Best bathroom fan timer switch

The DT160 is the timer I’d put on most bathroom fans, and I’ve used it. It replaces a standard single-pole switch and gives you four buttons, 10, 20, 30 and 60 minutes, plus an off button.

The wiring is the reason it’s my top pick. Leviton says it can be installed with or without a neutral wire. A Green Flex sleeve connects to the ground when there’s no neutral, or you pull the sleeve off and connect it to a neutral if the box has one.

That matters because plenty of older bathroom boxes have only a hot, a switched leg and a ground. A timer that needs a neutral can’t go in those without new wire.

The fan rating is ½ HP, or 9.8 A, for fans and motors at 120 V. That’s well above a typical bath fan. Leviton lists it separately from the 15 A resistive rating, so don’t read “15 A” as the fan number.

Leviton also says the two black leads can go either way between line and load, which helps prevent miswiring. The manual override keeps the load on for 24 hours, and any button or off cancels it.

Leviton gives it a 5-year warranty, the longest here. It draws under 1 W, carries CSA, FCC and IC marks, and takes Leviton’s DTKIT faceplates if you want ivory, light almond, gray, black or brown instead of white.

Two limits. It needs a ground wire, which Leviton says is required. And the wall plate isn’t in the box.

My call: if the bathroom only has an exhaust fan on the switch, this is the one. Leviton also makes a DT130 with 5, 10, 15 and 30 minute buttons if your showers are short.

The DT230 is Leviton’s heavy-duty countdown timer, and I’ve used it. It doubles the DT160’s fan rating to 1 HP, or 16 A, and handles 20 A resistive and 16 A inductive loads.

Leviton says the bigger capacity is for larger exhaust fans, pumps and fixtures, and lists bathroom exhaust fans and heat lamps among its uses. That’s the case where a ½ HP timer can come up short: a fan, a heater and a light all on one switch leg.

The buttons are 5, 10, 15 and 30 minutes, with a separate off. That 30 minute cap is why it scored 7 on the countdown check. Leviton also makes a DT260 with 60 minute buttons in the same 20 A body.

It needs a neutral wire, and that’s where it lost the other points. If your box has a bundle of white wires tied together in the back, you likely have one; if not, this one won’t go in without new wire.

It does things the DT160 can’t. It works single pole, multi-way with Leviton’s DD0SR companion switch, or as a pair of DT230 timers controlling the same fan from two doors.

The rest matches its sibling: a 24 hour manual override that any button cancels, under 1 W standby, CSA, FCC and IC marks, DTKIT color faceplates, and a 5-year warranty.

My call: check the fan’s label before you buy. Add up the amps of everything on that switch. If it’s more than 9.8 A of fan and motor, this is the timer.

Both Leviton timers share a look: a Decora-size face with four time buttons and an off button, so the DT230 and DT160 can sit side by side in a two-gang box and match.

Turn off the breaker before you open the box, and if the wires in there don’t match the instructions, stop and call an electrician.

Intermatic’s SW60MK is the old-school pick, and I’ve used it. It’s a spring-wound timer: you twist the knob to any time up to 60 minutes, and a clockwork mechanism opens the circuit when it runs out.

Because it needs no electricity to run, it needs no neutral wire. It replaces any standard or decorator single-gang switch, and Intermatic includes a brushed-metal-look plate.

The ratings are generous. Intermatic lists 1 HP at 125 VAC for motors, 20 A and 2,500 W resistive heater loads at 125 VAC, and incandescent, fluorescent, CFL and LED lights. It’s cCSAus certified.

Where it lost points: the warranty is a 1-year limited, against Leviton’s 5, so it scored 5 on that check. And there’s no hold or always-on setting, only the countdown, which scored a 7.

Read Intermatic’s note before you use it on anything but a fan or a light. It says it’s not for sunlamps, saunas, or loads that could cause injury if timed incorrectly. That’s narrower than some other timers’ listings, so follow Intermatic’s rule for this one.

Intermatic calls it a commercial unit, and it’s made in Tunisia. The spec sheet also carries a California Prop 65 notice for DEHP.

A dial has a feel some people like: any time you want, not just four presets.

A recall note for this brand: CPSC lists Intermatic recalls from 2008 and 2009 for some electronic timers, the ST01 and EI600 in-wall timers and the DT17 and DT27 plug-in timers. The SW60MK is a spring-wound timer and isn’t one of those models.

My call: it’s the right choice for an old house with a two-wire box, or anyone who’d rather twist a knob than learn which button is which.

Lutron’s MA-T51MN is the timer for a modern low-power fan, and I’ve used it. Lutron’s spec sheet describes it as a countdown timer for dimmable LED bulbs and high-efficiency exhaust fans.

The key line on the sheet is “No minimum load requirement.” Some electronic timers need a minimum current to run their own electronics, and a very efficient DC fan can fall under it. This one doesn’t have that floor.

You tap it on to start the timer and tap it off to stop. The listing says a double tap sets it to always on, and the rocker sets the countdown to 5, 10, 15, 30, 45 or 60 minutes. That earned a 10 on the hold check.

It also gives a one minute warning before the fan or lights go off, so you can tap it again if you’re still in the shower.

Where it lost points: the fan rating is 3 A, the lowest of the four, so it scored 8 on that check. Lutron says a neutral is required for all load types, which scored 7. And the warranty is 1 year.

Check the box depth too. Lutron’s sheet asks for a wall box at least 2½ in. deep. It works single pole, or multi-location with a Lutron MA-AS accessory switch, and it’s UL listed to switch exhaust fans.

The wall plate is a Lutron Claro plate, sold separately. The Snow color on this listing is Lutron’s white, and Lutron sells the same timer in other colors under the same MA-T51MN part number with a different color code.

Lutron also suggests pairing it with a Maestro motion sensor switch in a bathroom, so the sensor handles the lights and the timer handles the fan.

My call: if your fan’s label says well under 1 A, and you have a neutral, this is the timer least likely to give you trouble.