Remove Intermatic timer?

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

Hello. When we bought our house the laundry room came with an Intermatic timer (model E1020) that ticks nonstop and would sometimes "click" loudly. As far as I can tell the manual switch connects to the vent. We typically keep laundry room door open when the machines are in use and have no need of the vent. So far I haven't been able to turn off the ticking despite perusing the manual.I don't want to get rid of the vent entirely, however is it possible to remove the timer and install a manual light switch instead like a bathroom vent? Any advice appreciated.

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Comments (5)

Cavimum
5 years ago
I have no answer to your question, but can confirm that the ticking is the nature of that beast. We have the plug-in type of that brand and model on a few table lamps ... usually we don't hear them but sometimes we can't NOT hear them.
Ron Natalie
5 years ago
Odd timer for a laundry vent. Possible this house was owned by observant orthodox jews and this is a "shabbas" timer. My daughter lives in an eruv and her house is full of these things.

You can replace it with a switch, or you can just disable the motor in the thing.

Make sure the power is off at the breaker.

Remove the screws holding the cover.

Remove the screws holding the timer.

Pull out the timer, you'll notice it has three wires: red, black, and white, these will be connected to other wires via wirenuts likely.

If you want to just disable the motor, take the white white wire out of what ever it is connected to and cap it off with a wirenut so it doesn't touch anything. The manual bar on the switch will continue to allow you to turn on and off the fan (or you can spin the dial around by hand).

If you want to replace it with regular switch, you'll find switches will have two main terminals (plug a green one). Connect whatever is going to the red and black timer wires to the screws on the switch (doesn't matter which is which). The stupid intermatic isn't grounded, but your switch will want to be. Find the bare (or green) wire in the box and connect it to the green screw on the switch (you may need to wirenut in a short length of bare wire to reach.

Put everything carefully back in the box. If you changed the switch, you'll need a new cover plate. Turn the power back on. Enjoy life.
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kris_zone6
5 years ago
Our Intermatic timer is connected to the furnace and the fan in the laundry room. When activated it draws fresh air into the furnace system, distributed through the vents in each room and stale air out of the house through the laundry room fan. It is an air exchanger. We use it a lot in the summer, running at night when it is cooler, bringing in fresh, cool air. The fan can also be used as just a fan.
mtvhike
5 years ago
Is the problem just the ticking? If so, replace it with one that isn't noisy.
Cavimum
5 years ago
It is curious that a laundry room has a vent to the outdoors that is in a timer. Vent, yes. Timer, interesting. One would have to be truly dedicated to doing laundry at certain times of the day.

Hubby likes the digital timers for many of our lamps. They confuse and annoy me (I'm technologically challenged) so he fiddles with the digitals and I change the manuals after power outages, DST changes, etc.

At worst, perhaps there is a digital version that can be substituted and just don't set the timer?