Any fan in the kitchen is supposed to be a very beneficial solution to clear the air and make everything a bit better overall. However, if a kitchen exhaust fan is too loud, it can be more of a distraction than anything.
Fortunately, there are some solutions out there that work to help keep a kitchen exhaust fan a little quieter overall.
Learning how to soundproof a kitchen exhaust fan does not take that much time. Not only that, but most of it can be done by a person without having to hire a professional.
1. Prepping Before Soundproofing
Before going out and buying any products to help with soundproofing, it is important to take the time to look at what exactly is causing the problem.
In some cases, there might be no chance of even fixing an issue without replacing the fan. In other scenarios, a simple fix is all that is needed.
Identify the source of the sound to have an understanding on what needs done in the beginning. In some cases, the sound might be because there is something stuck inside the fan. The simplest solution is to remove all the gunk and keep up on that going forward.
In other cases, it might just need some soundproofing material to help out, and the only way to really get that fixed is to install something that works.
If a person can’t identify what exactly is going wrong with the sound overall, assistance if possible. They might be able to help with the identification process, and that is something always worth exploring overall.
2. Proper Insulation
By insulating the kitchen exhaust fan, a person will be able to notice a lot of different benefits overall. For starters, it is going to eliminate the sound considerably, especially if soundproofing material is used.
Look for something that has a lot of mass to it, and can fit into the area for the fan as well. Not all pieces of material are going to work correctly with the insulation, but some people will opt for foam, while others will go with mass loaded vinyl (Amazon) and other solutions out there.
Insulation done correctly is going to help cut down on the possibility of any moist air condensation problems as well. Some people run into that in the kitchen, so it is something to keep in mind for any fans.
If there is any condensation whatsoever, it is going to start to do some serious damage to everything else around the fan as well.
All of a sudden, a person is having to spend a lot more money to make fixes to a fan that did not have something too wrong with it.
3. Tighten Everything Up
Most people do not really pay too much attention to their kitchen exhaust fan unless it starts to act up and not operate as it should.
When that happens, it might be something as simple as tightening everything up and seeing if there is anything structurally wrong with it overall.
Make sure to check all the screws and the fan blades themselves, and see if there iss anything that has been compromised. In some cases, it could just be a fan that is old and has a lot of mileage on it.
Eventually, everything breaks down a little at some point. If it is too much damage, it might make more sense to go ahead and replace it rather than try to fix it.
If there is something very simple wrong with it, it could be as simple as getting things back in working order in a couple of minutes.
All it really takes to tighten everything up with the fan is a screwdriver and hands. Take a look around every part of the fan, inside and out. If anything is loose, it will be pretty easy to identify what went wrong.
4. De-Clogging Fan Blades
It is recommended to spend some time to de-clog the fan blades every once in a while. Otherwise, the blades will stop functioning the way they should, and it could lead to further issues.
The whole purpose of a kitchen exhaust fan is to help suck out any debris or kitchen greases in the air, so it makes sense that they are going to collect some grime overall on the blades.
People tend to ignore de-clogging their fans too often, simply because they generally do not need that much maintenance. If it gets to be too much, the fan will give some warning signs by shaking and making a decent amount of noise.
If a person ignores that even more, it could start to break and need replaced entirely.
When de-clogging the fan blades, make sure that everything else is cleaned off as well. It just makes sense to put in an extra bit of work while up there, instead of waiting for another time.
5. Upgrading The Size Of The Fan
There are usually some kitchen exhaust fans (Amazon) designed to handle normal cooking in the kitchen every single day. However, if people are using the kitchen a lot more frequently than the average person, or they are putting a lot of pressure on the small fan overall, it might be overworked.
That is when a person should look into possibly upgrading to a bigger fan overall and see what works for them.
When a small fan starts to get overworked, it becomes noisy for many different reasons. Maybe the bearings become worn out a lot quicker than usual, or it is just filling up with gunk way too fast.
It is going to be a problem that continues over and over again if the fan is not replaced, so make sure to take the time to do exactly that.
6. Improper Lineup
While it is essential to make some adjustments every once in a while as far as cleaning and maintaining the fan is concerned, it is very important to make sure that the fan is put back properly so that there are no issues later on.
Proper alignment is crucial for anything to work because even a little bit of wobbling around could potentially damage the entire set up.
The fan blades could rub up against some of the housing, and that can cause a chain of events that no one wants to be forced to handle.
7. Different Shapes For Fan Blades
A trick that a lot of people have used over the years to make their kitchen exhaust fan a little quieter is to switch out the blades on the fan, or purchased a fan that has a more curved setup.
This way, they can cut into the air in a certain way that produces less noise. When the blades are perfectly straight or angled to a certain degree, they are going to cause a little more air movement that can be distracting.
8. Lubricate The Motor
Most kitchen fan motors do not need too much help overall, but some lubrication is never going to hurt anything that operates so many hours out of the day.
Lubrication is going to help with reducing friction during normal operation, and that could lead to a softer buzzing sound. In fact, some people will even notice that the sound is all but eliminated.
It is pretty easy once the fan is open to examine the motor overall. If the motor looks like it is running very dry, just using a few drops of oil should do the trick.
The good news is that a fan usually does not need too much assistance, so it might be quite a while before additional lubricant is required.
9. Examine The Junction Box
Hidden behind the fan itself and tucked into the ceiling is a junction box. It is a place that wires are held, and it acts as a general middle area for the fan and its connection points.
It is a little tricky to examine the junction box, but all that needs to happen is to remove the top of the fan to reveal it. Tighten all the connections if possible, and see if there is anything else that looks like it needs to be repaired.
A person might not know precisely what they are looking for here, so a professional could help out if there seems to be an issue.
Since this does require a lot of unscrewing, take an extra bit of time to put everything back together. Otherwise, it could create additional issues by not being tightly re-connected.
10. Adding Another Fan
Can two fans make less noise than one? The answer is yes, as two fans will not be nearly as overworked in the kitchen if there is a lot for them to handle.
It might seem a little costly to install another kitchen exhaust fan, but it will do a lot of good if a person is going to spend a lot of time in there.
Try to make sure that they are evenly placed around the kitchen if another one is installed. That means possibly having to change the location of the first one, but again, it is worth it in the long run if there seems to be a serious problem.
11. Give It A Rest When Not In Use
Some people get in the habit of running their kitchen fan any time the light is on, which means that it might be overworked.
If that is the case, try to break the habit before it gets to be too noisy. This could be a major reason why the fan becomes noisier, and people need to deal with that issue down the road.
The kitchen exhaust fan only is really needed when there is some heavy work being done in the room. For example, doing the dishes rarely need the kitchen exhaust fan on, but working with the oven or cooking something on the stove might need some air properly cleared out.
For some additional assistance, there is also the opportunity of opening up a window or door if there is one nearby. Anything they can take some of the pressure off of the kitchen exhaust fan is something that will be very beneficial for any person out there.
12. Getting Help From A Professional
If all else fails, there is the option of reaching out to a professional and seeing if they can help in some way. Maybe it is nearly impossible to identify any issues whatsoever, and so the only solution after that is to get professional assistance.
Yes, it is going to cost a decent amount of money that people generally do not want to spend, but it is worth it, in the end, to get it corrected instead of letting a problem persist.
They will be able to identify exactly what needs done, and that might even mean replacing the whole thing. The kitchen exhaust fan is important, so simply ignoring it and not having it and use is not a solution at the end of the day.
If it any point some sparks are coming from the fan, or it stopped working altogether, this is when a professional should step in.
Most of the time, this is going to be a little too difficult for the average person to fix, and it could lead to a lot of complications if they try. If there are any serious issues, it also makes sense to cut the power off entirely before even trying to look at anything.
Exhaust fans are not as intricate as some of the other ceiling fans in a home, but they can still cause a lot of damage if they are not treated correctly.
They can also possibly create a shortage in other parts of the kitchen if something goes wrong, so some people are just very comfortable reaching out to a professional and allowing them to take care of all of the more important fixes that might be needed.
Why a Noisy Kitchen Exhaust Fan Should Never Be Ignored
Some people will not be annoyed enough by a kitchen exhaust fan that is loud. Therefore, they do not actually do anything something about it. For others, they can’t function with so much noise, so they either go crazy, or they turn it off and forget about it.
If a person decides to go in the direction of keeping it off at all times, it is going to cause a lot more problems in the end. Not only is a person consuming a lot of fumes from the kitchen that might not be the healthiest, but it is going to put a lot of wear and tear on the entire kitchen.
With the air having no place to go, It can start to do some damage to the walls, the furniture, and other pieces in the room.
Continuing with a noisy kitchen fan could eventually lead to something terrible happening. Maybe the kitchen fan will break entirely, and a whole new unit must be purchased.
There is also a chance that the fan actually falls from the ceiling if it is not installed properly and it comes undone. That can cause a whole new issue that nobody saw coming.
Noisy fans are basically warning owners that something needs done sooner rather than later to keep it functioning the way it should.
No fan right out of the box is noisy, and ignoring the situation will make things any better. Be proactive about a noisy exhaust fan, and the rest of the kitchen will be very thankful.