I am trying to install a ceiling fan in my room, there is a green wire coming out of the fan that is supposed to be connected to a ground, there is only two wires coming out of the box in the ceiling a white wire and a black wire, what do I need to do with the ground coming out of the fan?

The ceiling box is probably made of metal; if it is, attach the ground wire to the box using a grounding screw or (especially if you can't figure out where to put the screw) a grounding clip.

If the box is plastic... well, you've got a bit of a problem: nonmetallic boxes/cable + no ground wire in the cable = big no-no. Your electrical system's got to be grounded somehow, unless your house is REALLY old. If that is indeed your case, post back here.

Good luck,
Moishe

The box is metal, and the house is early to mid 70's

Sounds as if your metal box is grounded being wired circa 1970. You probably see metal BX cable entering the box, BX cable is considered as a grounding method.

The only other concern is the fan is not too heavy for the box.

If the fan is 35 lbs or less, you can use the box screws to support the fan. If the fan weighs more than that the box cannot support the entire weight of the fan, and you need to add additional support, either change the box to a "ceiling fan" rated box, of perhaps drive 2-3 in wood screws into the wood framing above. Even toggle bolts into the sheetrock will help.

I don't think that fan makers state the weight of their unit on the box. This is something the installer must be aware of.

My house was built in 1970 and is all non metallic, mostly 12 and 14-2 all with ground. I think residential usage of BX goes back to when I was a kid. More careful builders may have continued to use it when others were taking short cuts. Unfortunately I am afraid sometime in the 50's or 60's they were allowed to build houses using non metallic cable without ground. There is a tension in code writing between affordable and safe. Those houses lack important grounding features. Later codes corrected those mistakes, just as aluminum is no longer allowed in residential construction.

If grounded, the box should show 120 V to the hot wire and near 0 ohms to the neutral. If not grounded, you have one last chance. Carefully examine the incoming cable. Sometimes there is a ground wire that just wasn't connected. There are houses that lack grounds. No easy fix.

You might look at any wiring exposed in unfinished areas and see what it is. Non metallic with ground will say so.

I did end up finding a bare copper wire in the box, so I hooked the ground wire to it and the fan or the light is not working, do you know of any tests I could preform to help figure out why its not working, I do have some electrical knowladge and I do own a multimeter

Do you have 120 V between the black and white wires in the box? If not, check the breaker and any switches. Next, check the black and white wires of the fan. If they don't give an ohm reading with the switch on, something is disconnected inside.

Glad you found the ground wire. They provide important protection when something goes wrong.

The white wire came disconnected in the box, I hooked it back up and everything is A-OK, thank you for your help it is much appriciated

If there was no ground wire in the box, chances are the box was acting as the ground conductor, and you would have connected the wire to it with a clip. Some fan brackets are already prepared to deal with this issue and have two ground wires-- one from the bracket which is attached to the box and therefore grounded, and another from the downrod which is insulated by the rubber hanger.

More information about ceiling fan wiring:

http://www.ceiling-fans-n-more.com/ceiling-fan-wiring.php