I took out a light fixture in my bedroom to install a ceiling fan/light combo. It is remote control operated. The switch on the wall that controlled the light now does nothing. The fan and light works with the remote regardless of the position of the switch that used to control the light fixture. The wiring seemed pretty straight forward. Any suggestion on how to trouble shoot?
Ceiling fan problem.
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BPJOOP93
Well-known member
Is it a three way switch?
flyng_fool
Well-known member
I gave you ONE job to do, and you effed it up!
n8n
Well-known member
Rather than using a fan with a remote I prefer to use a hardwired fan and either figure out the wiring so that the switch controls the light and the pull chain the fan; if that is not possible (e.g. power goes to switch box and there is no unswitched hot in the ceiling box) there's a nice solution in the Lutron Maestro series that provides a light switch/dimmer and variable fan speed control in a canopy module that communicates to the wall switch over only two wires. They even make a 3/4 way version of that wall switch which I have used once with success.
CJ7VFR
Well-known member
That is priceless!!!!!!!!!!! Only thing that would have made it better is if the wife could be heard in the background bitching him out.
Jim
Mustang51js
Well-known member
The only way that could happen is if you tied into a direct hot line in the ceiling box, or your switch on wall went bad. My guess is theres a constant feed in the ceiling box you wired into instead of the switched hot
dave89iroc
Well-known member
agreed
zmaxmotorsports
Well-known member
Kevin54
MEMBER EMERITUS
Can you draw and scan a sketch of how you have it wired? And as far as the wires on the wall switch, did you just have the three wires......Black, White, and Ground? Also your switch should of had two black wires going to it which would be your hot. All a switch does is break your hot wire.
bobmulry
Well-known member
I kind of think the box that contained the switch had 2 blacks and a white that passed through and a ground.....
Bob
KMdef9
Well-known member
Posting a picture of the ceiling fan box would help.
2 ways you could start. The simplest way is I'd simply switch the hot wire to the remote and see if that's your switched feed. Wire nut the unused one and tuck it away.
Pick up a voltmeter, either analog of digital and test both leads against the neutral (white wire) and see which one the switch controls.
2 ways you could start. The simplest way is I'd simply switch the hot wire to the remote and see if that's your switched feed. Wire nut the unused one and tuck it away.
Pick up a voltmeter, either analog of digital and test both leads against the neutral (white wire) and see which one the switch controls.
nh_yota
Well-known member
I'm thinking the power runs to the light box and then a switch loop runs down to the switch, and he connected the fan control to the wrong hot wire in the light box therby bypassing the switch loop.
Also, did you make sure the box is fan-rated? Or at least add a couple of extra long screws from the box in to the joist.
Also, did you make sure the box is fan-rated? Or at least add a couple of extra long screws from the box in to the joist.
