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Wiring for industrial ceiling fan

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FarmerSid

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Hey All! Got a couple new toys for the garage for Christmas. Two 56" Canarm ceiling fans. When the shop was wired, it was wired for two ceiling fans. This is how the wiring was ran. Wiring came into a normal switch box and them out to the ceiling box. It was wired this way for each fan (2) location. Now that I have the fans, I need to install some sort of fan controls. It would be nice to control the speed (variable) and direction from the wall mounted switch boxes. From my searches, it appears I should have ran 4 conductor wire from the ceiling to the switch boxes. Is this correct or can anybody suggest a fan control that will operate the fans like I'd like them to.

Thanks and have a good one!
 
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matt151617

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You can buy a dimmer and use the existing wiring. Just make sure the dimmer is made specifically for ceiling fans. If you wanted to control the lights on the fan, you'd need 12/3 or 14/3, but you'd also have to install a second switch for each fan. Direction is usually controlled by a switch on the fan itself.

What gauge wiring is currently installed? I doubt you'll have an issue, but depending on the amp draw of the fans, you may need bigger wiring. Look at the fans and see what their amp draw is.
 
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Gary S

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It might be time to carefully read the instruction manual for the fans. My industrial ceiling fan needed a standard 14/2 wire from the switch box to the fan at the ceiling. The fan came with a 5 position switch to select the speed wanted of the 5 speeds.
 
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FarmerSid

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The fans I have are CP56F&R made by Canarm. They have no lights built in. I have 14/2 wire going from the switch boxes up to the ceiling mounted boxes. These fans came with no switches. From the installation instructions it appears I need 5 conductors from the switch box to the ceiling box. The fan has 5 wires coming out of it. If I read the spec sticker right, it draws 0.67 amps fan only and 1.17 amps with fan and light but I have no light on them. There is no chain or rope that hangs from the fan to change direction or speeds. These will be hanging from a 13' ceiling. I found that these fans draw 0.9 amps on high and 0.4 amps on low.
 
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Aceman

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Stuart in MN said:
It appears you need five wires if you want to be able to blow in either direction, but only three if you are going to keep it blowing one direction.
Click to expand...

Off the top of my head, I can't think of any readily available cable with 5 wires in it. He'd have to pipe it...
 
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FarmerSid

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Ontario, Canada
Thanks for the replies. I have already found the info you all posted before I posted my question but still, thanks for the help. I'm with you Aceman. That's part of the reason I posted my question. What ***** is the walls and ceiling are insulated.
 
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ForceFed70

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As mentioned: With 14/2 you can't change the direction but you can get a speed controller. Personally, I don't think direction control is all that important but to each their own.

I reccomend you buy a purpose built fan speed controller (a 3 or 4 speed selectable is all you need). Light dimmers will work but arn't designed for this use and you'll get excessive motor noise/humm and it's harder on the motor.
 
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Charles (in GA)

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50 mi south of Atlanta
The series MC speed controller referenced in the instructions is found HERE on page 3.

Home Depot and Lowes also sells a number of different ceiling fan controls that install either in the place of the switch or mount on the fan itself or the ceiling box and use a wireless setup to control it.

Lots of options, just be sure and use a speed controller designed for a ceiling fan.

Personally, with a fan mounted 13 ft up, I cannot see a need to reverse them, the two wire plus ground that you have run should work fine.

Here is the MC-3 controller for a single fan and HERE is the MC-5 controller which you could use to control both fans together.

Charles
 
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