Celing Fan Wiring & Testing Voltage (Hampton Bay)

[Dino]

I have a Ceiling Fan that just stopped working after a Power Surge in my home. I tripped the Switch in the box in my Garage and everything else turned back on except the fan. I want to know which wires do I test with a Voltage Tester in order to find out if there IS power going to the fan. Of course it's possible the Motor or Switch in the Fan did blow. After taking it apart, there are a ton of wires up there, probably due to the Forward Reverse Switch & the Fast Slow Switch on fan. But I don't know what I'm looking at. I obviously don't have a clue. I want to be careful as to not kill myself. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks

[parangles]

Read the recent post here " please help diagnose an electrical Problem." Its about a similar fan/light problem.

[DK]

You should have 110volts between the white and black wire. As you pull the string or move the switch, the black wire voltage will be transferred to all the other wires that go into the motor while leaving the white wire connected.

[Terry]

Did you switch the fan off and forget to move it back? Does the light work when you turn the switch on?

If you have the fan down with the wires still connected be very careful. I would put colored tape on the wires in the box and take the fan loose. You did take the blades off. Right?

If I read you correctly then you do not have a wall switch for the fan. The wall switch controls the light only.

If this is the case then you should only have 4 wires connected from the fan to the box. One is the hot (most likely black) this could be connected to many wires in the box.

Another one is for the switch connection for the light (most likely red or blue) This could be connected to a single black or red wire in the box. This wire could also be connected to a lone white wire, but if it is then your electrician did not follow the proper color code. It is not electrically wrong, but not the proper way to connect the switch.

One is white

The other is bare with no insulation or green.

You should have power on the black to bare. You get power on the red to bare when the wall switch is on. If this happens then it is in the fan itself.

[Dino]

[Dino]

[Mark Lloyd]

The red wire is likely to be for a light. The bare wire should be ground. It looks like both would be grounds, that need to be connected to each other.

But your fan may not be grounded properly.

[Terry]

You should have used a wirenut to put bare to bare. If you didn't have a leftover wirenut then you should have a green screw on the metal base for the bare wires.

I would put a piece of tape on that loose red wire too.

[Dino]

[Mark Lloyd]

It's unlikely to hurt anything, but it's also likely to not be grounded right. AFAIK a green (rather than bare) wire is usually a pigtail connected to a particular device (such as the fan, or ceiling box) and the bare is part of the power supply to that location. You may be able to tell which is which.

The green wire you connected, may just go to that green screw.

[Terry]

I really can't understand why that bare wire is in there. I am pretty sure it should be connected. The mounting bracket needs to be connected to the ceiling box or the bare wire in the box and the fan needs to be connected to the bracket.

[Dino]

[Dino]

[Terry]

You want use to tell you it is safe? Can you leave it like it is and it will work? Probably.

The only time you need the ground is if an unsafe condition happens. It is like insurance. It is better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

If the hot wire ever gets nicked so the power is touching the case you could be electrocuted if you touch the case. If the fixture is properly grounded then the breaker would trip instead.

I don't think you have an extra ground wire. All grounds should be connected at one point or the other. The wire from the box and the wire from the fan should be connected to the bracket.

[Mark Lloyd]

I think it's likely the bare wire is the ground associated with the power supply (should be a good ground) and the green is a short wire used for grounding the ceiling box.

The fan may or may not be grounded without that bare wire connected. This PROBABLY won't hurt anything.

[Dino]