Exhaust Fan to Recessed Can

Mar 3

How often do you use the exhaust fan in your bathroom? Is it old and ugly? Dirty? Would you much rather have a nice LED can light where it currently is? Me too! So let’s talk about these fans for a moment…

Pros:

Remove excess moisture from the air when showering.
Help remove foul smelling air.

Cons:

They get dirty and no one ever cleans them.
They are loud.
They let in cold air from up above.
If they include a light, it’s usually not very bright.
Their effectiveness is questionable, and zero if you never turn them on.
Poopouri or scented sprays are more effective in removing odor.
Unless you take a long shower every day and steam up the bathroom, and run the fan while doing so, you probably* don’t need one.

So, what’s a gal to do? Convert it to a fresh, new, clean LED recessed can light! I love the look, the light is so much brighter and I don’t miss the darn fan at all! Plus, it gives me an excellent reason to shiplap my ceiling to cover up the ugly square hole in the ceiling.

* My dad says that exhaust fans are important to remove moisture from the air. I agree, but that is only if you turn them on, and I hate them, so…use your own judgement and trust my dad knows what he is talking about. :)

Supplies

LED Recessed Can Light (wet rated for bathrooms)
Wire Connectors
T-Stripper
Drill or screwdriver (Phillips & flat head)

Steps

Turn off power to fan at circuit box.
Flip switch for fan (and light with fan if separate) to make sure both are off or just voltage meter to test wires.
Remove cover of exhaust fan. Be prepared for dirt. May want to consider throwing an old sheet or painters cloth under your work area first.
Unscrew fan (wherever there are screws securing it). It is nearly impossible to get the housing box out of the ceiling, so we’re not going to try. You are only going to remove the “guts” so we can create a little room to house the light. If this is not possible, with your style of fan, you can install a totally flat LED panel light (round or square) and just go right up to it. You might have to get creative with how to attach it to the ceiling, but I am confident you can figure it out - think screws!
Once you have the fan loose, disconnect the wires running to it There should be a ground (copper), black, red, and white (neutral). There may only be three. Either is okay. The green or copper is always the ground, the white is the neutral and then the red and black are “hot” and you that’s when you definitely want to make sure the power is off.
Now, your new light has three wires - green, black and white. Use your wire connectors to match the colors up - green to green (I always do first), white to white (I always do second) and then black to black, or black and red. When you use a wire connector nut, the idea is that you put all of your wires into the very tip and when you turn it clockwise, it twists them all together. Wire connectors come in different sizes and if it is too small, it won’t allow all of your wires to fit in there - the yellow and orange caps usually work for most everything. There are also cool clamp connectors where you push the wires in instead of twisting, they work great too, just depends on your preference. I use those in tight spaces such as wifi outlets, but as a general matter, the twist style is just fine.
Okay, let it hang there a second (these lights are so lightweight!) and go turn the power back on and turn on the switch - is it on? Great! If not, turn the power back off and double check your connections are all tight. If there were two sets of wires (like if there was a light wired separate, then switch which set of wires you have the black wired to the other set. For example, if you had two blacks together and you put your new black wire with that, but it’s not coming on, then remove your new wire (put a cap tight back on the two old blacks) and then wire the new black to the red and black set. Turn the power on and try it again. An electrician probably does this more efficiently than I do. For me it’s a bit of trial and error sometimes, but we’re only talking about so many options here and you can figure it out!
Once you have power working with the switch, turn the switch off and work on connecting the light to the ceiling. Fit the springs on each side inside the fan housing and call it done.
Get creative with your ceiling to shiplap, used restored barn wood, panels, or other decorative ceiling tiles to update your entire bathroom look and cover up the excess space of the exhaust fan.