Whoa! Would you say that the Broan QT90E bath vent has major design flaw!?
I recently installed a Broan QT90E bath vent fan and was appalled to find out that , after powering up the fan in the ceiling above the bathroom , in the attic space above, the air was not only exhausting out of its port to the duct BUT there were so many holes in the sheet metal enclosure that the moist air from the bath was also partly exhausting into the attic through these holes and seams. I would say that this is a major problem and is UNACCEPTABLE AND A POOR DESIGN.
You mean to tell me that the design engineers who designed the enclosure thought nothing of the fact that this thing leaks like a seive, exhausting the moist bathroom air into the attic space above, despite connecting the duct properly? There was nothing in the installation instructions warniing of this and no where did it say that you should seal all of these holes with the best sealing tape you could find. Which is what I had to do.
The holes I am talking about are the various holes that are pierced into the sheet metal enclosure made during the manufacture of the vent fan. They are there for whatever reason. Also, the plastic fitting that you snap onto the fan’s outlet that connects to ducting you supply also inherently leaks around its connection to the housing as well-I had to seal those too.
Bad design! They should know better. Your whole reason for buying this fan is to get rid of the damp moist air in your house that can do much damage to the walls if not exhosuted resulting in peeling paint and mold.
I don’t know if their higher end fans also have this problem but , regardless, no fan should be leaking like that.
Just wanted to warn others and the world about this. I hope this reaches the CEO of Broan as well as the head of their engineering department.
Replies
You didn't notice the holes while you were installing it?
Broan vent fan flaws
Didn't the design engineers notice them?
Broan vent fan
Yes they are there but who would think anything of them? They are not defects-er, I should say they are defects now.
When you buy any product there is an assumption that it will work properly without it having flaws no one would think about.
It's one of these things that you wouldn't even give a second thought to until you turn it on.
I would bet that almost all vent fans have this problem I'm guessing.
"I hope this reaches the CEO
"I hope this reaches the CEO of Broan as well as the head of their engineering department."
So, when you contacted Broan to make them aware of your concern, what was their response?
Professionals seal those kinds of leaks with foil tape or mastic when installing new duct on any installation.
Non-professionals normally don't seal the duct seams let alone any other leaks.
I'm not going to waste my time looking, but there's greater than a 50/50 chance than in the installation manual it suggests sealing joints and gaps.
Sealing the holes
Nope no where does it say in the manual anything about sealing the holes in the metal housing. No where.