Bathroom ventilation

[Binfire]

Wondering if anyone can advise us here. Our bathroom has no extractor fan and the grout is starting to go mouldy in places, where the bathroom has been left damp after showers and baths. I keep on on top of it with mould remover but need a more long term solution, especially as we have a houseful of teenagers who are far too busy to open windows/ squeege tiles etc after using the bathroom.
Does anyone know the best/ cheapest way to add in an extractor fan or other form of ventilation to stop any further problems? Any advice gratefully received 😊

I need to sort this very same issue too, so hope you get some good answers!

I have those little disposable dehumidifiers. They are about a pound and I replace them every three weeks or so as they are full. They work a treat in our bathroom.

We have a dehumidifier, it's amazing how much water is extracted

It's not expensive as long as your bathroom has an external wall. A days work for a good tradesman. Plus the extractor cost obviously.

@DrySherry apologies if this is a daft question but what sort of tradesperson do I need? Is it an electrician or a builder type person?
We have an external wall but it’s fully tiled so I’m guessing I’d need a tiler afterwards to re-tile the wall! I was kind of hoping there might be another way around it as a tiler cost me £600 recently for a much smaller area of tiling.

Suggest getting an electrician to give you a quote for an extractor fan. It may not be as much as you imagine, and the tiles might not need that much work afterwards (if any).

I have the extractor on with the window open to get rid of the worst, then put the dehumidifier in there with window and door closed. (I know you're not supposed to put them in a bathroom, but it's a fairly big room.)

But in the meantime I would insist that your family opens the window after showering. I don't understand how they can be so distracted or busy that something so simple is out of the question.

I'm in the same boat and have been quoted 450 to install by an electrician. They need to core through the wall. It's a top floor flat.

Opening the window for 15 mins after a shower will sort it. It's not too much to ask teens to comply.

Do you have trickle vents?

They can be retrofitted to existing windows so not too expensive and might help at bit.

I've got one that is an extractor fan and spotlight in one so it's fitted on the ceiling and extracts up through the loft using a hose, a bit like on a tumble dryer, and then outside.

It’s worth investing in a decent dehumidifier and always opening the windows after a bath/shower. I’ve had the same problem and it makes a huge difference.

Has your bathroom got a little window that can be left open a crack all the time, thus bypassing the forgetful teens?

We do not have an extractor fan in the bathroom and keep the little window open a crack all the time (the big window is opened for at least 30 mins after a shower) and we haven't had a speck of mould in the 8 years we have been here.

We never open our bathroom window and one bathroom doesn’t have a window. Strong extractor fans work well in this house. Never had to get rid of mould. Nice big heated towel rails and uhf make a huge difference too.

Cant the teenagers learn to open a window? Mine did it and it works well and you don’t need to spend any money.

You can cut through tiles, you shouldn't need to retile the wall!

the installer will have hole saws for several sizes of duct. Here (with any kind of luck) is an image of a 70 mm hole saw for tile
https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fi5.walmartimages.com%2Fasr%2Fa9ccf056-9ff4-40c8-9afd-a718f005acc9_1.0eaf1b8c52fabb027071a3b000437333.jpeg%3FodnWidth%3D612%26odnHeight%3D612%26odnBg%3Dffffff&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=a1311f900241cfd15131c5922d26ab59fcc54d2724f18f30a314835b383f6be3&ipo=images

Brilliant thanks everyone for your advice. We have been in touch with an electrician to get a quote for installing an extractor fan in the external wall. Hopefully it won’t make a mess of the tiles!

I know it could probably be managed with window opening but the only window is a large one so couldn’t be left open all the time.

I hate a damp bathroom so from about October to March I keep a dehumidifier in the bathroom beside the towel rail. It quickly takes out the moisture in the air after a shower and helps to dry the towels too.

Is your bathroom on the top floor of your house? I'm having an extractor installed in a couple of weeks - it's going through the ceiling, with the extractor unit in the loft, expelling the damp air through the soffit (not the roof). Apparently this type of extractor is the most powerful and quietest. The electrician recommended through the ceiling rather than the wall, if it's possible (obviously not if you live in a flat or it's a ground floor bathroom!).

I have the same issue, despite the fact that we always open our bathroom window after every shower (even in the winter). But still, small mould starts accumulating in the bathtub sealant. I think generally our place has humidity issue.
I've recently started using squeege to remove any water from the wall and bathtub sealant after everyone's done with their shower for the day. And sometimes I'll just wipe them with a cloth as well. I'm guessing in theory that should help.

Our bathroom is terrible for damp. I did get an extractor installed when the bathroom was re-done a couple of years ago, but tbh, it's made little difference. I keep meaning to see if I can get a more powerful one installed.
In the meantime, we keep on top of the damp by using a window vac after every shower and leaving the window and door open. I also bought a large dehumidifier last week which actually has made a difference. I leave it running outside the bathroom and it collects loads of water. The bathroom door had actually started to stick as it expanded with the damp but it's shrunk down again after a few sessions with the dehumidifier

I'd like to second what PPs have said about an extractor fan in the roof. Our electrician seemed very unimpressed when I asked him to install an extractor fan. Then we had a loft extension done and the plan in the loft bathroom was always to extract through the ceiling. Our loft man fitted the same thing in the old bathroom, with a (short) pipe to a venting tile on the roof just above. No need to drill through existing wall tiles!

Lots of vents are in ceilings. Just vent externally through ceiling/loft void. It’s hardly rocket science.