After freezing through one too many winter showers, I finally installed the Broan-NuTone 164 combo in my bathroom. That first morning when I flipped on the dual infrared bulbs? Absolute game-changer. The heat isn't aggressive - it's like stepping into sunlight through a skylight, with the fan quietly whisking away steam so mirrors stay clear.

The modern white grille disappears into my ceiling (major plus for my minimalist bathroom), but those two bulb sockets pack serious versatility. I followed another reviewer's tip: clear heat lamp in one socket for ambient light, red infrared in the other for serious warmth. Pro tip - back the red bulb out slightly during summer months to disable just the heating function.

Installation was... an adventure. The wiring diagram might as well have been hieroglyphics until I decoded that black/yellow wires control heat, blue runs the fan, and red handles the second bulb. Had to get creative when attic plumbing interfered with placement - we notched about 3" off the mounting brackets to slide it under a pipe.

At 70 CFM, the fan handles my 10-minute showers perfectly, though my partner's marathon baths still fog things up. Wish it had variable speed control! The 4.0 sones rating is accurate - it's noticeably quieter than my old rattling unit, though not completely silent.

Winter performance shocked me most. My poorly insulated bathroom used to be 10°F colder than the rest of the house. Now with both infrared bulbs glowing, it's become my favorite pre-work sanctuary - warm tiles underfoot and toastier air without cranking the whole-house thermostat.