kind of paint did you use?

Something that might help (a little) is to use one of those heater fans.
Run the heater before you shower to warm the room up a bit and then
switch to the ventilation fan.

Ventilation Problem in Bathroom
 

ower.

Thanks in advance for your help!
Paula

Your problem seems to be that you have no way of getting air to the
bathroom for the fan to move air out of the space. You could test my
theory by leaving the door open. (Geez, take a shower with your
clothes on if you have to for the test.)
The solution is to put a louvered vent above the door or even in the
bottom of the door if possible. That's the idea.

Ventilation Problem in Bathroom
 

"Paula" wrote in message
om...
I have a very small ensuite bathroom (approx. 5 ft x 7 ft) and I
renovated it by replacing a tiled 5'x 2.5' shower with a 36" corner
shower. There is a small problem with this renovation that we did not
think of: poor ventilation causing severe condensation on the walls
and wrecking the paint.

This is the reason (I think): Normally, in most bathrooms, there is a
lowered portion of the ceiling that goes over the tub. In my
bathroom, this lowered ceiling was kept in tact and the new shower has
a higher shower door, so I think it doesn't allow the steam to
ventilate the same way. We installed a brand new, fairly strong fan
(which is rated to work for a bathroom 4 times the size of this one)
and checked that it is ventilating properly through the tube in the
attic and to the outside of the house. It is.

I have a couple of questions:

What is this lowered area of the ceiling in the bathroom over the
tub/shower typically for? Can you tear this out? Would removing this
solve my problem?

Should I just install I higher-powered fan to solve the problem? I
can buy a super-duper heavy-duty fan that is used for huge rooms.

This condensation problem is especially prevalent in the winter, when
the bathroom is cold and there is more mist generated from a hot
shower.

Thanks in advance for your help!
Paula

soffit. it's usually put in to make the shower area appear smaller. you
don't need one, but you might check there's no ductwork inside it before
taking it down. that's a favorite place to hide things.

tile all the painted surfaces! that'll give you a much better sound when you
sing in the shower.

Ventilation Problem in Bathroom
 

In article , Paula ruminated:
I have a very small ensuite bathroom (approx. 5 ft x 7 ft) and I
renovated it by replacing a tiled 5'x 2.5' shower with a 36" corner
shower. There is a small problem with this renovation that we did not
think of: poor ventilation causing severe condensation on the walls
and wrecking the paint.

Then you have poor paint. You need to re-paint with a waterproof paint. That
way it can condense all it wants. Alternative, tile the walls -- ceramic
tile laughs at condensation.

Alternatively, there is water getting behind the wall through your renovations
(perhaps your drain is leaking where you joined your shower drain to the
floor drain, and the water is pooling under the shower pan?), and the
water vapor behind the paint is causing it to bubble.

ventilate the same way. We installed a brand new, fairly strong fan
(which is rated to work for a bathroom 4 times the size of this one)
and checked that it is ventilating properly through the tube in the
attic and to the outside of the house. It is.

Also make sure you have a supply of fresh air, as mentioned elsewhere.

What is this lowered area of the ceiling in the bathroom over the
tub/shower typically for? Can you tear this out? Would removing this
solve my problem?

Probably not. Everything in the tub/shower area needs to be waterproof.

This condensation problem is especially prevalent in the winter, when
the bathroom is cold

Install a heater in the bathroom, and heat it before taking a shower.
It helps.

--
Eric Lee Green
http://www.badtux.org


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