I Can't turn off my ceiling fan

[Salty Thumb]

"Michael Lyons" wrote in news:hptOc.2496$ [e-mail]:

okay, in that case, it make sense. So between the supply and three output wires to the fan motor, is the device called a rheostat or not? And if not what is it called?

Yet another reason to keep things simple.

okay that makes a little more sense. I was thinking he was refering to an outlet on the computer and the times I considered rewiring an ATX plug for a non-standard MB. I still don't see how having a live LAN cable can give you shock unless it was coax instead of twisted pair.

[Salty Thumb]

Salty Thumb wrote in news:U2uOc.118$ [e-mail]:

never mind. if you have one of those that connects to different windings on the motor, I suppose that's just a switch. duh.

[TimR]

Yes, I didn't explain that well.

The outlet in the wall was wired so that the normal hot was neutral and vice versa. The circuit was run in thinwall electrical conduit with no separate ground wire (the EMT was serving as ground) IIRC. (It's been a while.)

The metal chassis of the computer should have been at ground. But it was hot. The computer ran fine, all it cares about is 110 VAC.

The LAN cable was twin-ax, two connectors covered by a coaxial shield, with nice big metal end connectors. So the shield and connector at this PC was hot. The next PC on the network was at proper ground, so its shield and connector were at ground. The two LAN cables were hooked together in the middle with a double female barrel connector, so when I connected them I had a hot metal connector in my left hand and a grounded one in my right hand, and got that old familiar tingle.

Had they been power wires I would have tested with a meter first, but who ever thinks of a network line carrying power?

[Stormin Mormon]

Use bungee cords to secure fan blades to ceiling. Use large eye screws.