Looking for a good wall exhaust fan is pretty tough nowadays. There are vintage wall mount fans, like the Air King 9020 available, and there are more recently launched fans with modern features. If the vintage look floats your boat, but you still need a somewhat recent performance level, the Broan 509 is the best fan for kitchen use that you can purchase.
Related: For other great fans, read the Broan 506 review
Why We Like It – Broan 509
With the Broan 509, Broan-NuTone made a comeback to the mid-end of the market back in 2007. And even now, 13 years later, this exhaust fan, like the Cosmo 5MU30, still holds up as one of the best fans to buy for indoor ventilation. Performance and build quality are still immaculate, according to today’s standards.
- 180 CFM airflow
- Adjustable housing
- Twist lock installation and HVI certified
- No included backdraft system
Performance/Power
The Broan 509 performs extremely well, just like the lower-priced variant Broan-Nutone 512M. With 180CFM airflow, it can cover up to a 170 sq. ft. room. The fan is plastic made, but it is designed well and can move a lot of air through like the many window fans including the Air King fan.
Durability/Build
This wall exhaust fan is very rigidly built. So the body, the plastic grille, and the housing, in turn, don’t have a lot of give to them. This can make the installation process a nightmare, but we are going to get to that. Primarily, with heat expansion, the wall mount can break off. The iLiving 10-Inch Shutter Exhaust Fan doesn’t have the same problem, even though it’s similarly built.
Related: Looking for a cheap fan that can work well in a small room, check out Broan Nutone 512m review
Noise/Sound Level
The Broan 509 comes with a pretty good Sone rating and is very quiet. Even though the fan doesn’t come with any speed control wall switch, you can purchase a separate Broan utility if you need variable speed. At lower speed levels, this exhaust fan is inaudible. At just 44 decibels, it’s excellent for running while you sleep.
Versatility/Modern Features
The grille length and the duct size aren’t very ideal, to begin with. And as said before, the housing isn’t that adjustable. That might be problematic for some during the installation process. And it doesn’t have any form of backdraft protection, unfortunately. So insects, cold air during winter, etc., can enter very easily. Overall, this fan isn’t that great in terms of versatility. Go for the Hon Guan 6 Inches Exhaust Fan for adequate backdraft protection.
Value
At just above $60, this fan offers a lot of good stuff. But there are places where the fan does lack too. So it entirely depends on you, whether or not you think the tradeoffs are worth it. But one thing’s for sure; the Broan technical support customer service team is excellent at following up with the one-year limited warranty.
Broan 509 Wrap Up
There are a lot of wall exhaust fans out on Amazon and other marketplaces, good and bad. The Broan 509 is one of the good ones, even counting all the missing features.
