We actually went with a Broan model a couple years back, and it's been pretty solid so far. Definitely quieter than the old one—it used to sound like someone was vacuuming gravel in there, lol. But honestly, if I were to do it again, I'd probably lean toward Panasonic too. I've heard nothing but good things about their Whisper series.
Our biggest headache was venting properly because whoever built our house thought venting into the attic was a brilliant idea 🙄. Took us a whole weekend just to reroute the ductwork outside. Not exactly fun, but worth it in the end.
Did you guys run into any issues with venting or ductwork, or was it mostly just electrical stuff?
We got lucky with the ductwork, thankfully—ours was already vented outside, but the electrical ended up being a bigger pain than we expected. Whoever wired our bathroom originally must've been having an off day because it was a total mess behind the walls. Found wires twisted together with just tape around them... yikes. Took an extra afternoon just sorting that out.
And yeah, Panasonic Whisper series is legit quiet. My in-laws installed one recently, and I swear you can't even tell it's on unless you stand directly under it. Our current fan isn't too bad noise-wise, but every now and then it rattles like there's a loose screw inside. Probably should check that out eventually, haha.
Overall though, our remodel came in around 6K—and that's with us doing a lot of the labor ourselves. Prices have definitely climbed lately, especially materials. But honestly, even with all the headaches, nothing beats stepping into a fresh, updated bathroom after years of dealing with outdated fixtures and questionable wiring... worth every penny.
We ran into similar electrical nightmares when we redid our guest bath last year. I remember pulling off the drywall and just staring at this tangled mess of wires—some weren't even capped, just twisted together and shoved behind insulation. Honestly surprised the place hadn't burned down yet. Took me a solid weekend just to untangle and properly junction everything.
We also went with a Panasonic Whisper, and yeah, it's crazy quiet. First time I turned it on, I thought I'd wired it wrong because I couldn't hear anything. Had to hold a tissue up to it to make sure air was actually moving, haha.
Our remodel ended up around 7K, but we splurged a bit on tile and fixtures. Prices have definitely jumped lately—especially lumber and plumbing supplies. Still, like you said, nothing beats finally having a bathroom that doesn't feel like stepping back into the '80s every morning...
We had a similar experience with wiring when we tackled our master bath. Previous owners had done some sketchy DIY—wires twisted together, no junction boxes, the works. Took forever to sort out safely, but honestly, knowing it's done right now is priceless. Our remodel ran us about 8K, mostly because we went for heated floors (worth every penny, btw). Prices are definitely up lately, but having a bathroom you actually enjoy using every day makes it all worthwhile...
We ran into similar wiring nightmares—honestly, what is it with previous owners and their DIY electrical "skills"? 😂 Anyway, our remodel came in around 6K. We skipped heated floors (though I'm kinda jealous now), but splurged on a frameless glass shower and upgraded fixtures. Prices have definitely jumped lately, but breaking it down step-by-step and prioritizing your must-haves helps keep things manageable. And yeah, having a bathroom you genuinely love makes mornings way less painful...
