Bathroom exhaust fan and light switch separation

Question

new here and I tried the search but can’t seem to find an answer to what I’ve got.
In my bathroom, I have 2 switches.

When top switch is on, bottom off, the vanity light and the exhaust fan light both come on.
When top switch is on, bottom on, both lights and the exhaust fan are on.
When top switch is off, bottom on, everything is off.
I’m in the process of relocating the switch to a more convenient (slightly lower) position and I would like to be able to turn the fan on when the lights are off. I was planning to install 2 side by side switches for the relocation. Is this possible with what I’ve got, or would it be a big ordeal to set up that way?
Thank you in advance for the help, I will try to figure out how to post photos!

1: https://i.stack.imgur.com/lXwCF.jpg![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/mPLKL.jpg)

Ed Beal · Answer

It looks like you have a switch leg but they should have used x3 with ground cable. The black mark on the white cable I would guess is your hot the black is the switched hot that is working. I normally would have the 2nd switch on the red wire with the 14-3 or 12-3 wire from the fixture. with the white marked black always hot jumped to both switches With the extra cable this may violate code depending on how it is wired. We would need a photo of the wiring connections at the fixture or box where this is fed from. If the 2nd cable is connected as a switch leg white always hot then the black to the fan it would be ok. On an older home that did not require a neutral in the box.

Answered by Ed Beal on December 31, 2020

Bathroom exhaust fan and light switch separation

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