Help with my bathroom repair shopping list?
I need to buy a new bathroom exhaust fan. Sometimes yellow beads of moisture drip down the walls from the ceiling (and they’re yellow because the previous homeowners were smokers). I think a bigger/better fan will help. But apparently there are different speeds (CFM?) and I don’t know what I should get. I don’t know what I have, either.
Also, I need to buy a part for the showerhead. It isn’t securely attached to the wall and I think a piece is broken, but I don’t know what it’s called. It’s a circular metal part that goes around the arm of the showerhead. I assume that it is supposed to grip the arm and the wall, but mine just twirls around the arm and isn’t connected to the wall at all. What’s this part called?
Posted in How To
Not sure about your fan. The circular part is purely decorative and just covers up the hole in the wall where the shower arm comes out. Go to any hardware store and explain what you’re looking for to any associate and they will point you to it. It will be around the new shower heads.
here’s a link to them on ebay.
the little round thing does nothing . made to make the hole around the pipe look pretty . if your shower head is moving , well that means the pipe isnt attached to a stud or strap . cieling fans . get an electrian to install or someone who knows electric . good luck
If you’re going to replace the vent fan yourself, you’ll need to take the decorative cover off the under side, (what you see when you look up), and measure the dimensions of the inner box, (where the actual motor is located). That dimension is the opening which you have available for the new unit. Then measure the width and length of the bathroom, including the tub/shower area and take both dimensions to your local home improvement store. They should be able to show you which vent system will effectively change the air in your room, to limit the amount of moisture and odors. Every fan has a rating as to how much air it moves, so the folks at the store should be able to do the math, if you don’t want to, and tell you which one will work for you. The little chrome ring around the shower pipe, is, as the other folks said, just decoration. The shower pipe should be strapped to a 2×4 stud in the wall behind the shower. If it’s loose, then it’s broken the strap or never was secured very well to start with.
There are different CFM fans. This stands for cubic feet per minute. You should have 8 changes of air per hour. Measure your bathroom. Multiply the length by the width and this will give you square footage. Example: 8 ft long 5 ft wide equals 40 sq feet. This allows for an 8 foot high ceiling. You would need a 40 CFM fan. Check out Panasonics website and also Braun. The shower part you are talking about is an escutcheon. It is merely a plate to cover an oversized hole around the shower arm. If you remove the showerhead, the escutcheon will slide off. You will see little tabs that can be bent to make it fit tighter. You should use some caulk behind it to secure it to the wall and prevent moisture from running into the wall.
The eschusion plate is just a dressing piece, and does not hold your shower head to the wall. The riser pipe of the shower should be secured to a wall stud, or a blocking piece installed between the studs. Unfortunately you probably can’t get to this unless you rip open the wall on the other side of your shower.
As far as the fan, look for high CFM, quiet operation, and good pressure differential range. You could also help your problem by repainting your bathroom ceiling. Use a good quality sealer/primer and then a gloss white coat.
Ring around the shower pipe is a ‘flange’. CFM rating for a bathroom is about 50CFM for a small bathroom and 80-120 for a larger bathroom with a shower. If you can afford a few extra dollars consider a “quiet” or a “silent” fan.
As far as the loose pipe in the wall, and the escutcheon,since it is loose, pull it away from the wall. Purchase a can of expanding foam sealant, and insert the nozzle into the wall space, and spray the foam, until it backs out of the hole. Once it sets up, or hardens, the pipe will not move, yet the insulation can be cut off, if you ever access the wall, in order to replace the whole faucet. Slide the escutcheon back against the wall, and caulk it, to keep moisture out of the wall. Also, caulk around the handle escutcheons, and the tub spout. These are areas that allow water behind the wall, so keep them caulked.