Home inspectors are required to inspect bathroom exhaust fans, according to the Standards of Practice of both national home inspector associations, the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors (InterNACHI) and American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI), along with the State of Florida and some other states.

    Here’s how it is stated in the ASHI standards: “The inspector shall inspect kitchen, bathroom, laundry, and similar exhaust systems.”  The InterNACHI standard is similar. An inspection would determine whether the fan is functional or not, and note if excessively noisy, but would not determine the adequacy of the ventilation rate.

    The inspector should also note if there is no exhaust fan. However, the building codes do not require a bathroom exhaust fan if there is an openable window of adequate size. For more on this, see our blog post What are the requirements for bathroom ventilation?

    Even if the requirements and exclusions are not stated directly in the home inspector’s contract agreement, one of the Standards of Practice mentioned above will be referenced as part of the contract agreement. 

    Click on any of the links below to read other articles about what is required to be included, or not, in a home inspection:

AFCI •• Air conditioner •• Ants •• Appliance recalls •• Appliance testing •• Attic •• Awnings •• Barns and ag blgs. •• Bathroom exhaust fan •• Bonding •• Carpet •• Ceiling fans •• Central vacuum •• Chimneys •• Chinese drywall •• Clothes dryer •• Dryer exhaust •• CO alarms •• Code violations •• Condemn a house •• Crawl space •• Detached carport •• Detached garage •• Dishwasher •• Docks •• Doors •• Electrical •• Electrical panel •• Electromagnetic radiation •• Fences •• Fireplaces •• Furnace •• Furniture •• Garage door opener •• Garbage disposal •• Generator •• GFCIs •• Gutters •• Ice maker •• Inspect in the rain •• Insulation •• Insurance •• Interior Finishes •• Grading & drainage •• Lead paint •• Level of thoroughness •• Lift carpet •• Low voltage wiring •• Microwave •• Mold •• Move things •• Help negotiate •• Not allowed •• Outbuildings •• Paint •• Permits •• Pilot lights •• Plumbing •• Plumbing under slab •• Pools •• Questions won't answer •• Radon •• Range/cooktop •• Receptacle outlet •• Refrigerator •• Reinspection •• Remove panel cover •• Repairs •• Repair estimates •• Retaining walls •• Roaches •• Rodents •• Roof •• Screens •• Seawalls •• Septic loading dye test •• Septic tank •• Sewer lines •• Shower pan leak test •• Shutters •• Sinkholes •• Smoke alarms •• Solar panels •• Specify repairs •• Sprinklers •• Termites •• Toilets •• Trees •• Troubleshooting •• Wall air conditioners •• Walk roof •• Washing machine •• Water heater •• Water pressure •• Water shut-offs •• Main water shut-off •• Water softener •• Water treatment systems •• Well •• Windows •• Window air conditioners •• Window blinds •• Wiring 

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 

Here’s links to a some of our other blog posts about BATHROOM VENTILATION:

• Why is my bathroom vent fan not exhausting enough air? 

• When did the building code begin requiring bathroom vent fans to discharge to the exterior (not the attic or crawl space)? 

• Does a half bathroom (no shower or tub) require an exhaust fan?

• What are the ventilation requirements for bathrooms and kitchens in mobile homes?

• Can a bathroom exhaust fan dump air (discharge/terminate) in the attic? 

• How can I check to see if my bathroom exhaust fan is actually working and moving air? 

• My bathroom is stinky and humid even though it has an exhaust fan. What can I do to fix it?

• Does a bathroom exhaust fan need to be GFCI protected by code? 

   Visit our BATHROOMS and "DOES A HOME INSPECTOR…?” pages for other related blog posts on this subject, or go to the INDEX for a complete listing of all our articles.