It was the switch
The fan runs off the light, or a switch was off. Nothing wrong with anything, and now you know which switch it is.
Exhaust Fan Not Working? Or Working and Useless?
A dead fan is the easy one. A fan that runs and changes nothing is the one causing damage.
Bathroom or laundry exhaust fan not turning on, gone noisy, or running while the room still steams up? Here is what each one means and which of them is quietly putting water into your ceiling. Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Maitland and Port Stephens.
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Switch it off at the wall if
Do not keep running it
- You can smell burning or hot plastic when it runs
- It grinds, screeches or has suddenly got much louder
- It starts and stops by itself, or runs slowly then stops
- There is a brown stain on the ceiling around it
- Water is dripping from it, or from the ceiling near it
- It has a heat lamp and the lamp flickers or the housing is discoloured
A stalled motor keeps drawing power and turns it into heat, in a ceiling, usually surrounded by insulation and dust. Turn it off at the wall and leave it off. Someone hurt or you can see smoke: call 000. Anything else here: ring us.
There are two completely different problems here
The fan does not runA switch, the motor or the wiring. Annoying, easy to diagnose, and nothing is getting damaged while you wait.
The fan runs and the room still steamsThe worse one. It is moving air but not moving it outside, so the moisture is going into your ceiling instead.
The second one is the reason a fan can look perfectly healthy while mould spreads across the ceiling and the paint starts to lift. People replace extractor fans for years without fixing it, because the fan was never the fault.
The usual cause is simple: the flexible duct above the ceiling has come off the fan or off the roof vent, or on some older homes it was never run outside at all and just blows into the roof space.
What you can check yourself
All from the floor. Nothing here needs a ladder or the roof space.
Work out which switch actually runs it
Most bathroom fans are wired to come on with the light, so there is nothing separate to turn on. Others have their own switch, sometimes unlabelled, sometimes a three-gang plate where the middle one is the fan.
- On with the lightNo separate switch. Very common
- Its own switchOften unlabelled, beside the light switch
- A three-in-one unitSeparate switches for fan, light and heat lamps
- A timerRuns on for a few minutes after the light goes off
- A humidity sensorStarts itself when the room gets steamy
If the light works and the fan does nothing on the same switch, the supply is reaching the fitting and the fan itself has failed.
Hold a square of toilet paper up to it
The simplest test there is, and it separates the two problems. Switch the fan on and hold a single sheet flat against the grille.
It holds itself thereThe fan is genuinely pulling air. If the room still steams up, the problem is where that air is going, not the fan.It falls straight downThe fan is spinning but shifting almost nothing. Usually a clogged or failing motor, or a duct that has come off.Look for the signs it is not going outside
You do not need to go into the roof to suspect this. Any of these point the same way:
- Mould on the ceilingEspecially in the corners and above the shower
- A stain around the fanCondensation coming back down
- Peeling paintOr paint bubbling off the ceiling
- Steam lingeringMirror still fogged long after a shower
- No vent outsideNothing visible on the eave or the roof
- A musty roof spaceDamp smell through the manhole
If it is completely dead, check the switchboard
Open the switchboard door only, never unscrew a panel, and leave anything labelled Solar or Battery alone. A switch is ON when the lever points up. Exhaust fans usually sit on the lighting circuit, so if the bathroom light works the circuit is fine and the fault is at the fan.
If a lever is down, push it firmly up. If it snaps back, leave it off and ring us. Safety switch keeps tripping >
What your result means
The fan has failed
Dead, or turning but moving nothing. Replacing it is quick, and a modern one is quieter and shifts far more air.
It is not venting outside
The fan works and the ceiling is still getting wet. We check the duct above and run it out properly.
Get it checked >Want this sorted?
Tell us what is going on. We ring you back, usually the same day.
When to call an electrician about an exhaust fan
It is dead, or it hums without turning
The motor has seized or the connection has failed. Either way it is wired in above a bathroom ceiling, so it is licensed work rather than a swap you can do.
The room still steams up
We check what is happening above the ceiling and duct it out properly. Replacing the fan without fixing that just gives you a newer fan and the same mould.
It has heat lamps and one has failed
Three-in-one units run hot in a small space. If the housing has discoloured or the lamps flicker, it is worth looking at rather than fitting another lamp.
You are renovating the bathroom
The cheapest time to duct it properly is while the ceiling is open. Getting the fan right during the job costs a fraction of chasing mould afterwards.
Renovation wiring >Renting, or managing rentals?
Renting? Mould in a bathroom is worth reporting in writing, and it is worth saying whether the fan runs at all. A fan that runs but does nothing is easy to dismiss as a cleaning problem when it is not.
Property managers: recurring bathroom mould is usually a ventilation fault rather than a tenant one. We check the fan and where it actually vents, and report what we find with photos, so the same complaint does not come back every winter. Property maintenance >
Related home services
Exhaust fan questions
Why does my bathroom exhaust fan not turn on?
Most are wired to run with the light, so check whether it is on the same switch. If the light works and the fan does nothing, the motor or its connection has failed.
My exhaust fan runs but the bathroom still steams up. Why?
It is moving air but not moving it outside. Usually the duct has come off in the roof space, or it was never ducted outside at all, so the moisture goes into your ceiling.
Why is my exhaust fan so noisy?
Worn bearings, or a build-up of lint and dust on the blades. A fan that has got louder over time is on its way out and they are not expensive to replace.
Why does my exhaust fan keep running after I turn the light off?
It has a run-on timer, which is deliberate and a good thing. It clears the steam after you leave. Most can be adjusted.
Is mould on my bathroom ceiling an electrical problem?
Often it starts as one. If the fan is dead, undersized or not ducted outside, the moisture stays in the room and the ceiling. Fixing the fan is usually the first step.
Can I replace a bathroom exhaust fan myself?
No. It is wired in, it is usually on a lighting circuit, and in a bathroom the wiring rules are stricter. It is licensed electrical work in NSW.