window in shower wall

[June]

My tub surround needs to be redone. I've read the good info in another recent thread. Thanks! In the last redo a pane of obscure glass was sealed into place over the ~36x8 window opening. The old crank out window appears to be on the outside. I want a window that can open or a vent fan. I plan to take the old surround down to the studs and start over, so I can resize the window opening if I need to. What is the best way to deal with that window issue? Is it better to stay with a sealed pane, and put in a ceiling vent, which is not there, or is there a good replacement custom window that won't cause problems in a shower? Or can a fan be installed in the outside vertical wall? The bathroom has no way to ventilate. In my climate there are several months when I don't use either heat or AC, so there is no air moving in there at all.
June in central Mo

[JD]

Hi June,

If you are going to put a window above the bathroom, it will need to be tempered glass. Many mobile homes were built with a 32" wide by 8" tall window. The smallest that you can get a custom vinyl dual pane is about 10-1/2". The last time I dealt with these windows, I ordered just the dual pane tempered glass and glazed it into the 32x8 opening myself.

I would think that the best solution would be to install an exhaust fan. There are many to choose from. You will want to vent it to outside the home. I install them through the roof. I have not found a mobile home with a roof wall and soffit that will work for a side discharge ceiling fan. There are wall mount fans that exhaust through the wall, but I have never installed one of those.

[Jim from Canada]

I agree with the vent fan being the best solution. If it can be avoided don't put a window in a shower. They have a habit of causing problems in the future with the shower water hitting them. Go for the highest CFM you can find if you get a vent fan. A move you won't regret.

Jim

[Guest]

Hi June,
When I bought my MH many years ago I had no window, no interior light coming in, only hideous pile carpet (not ever wise in a bathroom), a strange patterned wallboard and only the overhead interior light to go by. When I was outside working in the yard I looked up to and noticed that there was in fact a window! I pulled all the wallboard and the tub surround down to find that someone had walled and placed the surround over it! Since it was the old jalouse/crank style it had become worn out and had apparently not sealed correctly in years. During that time it leaked down into the wall and of course, onto the OSB/Particle combo flooring beneath. What a mess! I caulked the window shut 'til I could figure out what to do with it and about the problem. Mine was an odd size in today's standard, but was not too uncommon for older mobile homes...46" length x 8" tall. No one locally had anything close and all suggested altering the external wall to either broaden the hole to accommodate a more standardized vertical window or close the area in more to be able to install the smaller, more easily found horizontal size. That would have required more materials (siding, wood, etc). than would already be needed due to the water damage. I was shopping through the Asheville MH Parts hyperlink on MH Repair searching for an odd sized door and called to ask a detailed question about the door. While I was on the phone I mentioned my window dilemma. Make a long store short...they had a 46" x 8" window custom made that raises and lowers as a storm window with screen. I personally installed it (very easy to do) and it has worked perfectly. Asheville MHP had it factory built to my measurements and specs. I cannot give you an exact amount of how much it ran because I also bought a slew of wall outlets to replace the older, brown Bakelite's that were in the trailer originally, but the total for window AND couple rooms of outlets was somewhere in the neighborhood of $76 total. I have considered going to Lowe's where they sell the frosted clear contact paper or that with the pattern of leaded glass, but mine is high and horizontal so clear for me has worked fine. Tint/temper was given as an option when the specs were being taken down for the window along with the color of the metal, but I didn't think that much about it at the time. I was just thrilled to have a solution and the nice folks at Asheville made it simple and gave me exactly what I asked for and what I needed....no remodeling or structural re-adjusts needed!

[June]

Thank you everyone for good responses. When I settle on a plan I'll take pictures of project and post them. I like the idea of an exhaust fan, but am fearful of making a hole in the roof. Perhaps I shouldn't be.

Does the notify me when a reply is posted sometimes not work?

June

[Yanita]

Hi June,

The notify me response does not seem to work for very many people, me included....hopefully Mark is still working on that feature.

~Yanita~