Bathroom Fan And Light

[James-W]

I have a question, but I think I already know the answer and the answer is "NO" but I will ask it anyway.

The bathroom fan we have is very old and makes quite a bit of noise. It has gotten worse in recent weeks. I took it apart and cleaned and lubricated the motor bearings, that helped out a bit, but it is still much more noisy that it used to be. So we decided to get a new one.

We picked out a real nice one that also has a light on it, a bigger unit but supposedly more quiet than the one we had. I will have to make the hole in the ceiling larger since this fan/light needs a larger opening, but that isn't a real big deal. I can do that easily and I can install the new unit without too much trouble. But I crawled up into the attic to check everything out, like the electrical power and the venting, and I now realize there is a problem.

The old fan had the electrical connection on one side, the new fan/light has the electrical connection on the opposite side. The wire from the wall switch is now too short to reach the electrical connections on the new fan/light, I would need about 6 more inches of wire to reach where I need to go.

Now, I could no doubt run the wires from the wall switch to a junction box and then come out of the junction with a piece of wire and go into the fan/light electrical connection point. The junction box would be in the attic, but it would be in plain sight and not hidden, which I think would meet code, but here is my question.

Would it meet code if I were to install about a three foot power cord with a plug on one end into the new fan/light and then instead of a junction box I put in a receptacle and plug the fan/light into the receptacle? I am pretty sure it would need to be hard wired, but I not positive.

 

[Terry D]

I don't know really if there is any violations on doing that. Only thing that it is not considered a appliance like a dishwasher or built-in microwave. I would just install the J-box and a short piece of wire and hardwire it

 

[Norcal]

It does not need to moved for repairs or maintenance & since the cord would be replacing permanent wiring I would say it not code compliant to use a cord, even the West Coast practice of cord & plug connecting air handlers & gas furnaces does not meet code but I happen to like that practice because it keeps HVAC people from messing with permanent wiring & is a sure disconnect,but as Terry D said in post #2 use a accessible J-box.

 

[nadogail]

So what if there is a blank coverplate in your wall or ceiling?

 

[Terry D]

So what if there is a blank coverplate in your wall or ceiling?

The j-box would be accessible from the attic

 

[James-W]

OK guys, thanks for the replies, I thought it needed to be hard wired but wasn't certain of that. I figured if I could use a power cord and plug it into a receptacle, should the fan/light ever need to be replaced it would be pretty simple to do. But then again, I doubt I will ever need to replace it in my lifetime.

Our house is an older one, built right after WWII and it has rafters rather than trusses. The bathroom is on the north side of the house, near the outer wall where the rafters are very low. So to do this fan/light exchange I have to work in an area where there is very little head room. As I am sure you are aware, it is hard to do anything when there is not much head room in which to work.

Anyway, I am sure I can hard wire it, but it will take awhile because of the limited room in which to work. But I can hard wire the fan/light first and then install the unit in the opening with the screws provided. My grandson will stand on a step stool in the bathroom and keep the unit even with the ceiling while I am in the attic with my little Ridgid impact and the screws.

Installing the junction box will be easier, not easy but easier, because there will be more head room in which to work. The junction box will be in plain sight and anyone who needs to look up there for whatever reason will be able to see the junction box right away and they will be able to see the wiring is going over to where the fan/light is.

I want to do everything to code because that way if we ever decide to sell the house and an inspector who actually knows what he/she is doing comes in to checkout the place, they won't find code violations that I will have to fix later on. Also, if it is done to code then we have no worries or concerns about something we did may possibly be a fire hazard.

 

[mrVanagon]

Many of the bathroom fans I've seen have an internal plug/receptacle setup to make replacing the motor easy in future. You pull the cover off, unplug the motor, unbolt it and it's out (without even turning off the breaker in most cases). I'd say just hard-wire in the new fan.

 

[sberry]

Leave the new wire long enough to drop thru the hole for hookup?

 

[dave*99]

Many of the bathroom fans I have installed are capable of being installed from the bathroom side. Without access to the attic / space above.

Attach a couple of feet of NM cable properly to the fan, attach the duct hose and slip the assembly in from the bathroom side.

Go into the attic and make connection to your new junction box located in an area with sufficient headroom.

 

[James-W]

I have installed a junction box in the attic. I used a square metal box and I installed an electrical outlet in the cover plate of the junction box. This way if I ever need to do any work in the attic I will be able to plug in a corded drill or saw or whatever else I may need to have power for. So the fan/light is now hard wired and I have the ability to use a corded power tool in the attic should the need arise.

Thank you one and all for the replies, I really do appreciate all the responses. I am glad that job is done, doing this kind of job in an attic with limited room in which to work is not much fun. But it is done and it works great so I guess all is well that ends well. The wife really likes the new fan and especially the new light built into the fan. Since the light and fan are real close to the shower, there is more light in the shower and she thinks that is just wonderful. I like it too, although I don't know that it makes a huge difference. I could see in the shower just fine without the new fan/light unit. I do enjoy the new fan though, real quiet and blows more cubic feet of air per minute than the old one did.