Hi-

I installed my fans no issues, and then decided that I wanted a remote (especially for the light) so I got a supplemental remote by Harbor Breeze. I installed it fine and it seemed to work; however, there was quickly an issue:


When the fan was set to high I could not dim the light (up or down).
Then the entire remote would freeze and I would have to manually turn off the fan. (the fan and the light would not respond to the remote.)
I would then manually reset the fan to a lower speed and everything would work again. :confused:


So as long as I didn't set the fan to high the remote worked (and high was actually too high anyway so I didn't care.)

However, now the remote doesn't work at all! AND my light doesn't work! I can still turn on the fan and it change it's speeds via the pull cord, but I can't get the light on.

Ideas?

(I don't really want to go without the remote cause the light is way to bright and needs the dimmer function.)

Check bulb first, duh, I would eleminate remote, and install fan/switch combo,fan control/dimmer, or enlarge single gang to 2 gang, for separate devices.
If you like remote. Try:
X10.com - X10 Home Security, Wireless Security Camera, Home Automation, Electronics and More! (http://www.x10.com)

Return the supplemental remote kit and try a new one. If your only issue is that the lights are too bright, use dimmer bulbs and omit the remote.

Ceiling fan remote controls - help and FAQ- Ceiling Fans N More (http://www.ceiling-fans-n-more.com/ceiling-fan-remote-controls.php)

So I decided to go with the fan control/dimmer switch (and toss the remote.) The issue is that I live in a very old house so the wires really don't have any color (they are the old cloth kind).

Anyway, I installed the switch and now both the fan and the light work, but only marginally. The light works perfectly (dim to full) but the fan is a different story.

Basically:

For the fan to work, something needs to be plugged into the outlet below the wall switch.
Dimming the fan dims anything attached to this outlet.
At full, the fan still doesn't seem to be getting enough power (its highest speed is low.)
If I turn up the light, the fan speed decreases (and so does anything attached to the mentioned outlet.) At full power, the fan and anything attached to the socket are off.

When I opened the wall switch there were two wires taped together and one wire solo which were connected to the old switch (There is also two wires taped together in the back which were not connected to anything which I didn't touch.)

The ceiling fan area had the same: two wires wrapped an one solo which I had attached to the old remote (There is also two wires in the back which I didn't touch.)

I am guessing that I shouldn't have unwrapped the wires that were connected. Anyway, what is the best solution? I don't really want to have the outlet connected to a dimmer. I am thinking that I am going to have to make the line to the fan always on (so the outlet is always on) and then just control the speed of the fan using the pull chain. Still, I would ideally like to have it on the dimmer, the light on a dimmer and the outlet always on.

(Oh, by dimmer, I mean I got one of those fan/light dimmer switch combos.)

Thanks for your advice!

Also, I am beginning to think that I should have tinkered with the old remote more. Everything worked fine when I first installed it.

Sounds like the 2 wires in the switch box, that you connected the dimmer to, need to stay together, hot from somewhere and continuing to receptacle. The 2 in back are possibly White(neutral) and need to stay together.
The remote sounds like it may have been connected to constant hot in ceiling. If the solo wire goes from switch, and up to fan, you can connect to that. Problem is only one switch wire. Which gives you couple of options:
1) Fan, by pullchain, and light from switch.
2) Get extra wire from switch to fan, and use combo dimmer/fan control.
3) Back to Remote Contol.
If you need further help with any, come back.

That is kind of what I thought. I would just put back in the remote (or get a new remote) but even when I had it installed the first time it didn't really work. (If I put the fan on high, the light dimmer wouldn't work until I turned off the power to the fan completely.)

As I said, this is a really old house so I want to keep the wiring as simple as possible; therefore, I would like try option #1 (fan controlled from the pull chain and the light controlled from the switch.)

Here is my current setup:

At the switch:

Wire A is attached to the Fan terminal
Wire B is attached to the Light terminal
Wire C is attached to the Hot terminal
Wires D&E are attached to each other and untouched.


I have switched the wires so many times, that I kind of forget which was which, but I think A and B wires were originally attached together.

At the fan:

Wire 1 is attached to the black wire (Fan)
Wire 2 is attached to the blue wire (Light)
Wire 3 is attached to the white wire (Common)
Wires 4&5 are attached to each other and untouched.


Wires 1 and 2 were originally wired together.

I am assuming that I wire A and C together. Then connect the dimmer to AC on one side and B on the other. Then power should be always on for the fan and the outlet while the light is adjusted using the dimmer.

***Update***
Ok. I wired A and C together. Now, the dimmer (connecting AC to one terminal and B to the other terminal) controls the light and the fan is controlled by the pull chain; however, it is still not getting enough juice (it can not get above the low speed) and when I adjust the speed of the fan, it effects the power to the outlet (in fact, when I turn off the fan using the pull chain, it turns off the outlet.) Also, when I turn the light on full it cuts the power to the fan and outlet.

Now, I am completely stumped.

First you need to get wiring back, no controls just switches.
One way to correct this, would be to disconnect wires at switch, and trace out with meter, continuity tester, or what works for you, which 2 wires go to receptacle. Ground is necessary, but I will not mention from now on. Now you need to determine Hot which feeds switch, then neutral(white) which will tie together with white to receptacle.
Then you need to identify switch leg(s). The Hot wire will connect to hot of recepticle(black?), and 1 or 2 small(6" wires/pigtails) which connect to each switch, then from the switch connect 2 wires that go to the fan(blue and black)
After all works, then install control, switch, or remote.

Probably the easiest thing to do is to start with the wiring how it ORIGINALLY was, and then figure out what our options are.

I need to to return the wiring to the way it was when the original light fixture was there. The original fixture would have had two wires, and the original switch two terminals, we need to figure out which wires connected to which.

It DOES sound like you have enough hot leads to have separate fan/light operation but I'm not sure.

Notes:

Wires 1 and 2 were originally wired together. (I am positive about this.)
The last wiring had the blue and black wires attached to 1 and 2 and the white to 3, but the fan didn't work this way. (But the outlet did have power and was always on regardless of what I did to the switch or the fan.)

I switched the black/blue wires with the white wire and now EVERYTHING works.

The wall outlet remains live regardless if the fan is running or the fan light is on.
The switch turns the fan/light on and off.
Using the pull switches on the fan I can change the speed of the fan and light. And both reach full intensity.

So the current (and working) set up is at the switch:

Wire A and C are together and attached to one terminal of switch.
Wire B is solo and attached to other terminal of switch.
Wires D&E are attached to each other and untouched.

And at the fan:

Wire 1 and 2 is attached to the white wire from the fan
Wire 3 are attached to the black (Fan) and blue (Light) wires from the fan.
Wires 4&5 are attached to each other and untouched.


I also bought a Mannix Digital Multimeter, but I don't really know how to use it and the directions suck. But I think that wires A,C at the switch and 3 at the fan are HOT and wires B at the switch and 1,2 at the fan are Neutral.

Can I use the double switch?

Could I at least just put the light on a dimmer and the use the pull chain for the fan?

Leave the switch alone for now. It controls the light AND fan together, right?

What we need to do is determine:

1. If you are correct and wires 1 and 2 are neutral and wire 3 is hot
2. If wires 4 and 5 are hot.

So, set your volt meter to 120vAC. Measure between wires 1 and 2 (still twisted together) and ground (any metal in the ceiling), and see what it measures. Do the same for wire 3, and for wires 4 and 5 still twisted together. Try this with the switch on, and the switch off, and tell me what you find.

I'm thinking you will be able to connect fan black to wires 4 and 5, fan blue to wire three, fan white to wires one and two, and then the switch will control the light only.

As soon as we can get it so the switch controls the light only, you can replace it with a dimmer.

Leave the switch alone for now. It controls the light AND fan together, right?

Correct



What we need to do is determine:

1. If you are correct and wires 1 and 2 are neutral and wire 3 is hot
2. If wires 4 and 5 are hot.

So, set your volt meter to 120vAC. Measure between wires 1 and 2 (still twisted together) and ground (any metal in the ceiling), and see what it measures. Do the same for wire 3, and for wires 4 and 5 still twisted together. Try this with the switch on, and the switch off, and tell me what you find.

I'm thinking you will be able to connect fan black to wires 4 and 5, fan blue to wire three, fan white to wires one and two, and then the switch will control the light only.

As soon as we can get it so the switch controls the light only, you can replace it with a dimmer.

Fan/Light on
1/2 + 3 = 120v
3 + 4/5 = off
4/5 + 1/2 = 120v

Fan/Light off
1/2 + 3 = off
3 + 4/5 = 120v
4/5 + 1/2 = 120v

Thanks for hanging in there. For the double switch to work, you need 2 switch legs.
1 for light and 1 for fan. I would maybe use 2 bulbs in bulb sockets Surprised you stuck it out. We're still here.

Thanks for hanging in there. For the double switch to work, you need 2 switch legs.
1 for light and 1 for fan. I would maybe use 2 bulbs in bulb sockets Surprised you stuck it out. We're still here. If with bulbs you find 1 hot all the time and 1 switched. One can be by switch, and other by pullchain.

Hi Statmando-

I don't know how I can get both the fan and the light on switches without running new wires from the switch (which I don't want to do) to the fan. Of course, if you know a way to do this that is easy, I will try.

Otherwise, I am fine with the fan being controlled by the pull cord and the light by the wall switch.

I'm thinking you will be able to connect fan black to wires 4 and 5, fan blue to wire three, fan white to wires one and two, and then the switch will control the light only.

Try this.

Thank you ceilingfanrepair! Thank you Statmando! It works!

My dimmer now controls the lights.
The pull chain controls the fan.
And the socket works regardless!

Thank you both for the help and guidance.

Anyone else reading this: Always mark what wire is what! Especially when dealing with older wiring.

You know, you could have just used lower wattage bulbs in your light! :)

The room is multi-use. Sometimes, I need a lot of light for tasks, and other times I want little (or no light). The fan basically stays on all the time.

Plus, I am just a dimmer person. I think all lights should be able to dim.

But, yes, that would have been easier...