KBIS New Product: Panasonic WhisperGreen Bathroom Fan
Panasonic expands on their successful low-noise Whisper series with an environmentally friendly version that sports nice new features, too.
We first learned about Panasonic's WhisperFit bathroom fan when we were renovating our first floor bathroom (our first project!). We needed a fan that would fit in a ceiling cavity that wasn't all that deep. Jeannie was also intent on finding one that didn't sound like a wind tunnel. Panasonic's Whisper line excelled on both counts.
At this year's Kitchen and Bath show, Panasonic demo'ed a new addition to that series--the WhisperGreen--that adds low power conception. Even better, it adds intelligent automation in the fan controls that used to require the purchase of an expensive wall switch to accomplish.
The new WhisperGreen uses a DC motor instead of AC. According to the rep I talked to, that allowed them to have a self-regulated variable speed fan that adjusts to resistance and can maintain a standard throughput of air (measured as CFM) regardless of how many elbows or other resistance factors exist in a real-world installation. A standard CFM ensures your fan isn't under powered and helps to avoid leaving humidity in the air.
The DC motor also draws less current. As a result, you get lower electricity utilization without impacting effectiveness.
They've also been able to add a motion detector to the unit. In fact, the new units never turn off--they just run at a very low CFM. When someone enters the room, the CFM kicks up to a standard level for ventilating that space. Even better, when you leave the room, the fan can be set to stay on for a pre-determined length of time using a small dial just inside the fan grill. This is better than most models that turn off immediately because it can take up to an hour to remove humid air from a room after a typical shower. In fact, we've found that with our timer allowing the fan to run for an hour after the light has shut off and we've left the room helps to keep down shower mildew which means less cleaning needed of mildew in the shower. Always a good thing.
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