Panasonic FV-08VQ3 WhisperCeiling 80 CFM Ceiling Mounted Fan
by Panasonic
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List Price: Category: Lighting See more product details |
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Product Details
Manufacturer: PanasonicBrand: Panasonic
Edition: Tools & Home Improvement
Model: FV-08VQ3
Publisher: Panasonic
Studio: Panasonic
Music Label: Panasonic
Product features:
- Motor/Blower: Power Rating of 120 volts and 60 Hz
- Motor/Blower: Motor equipped with thermal-cutoff fuse
- Housing: Rust proof paint, galvanized steel body.
- Housing: Detachable 4-Inch diameter duct adapter
- Grille: Attached directly to housing with torsion springs
Tools and Hardware Reviews of Panasonic FV-08VQ3 WhisperCeiling 80 CFM Ceiling Mounted Fan
Customer Review: Installation a nightmare
Summary: 2 Stars
This design, while excellent in its intended purpose, providing quiet exhaust, it's design leaves a lot to be desired when installing. Panasonic gives you several methods, none of which are complete, there are gotcha's with all of them. Determined effort will eventually get it cobbled in place but it won't be without compromise. You will fight it ever step of the way. I tend to be a perfectionist so, if you aren't, don't bother reading the rest of this. For those of you who want it done right you may find the following helpful.
After giving all of Panasonic's methodologies full consideration I found them all deficient and wound up developing my own, one that would provide proper mechanical attachment once in and, two, ease future serviceability.
The first big caution is, make sure this fan will fit. Although this fan is recommended for 2 x 8 construction (dropped ceiling over bathrooms are often of 2 x 8 construction), if there is a floor or other solid surface above, you will wind up with the fan protruding at least a quarter inch into the room below. The fit is beyond tight. Do the math. You are trying to fit something 7 7/8" tall into a 7 3/4" space, if there is a floor above. Even if there are no protruding nails or screws, you can count on the finished installation protruding 1/4" into the room below. If you're doing retrofit, poke a hole and take a close look before committing. New construction, as in my case, is faced with either shimming the floor or shimming the ceiling by up to 1/4". I can shim the whole of either or or have a hump in one or a dip in the other. I did a little of each and it will probably not be noticeable but this part of the process was very irritating to have to do. I could have just let the fan stick down from the ceiling and caulk the gap. I If this is OK with you, fine. It was not OK with me.
Next challenge.
Long story short, I threw away the flimsy mounting hardware Panasonic provided. Instead, I laid in a layer of half inch plywood between the joists above the drywall such that screws installed around the adapter and fan body mounting flange actually have something to bite onto. Drywall by itself has no holding power. If the fan is mounted immediately adjacent to a joist you will have only the two screws on that side holding, the rest sucking air. Oh, you have the flimsy bracket, if you use it. Not good.
If you are doing new construction, you will have to be creative in cutting up your ceiling panel into separate pieces, if you want drywall behind the mounting flange where it belongs. There is no pretty way of doing this. Mine is new construction and this was not acceptable to me. My way, the adapter and fan body are installed separately, after the ceiling is all finished. The hole is the right size, in the right place, screws all hold. Other than the slight hump in the attic floor, it's very solid and future service is simple.
If you are doing a retrofit, cutting a hole in an existing ceiling, you will find the fan is impossible to install in one piece. You have to first install the adapter plate making connection to electric and vent tubing. It should be adequately secured in preparation for the next step, raising the fan body, engaging the tabs on the adapter. If you have not installed some backing above the drywall where the adapter mounts, good luck. You'll need a patient assistant who does not take offense at profanity. You're still stuck with how to hold up the fan body since most of the screws are useless. I'd suggest at least gluing in narrow plywood strips around the inside of the opening for the screws.
I spent way more time on this than I like. The results aren't perfect but I'm the only one who will know (besides you, that is).
So, why didn't I just return the unit and get another with better fit? I have tested this fan for quiet and compared it to others. I am impressed, hence the two stars. Otherwise, it's a zero.
I may eventually get to love it but I'll probably a long time before I forget just how awkward the installation was.
I'm making an exception for this review. If you'd like more detail, drop me a line.
Description of Panasonic FV-08VQ3 WhisperCeiling 80 CFM Ceiling Mounted Fan
one of the best ceiling fans ever builtBathroom Hardware Tools
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