I've got a wall-mounted attic exhaust fan that's great at moving air and creating a strong airflow, but it's quite noisy—like having a generator running! I'm more worried about the noise bothering our neighbors than us inside. A contractor suggested swapping it out for a quieter roof-mounted mushroom fan, but I'm concerned it might not move as much air and I'm also nervous about drilling holes in the roof, which sounds like a recipe for leaks. Does anyone have advice on whether I should make this switch or stick with the current setup?
5 Answers
If you're dealing with a gable exhaust fan, I'd recommend sticking with it. If noise is a concern, consider replacing the fan with a quieter model instead rather than changing the whole setup. Roof fans can be more trouble than they're worth!
I made a similar swap recently, and the roof-mounted fan worked a lot better at moving air with less noise directed toward the neighbors. But watch out for vibration—adding a rubber isolation gasket between the fan and mounting frame helped a lot. You might also find it more efficient at pulling heat out since it's a more direct exhaust path!
If the wall-mounted fan is doing a good job and the neighbors haven't complained, maybe you don't need to change anything. It could be a solution looking for a problem!
I had noisy exhaust fans too, and most of them are now replaced with Panasonic models—they're way quieter! For the one fan that was harder to replace, I swapped out just the internal parts, which also helped a ton.
Why not just replace your existing fan with a newer, quieter version? There are modern options available that might solve your noise issue without changing your setup. Just make sure to check if your current fan is belt-driven or direct drive; it might make a difference!
That's a fair point! I'm just worried they might be too nice to actually say anything. I just want to be considerate!