Ceiling Fan help?

[Mike2874]

First I know little about installing anything electrical myself but family members do know a little and installed a ceiling fan with lighting kit (bedroom) for our 86 year old mother. She bought it at Home Depot about 2 years ago but has had nothing but trouble with it. It came with a remote to control the fan & light. She has a single pole wall light switch.

When we first installed it I think it worked for maybe a month or two without any issues. What happens is the light on the fan quits working from both the wall switch and remote… but the fan itself continues to work from the remote. The first time I called Home Depot they quickly sent out a new controller box. Replacing the box it worked for maybe for two weeks then same thing the light didn’t work.

Home Depot replaced the control box a second time but with the same results. Finally they just gave her a $100 gift certificate and said keep the old fan. Now since the fan has always worked my mother hates to just ditch it and continues to use it but has no light except for a table lamp in her bedroom.

I know there’s always design defects and lemons but doesn’t it sound strange a new control box works for awhile and then the light function quits working?

I have a wild theory that it works for awhile until one of the times the wall switch gets flipped then it resets something in the control box circuit board. Although never having tried it I’ve also theorized disconnecting power to the control box for a minute and then reconnecting it might get the light working again. If so you could never use the wall switch. Just a crazy idea I know.

My mother has said she doesn’t really care if she can control the light from the remote. If she could just control the light from the wall switch she would be fine with that.

Do you think she needs to have an electrician come in or this is just a fan/control box issue? Do you think it's possible something's not wired right? Would you assume the light itself still works?

 

[ducksface]

Spend fifty bucks on a fan that does not have a remote.
Toss out existing fan.
She doesn't care for the remote, you don't trust the existing fan.
Nothing anyone tells you here will make you comfortable enough to work on the current fan.
You have the skills to install a new fan.

 

[Mike2874]

Spend fifty bucks on a fan that does not have a remote.
Toss out existing fan.
She doesn't care for the remote, you don't trust the existing fan.
Nothing anyone tells you here will make you comfortable enough to work on the current fan.
You have the skills to install a new fan.

Well the idea is to keep the existing fan if we can because it works fine except for the light. Also my mother does want the remote to control the fan.

I think she would hire an electrician if absolutely necessary but only if we can’t figure it out.

 

[Bert_]

I have only seen a couple of remote controls that I was happy with, they were on high dollar fans.

I will just about refuse to install a fan with a remote, because so many of them have issues. If I end up with a fan that did come with one I will remove it if possible. Some remote units can be removed and the fan and light wired to their own respective switches, some cannot.

I realize you don't want to, but I would remove the remote unit if at all possible.

Dig into the fan and see if the fan and light can be wired like normal. If they are you can wire it right to the switch or if you are dead set on the idea you could find a better quality aftermarket remote unit.

 

[bwringer]

Yep, never seen a fan with remote worth a damn. I don't know why. We've got a couple of gorgeous but useless fans at work where the remotes stopped working in a few months.

As Bert said, see if you can figure out how to wire it "normally".

 

[Mike2874]

I guess my mother has been lucky since she's had a ceiling fan/w remote in her living room for maybe 5 years without any remote issues.

By wiring normally are you saying wiring the fan so it's controlled from the wall switch and the fan is controlled by the draw cord?

 

[6PTsocket]

Spend fifty bucks on a fan that does not have a remote.
Toss out existing fan.
She doesn't care for the remote, you don't trust the existing fan.
Nothing anyone tells you here will make you comfortable enough to work on the current fan.
You have the skills to install a new fan.

If the fan is fed from a single wall switch and there is only one hot to the fan box, a remote is the only way to control the light and the fan, without rewiring the house. The remote reciever placed in the fan box takes the single power feed from tbe wall switch and the hand held or wall mounted transmitter tells the reciever how to set fan speed and light brightness. What is needed here is better quality electronics. The illuminated fan can stay but the OP needs somebody that knows,what they are doing to put in a new reciever and transmitter. It is not rocket science and reliable units have been around for years. If there is an attic above the room in question, it might be easier and cheaper to drop a new line to the wall box. There is a third choice, the simplest one of all, tie the fan and bulb hots to the wall box switch and operate the fan and lamp with the pull chains.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[cdestuck]

I think you just need a better quality fan like a Hunter or the like.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

First I know little about installing anything electrical myself but family members do know a little and installed a ceiling fan with lighting kit (bedroom) for our 86 year old mother. She bought it at Home Depot about 2 years ago but has had nothing but trouble with it. It came with a remote to control the fan & light. She has a single pole wall light switch.

When we first installed it I think it worked for maybe a month or two without any issues. What happens is the light on the fan quits working from both the wall switch and remote… but the fan itself continues to work from the remote. The first time I called Home Depot they quickly sent out a new controller box. Replacing the box it worked for maybe for two weeks then same thing the light didn’t work.

Home Depot replaced the control box a second time but with the same results. Finally they just gave her a $100 gift certificate and said keep the old fan. Now since the fan has always worked my mother hates to just ditch it and continues to use it but has no light except for a table lamp in her bedroom.

I know there’s always design defects and lemons but doesn’t it sound strange a new control box works for awhile and then the light function quits working?

I have a wild theory that it works for awhile until one of the times the wall switch gets flipped then it resets something in the control box circuit board. Although never having tried it I’ve also theorized disconnecting power to the control box for a minute and then reconnecting it might get the light working again. If so you could never use the wall switch. Just a crazy idea I know.

My mother has said she doesn’t really care if she can control the light from the remote. If she could just control the light from the wall switch she would be fine with that.

Do you think she needs to have an electrician come in or this is just a fan/control box issue? Do you think it's possible something's not wired right? Would you assume the light itself still works?

As an electrician who used to do home warranty calls, I cant count the number of times i got service calls specifically for fan control boxes burning out.

They are cheaply made chicom junk.

I agree with duckface. Toss it and buy a fan with pull chains.

If your mom wants individual control of the fan and light, how hard would it be to run some **/3 conductor NM-b from the switch j box up to the fan j box?

If your mom would rather just use the wall switch and have the remote control box removed, the fan would need to have 2 pull chains....

Spend fifty bucks on a fan that does not have a remote.
Toss out existing fan.
She doesn't care for the remote, you don't trust the existing fan.
Nothing anyone tells you here will make you comfortable enough to work on the current fan.
You have the skills to install a new fan.

Well the idea is to keep the existing fan if we can because it works fine except for the light. Also my mother does want the remote to control the fan.

I think she would hire an electrician if absolutely necessary but only if we can’t figure it out.

I admittedly didnt read your entire Op(too long of a diatribe) but does the fan have individual pull chains for the fan and light?

The electrician will just charge you to say that the remote control box is fried.

I have only seen a couple of remote controls that I was happy with, they were on high dollar fans.

I will just about refuse to install a fan with a remote, because so many of them have issues. If I end up with a fan that did come with one I will remove it if possible. Some remote units can be removed and the fan and light wired to their own respective switches, some cannot.

I realize you don't want to, but I would remove the remote unit if at all possible.

Dig into the fan and see if the fan and light can be wired like normal. If they are you can wire it right to the switch or if you are dead set on the idea you could find a better quality aftermarket remote unit.

Fan would need to have individual pull chains.

Otherwise, thats a no go because the speed for the fans without pull chains is controlled entirely by the control box.

Yep, never seen a fan with remote worth a damn. I don't know why. We've got a couple of gorgeous but useless fans at work where the remotes stopped working in a few months.

As Bert said, see if you can figure out how to wire it "normally".

Because they are cheaply made integrated circuits made in china.

Ive replaced more of them than i can count on my fingers...

I guess my mother has been lucky since she's had a ceiling fan/w remote in her living room for maybe 5 years without any remote issues.

By wiring normally are you saying wiring the fan so it's controlled from the wall switch and the fan is controlled by the draw cord?

Is there 2 pull chains or just one? Or none?

If the fan is fed from a single wall switch and there is only one hot to the fan box and no pull chains, a remote is the only way to control the light and the fan, without rewiring the house.

Fixed it for you. Fans with dual pull chains are wired to a single switch all day long. Fan and light are individually controlled via pull chains...

The remote receiver placed in the fan box takes the single power feed from the wall switch and the hand held or wall mounted transmitter tells the receiver how to set fan speed and light brightness. What is needed here is better quality electronics. The illuminated fan can stay but the OP needs somebody that knows,what they are doing to put in a new receiver and transmitter. It is not rocket science and reliable units have been around for years. If there is an attic above the room in question, it might be easier and cheaper to drop a new line to the wall box. There is a third choice, the simplest one of all, tie the fan and bulb hots to the wall box switch and operate the fan and lamp with the pull chains.

The Op hasnt said anything about pull chains so we dont know if that is an option. Not all fans come with pull chains. Many of the fans that come from the factory with remotes do not have pull chains...

 

[raiderhillbilly]

You may want to try to change the wireless channel for both the remote and the wireless controller. There is usually a switch in the battery compartment of the remote and on the outside of the fan controller unit.

Things like cordless phones or baby monitors can have frequencies close to the one the fan uses and cause interference with the signal.

 

[Falcon67]

Yep, never seen a fan with remote worth a damn. I don't know why. We've got a couple of gorgeous but useless fans at work where the remotes stopped working in a few months./QUOTE]

I have but they cost huge $$$. As above I would try a different channel on the remote and then pay or DIY X-3 w/ground from the switch to the fan and power a regular light from the wall switch.

 

[Mike2874]

Thanks for the replies! I haven't been out to my mothers for a few days so don't know whether it has a pull chain let alone two. I emailed her this morning to see if she would check.

Already tried different remote channels doesn't make a difference.

The only reason I would have a electrician come would be to have him run another wire so she could have separate wall switches to control the fan & light and do away with the remote box entirely. That's the way mine is setup at home in our bedroom.

Do I understand correctly as long as another wire is run so she can have separate switches it doesn't matter what kind of fan or setup she currently has?

I'll post back if my mother gets back to me.

 

[Mike2874]

Ok she sent me the receipt so I could track down the model:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton...-Light-Kit-and-Remote-Control-68044/100630845

Installation Guide:
https://www.homedepot.com/catalog/pdfImages/55/55d9a413-b467-4fe2-9769-efb41fcbfd11.pdf

Maybe the above info will tell you what you need to know.

 

[Brian_WK]

What are you using for a light bulb. Too high of a wattage will cook the remote box contacts (the box up by the fan) I'm going on 6 years with the same fan controller using 2 dimming LED lights. Mines a Hunter.

Brian

 

[Mike2874]

What are you using for a light bulb. Too high of a wattage will cook the remote box contacts (the box up by the fan) I'm going on 6 years with the same fan controller using 2 dimming LED lights. Mines a Hunter.

Brian

Looking at the install guide it says it came with a 14 watt bulb and I know we never changed it... so we are using the recommended bulb.

 

[Bert_]

Ok she sent me the receipt so I could track down the model:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton...-Light-Kit-and-Remote-Control-68044/100630845

Installation Guide:
https://www.homedepot.com/catalog/pdfImages/55/55d9a413-b467-4fe2-9769-efb41fcbfd11.pdf

Maybe the above info will tell you what you need to know.

Looks like the remote unit could be removed and either wired directly to the light switche(s), or you could use an aftermarket remote control.

 

[wyliesdiesels]

.....

Do I understand correctly as long as another wire is run so she can have separate switches it doesn't matter what kind of fan or setup she currently has?

I'll post back if my mother gets back to me.

Since there is no pull chains, you would not be able to control the speed. this is why i asked about the pull chains.

The remote control receiver controls the speed, i suspect, by modifying the frequency.

Ok she sent me the receipt so I could track down the model:
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Hampton...-Light-Kit-and-Remote-Control-68044/100630845

Installation Guide:
https://www.homedepot.com/catalog/pdfImages/55/55d9a413-b467-4fe2-9769-efb41fcbfd11.pdf

Maybe the above info will tell you what you need to know.

yeah looks like no pull chains...

Looks like the remote unit could be removed and either wired directly to the light switche(s), or you could use an aftermarket remote control.

Sure but then how does he control the fan speed? Wall mounted speed switch?

 

[Bert_]

Sure but then how does he control the fan speed? Wall mounted speed switch?

Fan speed control would be an option.

 

[Mike2874]

So my options seem to be:
1. Buy a aftermarket remote control
2. Have a wire ran to have separate wall switches with one being a fan control speed switch

I’ll run this by my mother and will probably recommend having a wire ran. If she insists though on trying another remote control could you recommend one?

 

[wyliesdiesels]

Fan speed control would be an option.

yes as i said.

I was just pointing out that that was missing from your previous comment.

 

[Brian_WK]

Since there is no pull chains, you would not be able to control the speed. this is why i asked about the pull chains.

The remote control receiver controls the speed, i suspect, by modifying the frequency.

The controller I have has 1 input and 4 outputs and a neutral. 1 out put goes to the light the other 3 are Low, Med, High that go to the leads on the fan. The wiring for may fan shows that if the remote controller isn't used and a modulating switch is you cap off the low and medium leads on the fan and wire the speed controller to high.

Brian

 

[wyliesdiesels]

The controller I have has 1 input and 4 outputs and a neutral. 1 out put goes to the light the other 3 are Low, Med, High that go to the leads on the fan. The wiring for may fan shows that if the remote controller isn't used and a modulating switch is you cap off the low and medium leads on the fan and wire the speed controller to high.

Brian

If you look at the OPs manual, there is only one wire for the fan.

Your fan is different than the OPs.

 

[Brian_WK]

If you look at the OPs manual, there is only one wire for the fan.

Your fan is different than the OPs.

Your correct I didn't look through the manual.

All I can suggest for a different brand would be anything but what you have used so far.

Brian

 

[rburke65]

By the time you call an electrician for a service call, and time spent....buy a new fan. This isn't 1930.....these things a throw away. Not made to be repaired.