Buying a Ceiling Fan

[cybercat]

The light in our old one, installed before we bought the house ten years ago, no longer works. The whole unit has rattled like crazy at high speed for the whole ten years, too.

My husband actually knows how to install one! He has installed three others in the house.

My question is, what are the factors I should consider when buying one? We plan to pick one up later today or tomorrow. They seem pretty cheap, so we could actually get a pretty nice one if there is a reason to spring for one of the better models.

Thanks, you guys are just great!

[Edwin Pawlowski]

The better brands are quiet and smooth. The cheap ones rattle and shake. I've not bought one in a while so I'm not sure what brands are best these days.

[cshenk]

"cybercat" wrote

2 pieces of advice. 1- have him take a peek at the attic side of the fan 'foundation' to make sure the rattling isnt from poor construction up there. He may need to reinforce something. It's good to know in advance so if he needs to get anything else, he can do it in the same trip. 2- If you can, try to look at a place that has the fans actually setup with a demo one in use. Lowes etc usually has that. Some of them don't look as spiffy as you may think from the box picture.

I made a reverse mistake and got one that looks too spiffy for the bedroom . I need to get new leaves for it in a more dummied down style. Thats easy to replace though.

[cybercat]

Excellent, I would not have thought of that! Thank you. I just looked at the Lowe's and HD web sites, and they start very cheap, so that for $100 I could have a mid-range one.

[cybercat]

Excellent idea, thank you! Lowes it is. I think Ace Hardware also has them set up, or one around here does. HD tends to be more expensive from what I have seen.

:) I saw some pretty fancy ones for $250. Our kitchen is tiny, typical

1960s split level, three doors going off of it, one to the hall, one downstairs, one to the dining room. One of those built-in tables coming off one wall, that sort of thing. My preference would be to gut the whole thing, but that is not a priority at the moment. I wish it was.

[bonnie]

"cybercat" wrote what are the factors I should consider when buying one?

One thing I think important is getting one that isn't too small for the room.

[evodawg]

Make sure the mounting box is secured to the ceiling joists and it's meant for a ceiling FAN. You'd be surprised what a lot of people think will work. You can find a proper ceiling fan mount at any of the box stores. It's easy to install. Some of your choices are, fans with remote controls if your not

3 wired for separate fan and light controls. Separate dimmer switch and fan switch control on wall. Fan only, fan with light kit, size of fan, use of down rod depending on height of ceiling. Flush mount. Ceiling fans are not only for looks they move air in the right directions, so take that into consideration. In Summer, you want the fan to take cool air with sinks, up into the fan to spread it throughout the room. In Winter you want to take hot air which rises down to the floor, all this is done with the fan direction switch. You have many choices and only you can make that decision.

[cybercat]

Very nice, helpful site and advice! I just measured, and the kitchen is about 14X14, the current fan is a 52-inch. The ceiling is nine feet. I think another

52-inch is what we will get. Thank you.

[cybercat]

Okay. The joists are the wood supports above the drywall, right?

I did not know any of this. Thanks for your input.

[evodawg]

Yes

One thing about size, does the one installed now look like it belongs there? Sometimes depending on room size they look like they disappear. You don't want that look. Get as big of one as you can that does not look out of place.

Take a look at my website for ideas.

[trader4]

I have two Hampton Bays that were cheap and both work great. I only paid $60 for one of them, maybe $90 for the other. They are quiet, zero vibration.

I also have a Hunter fan that's 24 years old and came with the house. In the literature the previous owner left there was a price guide. This sucker cost $275 - 325 back in 1984. And guess what? It's not even reversible! They did offer an optional kit that would make it reverse. It's a contraption with a lever that flips the pitch on the blades! Unbelievable. Also, unlike my cheap fans, it does make some noise. Fans have come a long way since then. If you adjusted that price for inflation, it would probably be about double today, or $600. And for less than $100 you can get one that's much better.

[evodawg]

Yes but most fans today are not built in the USA. Most are now built in China, so only time will tell if they outlast the older ones. I doubt they will.

[cshenk]

"cybercat" wrote

Thats what we did. 2 weeks later I saw the identical model for 35$ at Kmart . I would not have know it was a decent model though if I hadnt seen it working at Lowes. Paid 75$ (this is the smaller one for the bedroom).

[cshenk]

"cybercat" wrote

They also have the kits at that site to reinforce mounting if there's a problem causing the wobbles up above. Lowes probably has them too.

[dadiOH]

Hunter *originals* (they sell cheaper ones too) are among the more expensive fans but it will be the last fine you'll ever need to buy (as long as you keep oil in the reservoir). Any fan may shake or shimmy unless/until you balance the blades.

[HeyBub]

Remote control is nice so you don't have to get out of bed after working up a sweat.

[Mark Lloyd]

The ceiling fan in my bedroom cost $30 at K-mart about 9 years ago. It's only rattled once in that time. Then the screws that hold the blades on had come loose.

[RBM]

I've long been a fan of Casablanca intellitouch fans. They tend to be absolutely silent and perfectly balanced, but at a starting price of around $300, they're out of a lot of folks price range. Hampton bay is not a brand, but rather a trademark of Home Depot. The fans are actually made by a variety of companies, some are exellent for the price, and I recommend these without hesitation, having hung hundreds, I've rarely had bad ones. The one fan I would recommend not buying is Hunter. Hunter actually ownes Casablanca. Many of their fans are extremely heavy and require special mounting, beyond the standard "fan support box".

[ransley]

Alot of cheaper fans use a very small base bulb which limits you in wattage.

[Carmen]

"cybercat" wrote

Whatever you do, buy a decent one!

I'll tell you what happened to us, buying a cheap one.

It's the one, which is over the bed. My wife was making the bed, a blade broke off, and whacked her in the forehead. Apparently, this happened about

9 A.M. I was at work, she is supposed to go to work @ 3 in the afternoon. I got a call on my cell @ about 4, wondering if something was wrong with her, work couldn't locate her. I tried and tried to reach her on the home phone, and on her cell phone. I then frantically called 911. I rushed home, and was greeted by the police dept, the fire department, and the EMS. The entire road was blocked off, and they let me through the barricades.

Anyways, my wife was unconscious, they took her to the hospital, where she spent 9 days. In the mean time, the dogs hadn't been let out, and they went in the house. When my wife fell from being hit in the head, she knocked over a lamp, which was on, and it burnt the carpet.

So, that's the story. Don't cheap out when buying a ceiling fan.