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NoFan · Aug 9, 2011, 11:07 AM

I just bought a Harbor Breeze (Elevation model)and tried to install it. The fan only comes with 3 wires; Black, white and green (ground). I have 4 wires in the ceiling box: white, black, RED and bare (grnd). I connected white to white, black to black and green to bare, and capped the RED one, but the fan does not work. I then connected green to the ceiling box with an existing screw in it. Still no luck getting the fan to work. I have 2 separate switches to operate the fan and fan light independently. What might be the problem?

ballengerb1 · Aug 9, 2011, 11:57 AM

What was attached to that box before? The red wires usually means a second switch, possible a 3 way or a switch for a light on a fan.

NoFan · Aug 9, 2011, 12:03 PM

A light fixture was attached to the box before. There are 2 switches indeed; I presume one is for the fan and the other one is for the light.

ballengerb1 · Aug 9, 2011, 12:06 PM

Could that old light be turned on and off from either or both of those switches? Were the switches together in a box or in different parts of the room?

NoFan · Aug 9, 2011, 12:09 PM

No, the light could only be turned on/off from one of the switches. THey are both side by side and the other one just did not operate anything (hence my assumption that it was wired for a ceiling fan).

ballengerb1 · Aug 9, 2011, 03:11 PM

Yep, sounds like the very original set up was a fan w/light and then someone swicthed it to just a light. When you connected your new fan you are allowing the fan to be controlled by either the black or the red. Test both switches and both wires with a test metter or light. Unless there is an additional problem one switch should make the black hot and the other makes red hot. If not let me know.

NoFan · Aug 10, 2011, 06:29 AM

I will try that and let you know. Unless I messed up when I connected the light fixture I had before replacing it with the fan (the light fixture has worked fine for the time it has been in place), there have been no intentional physical electrical modifications to the switches. I have been the sole owner of the house since built 8 years ago.

asdggasdff · May 1, 2013, 11:45 AM

The problem is that the fan itself is wired for 1 switch. The way it is set up is to have the wall switch always remain "on", and then you turn the light and/or fan on with the remote control. I want to be able to control the light and fan independently with wall switches with the dimmers/etc for my smart home wiring system. I am an electrician and am modifying the fan to bypass the remote for the light by running another wire from the "red" wire in my ceiling fan box to the light itself.