Bathroom Exhaust Vent Down to Basement?

[justanyone]

Hello:

I'm remodeling a 1st floor bathroom and am down to studs. I'm putting in an exhaust fan (I have an in-wall Nutone unit) and want to vent it.

Putting the exhaust duct through the wall will mean doing stud work on a load bearing wall (a "king stud", plus shoring it up) since my fan requires more than the 16 inches-on-center of one stud-gap width.

What I'm wondering is, can I vent the bathroom fan DOWNWARDS with the vent going down to the basement and out the basement wall?

A big part of my problem is making a tight elbow to go out the wall. The adjustable elbows at Home Depot are not tight enough to fit in the 14.5 inch gap between studs along with the fan itself. Ideas for both problems are welcome!

[Ed Imeduc]

I dont see why you cant blow down if you want. But might look at the damper in the fan, will it close if you blow down?
Also you might look at that 90oL at home depot. On the female side of it you can trim some of it off but just up to the bottom of the two rivets. Have did that for more room. Are have a sheet metal Shop make up a small square duct to round that will slip over the outlet and let you go right at a 90 there.

ED ;)

[Jay11J]

I am with Ed. Make sure the flapper/damper will close when the fan shuts off when you turn it around.

Wouldn't a ceiling mount fan work for you?

My store has that elbow that Ed is talking about. SOme has it some don't depends on demand..

Otherwise, Have your sheet metal shop make one for you.