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mikehager66 · Aug 28, 2006, 07:17 AM

I was trying to install a new ceiling fan this weekend and ran into a little problem. It looks like the previous owner cut the existing wiring in half so instead of 1 black, 1 white and 1 green wire I have 2 sets of each. Is this a normal wiring scheme? Do I just connect both blacks together, both whites together and ground the green wires separately? I know the ceiling fan has 1 black, 1 white and one blue (for the light kit) so I assume I would wire the 2 blacks from the ceiling to the 1 black wire from the fan and do the same with the white wires. Can anyone help me out on this?

kp2171 · Aug 28, 2006, 07:38 AM

Well... need a little more info here. Was there a fan there before? Is the light controlled by one switch or more? Is the light in the middle of a cable run? What other things are on this circuit? Other lights or outlets controlled by this switch? How was it wired when the old fix was pulled down?

Do not assume you put black to black and white to white. Look to see if one of the whites has black tape or markings that would mean a hot white.

mikehager66 · Aug 28, 2006, 07:45 AM

Yes there was a fan there before. It is in the middle of the cable run. It's controlled by one wall switch. Not sure everything that is on that circuit but I know it's the bedroom and the bathroom on it. Thanks for the quick response!

Let me know if you need anymore info...

wmcdonnell · Aug 28, 2006, 01:35 PM

Mr. KP2171 can you assist me with my question or dilemma
Hello,
I took down an old light fixture at the top of our upstairs. There were 2 Red, 2 green 2 black and 2 white and 2 more white with a black in a nut cap. I have 2 switches that both have a red, black and white wires. The ceiling fan has a light kit and it has a blue, black and white wire coming out the top of the fan. Any clue as to what all of these wires are? I sure appreciate your help, so will my kids.

kp2171 · Aug 28, 2006, 02:04 PM

I'm not an electrician, let alone an expert. He's my advice.

Being in the middle of the cable run means that there should be two sets of cables.

When the other fan was pulled down one black from one set should have been piggybacked to a white from the other set. That white should have been marked with black tape or black stripes to indicate that its hot. Basically the current is bypassing the fixture for now, as you want it to be controlled at the switch. The white runs to the switch. Then a black runs back to the fan. This black is hooked to the fan. If there are both black and blue wires on the fan (fan and light) they both get piggybacked to the incoming black. The leftover white, from the first set of cables, goes to the white wire from the fan. And of course, before you do anything, green to green.

If you are no longer sure which set of cable brings power in (that is, which black needs to be coupled to which white, if the white isn't properly marked) you may need to buy a simple voltage tester and check with the power on. Also, if you have access to the cables in the attic you might be able to determine which set runs to the switch.

Hope this helps. Always good to pay attention when you take things down, cause the wiring can be more complicated than this.

kp2171 · Aug 28, 2006, 02:33 PM

Originally Posted by wmcdonnell

Mr. KP2171 can you assist me with my question or dilemma
Hello,
I took down an old light fixture at the top of our upstairs. There were 2 Red, 2 green 2 black and 2 white and 2 more white with a black in a nut cap. I have 2 switches that both have a red, black and white wires. The ceiling fan has a light kit and it has a blue, black and white wire coming out the top of the fan. Any clue as to what all of these wires are? I sure appreciate your help, so will my kids.

So there was a light that is controlled by switches at the top and bottom of the stairs.. so you could turn the light on or off at either location, right? Anything else controlled by those two? The fact you had two white with the black would lead me to believe there is another fixture or outlet or something being controlled by the switch.

** edited in ** are two of the wires, a black and a white simply wires that run from the splices. In other words, are there two wires that never leave the box? **

Again, I'm not an electrician. Stick around and you'll get great advice from tkrussell (THE expert here). I was good with you having 2 red, 2 green, 2, black, and 2 white... with one white marked as hot and tied to the black...

Look again in the box and describe what you see in terms of sets of cables. As in one cable with blk,wh,grn... another with... etc.

Do you still know the "original" white and black that fed the light before? If so, then again, its simply "original" white to white of fixture, "original" black to black of fixture, or if it's a fan to blue and black.

ceilingfanrepair · Aug 28, 2006, 03:49 PM

Originally Posted by mikehager66

Yes there was a fan there before. It is in the middle of the cable run. It's controlled by one wall switch. Not sure everything that is on that circuit but I know it's the bedroom and the bathroom on it. Thanks for the quick response!

Let me know if you need anymore info...

Sounds like one black/white/ground is from the power source, the other is from the switch. A voltmeter can determine which is which, or, if they're coming from opposite directions, common sense.

Assuming this is the case:

The two blacks connect together. The fan black and blue connect to the white from the switch, which should be marked with some black paint or tape. The white from the fan connects to the white from the power source. All the grounds connect together.

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

ceilingfanrepair · Aug 28, 2006, 03:51 PM

Originally Posted by wmcdonnell

Mr. KP2171 can you assist me with my question or dilemma
Hello,
I took down an old light fixture at the top of our upstairs. There were 2 Red, 2 green 2 black and 2 white and 2 more white with a black in a nut cap. I have 2 switches that both have a red, black and white wires. The ceiling fan has a light kit and it has a blue, black and white wire coming out the top of the fan. Any clue as to what all of these wires are? I sure appreciate your help, so will my kids.

Are you talking about two three way switches? If so:

Leave the switches and the rest of the wiring alone. Connect the blacj and blue from the fan to whatever wire the black from the light fixture connected to. Connect the white from the fan to whatever wire the white from the light fixture connected to. Connect ground to ground.

kp2171 · Aug 28, 2006, 04:00 PM

Originally Posted by ceilingfanrepair

Sounds like one black/white/ground is from the power source, the other is from the switch. A voltmeter can determine which is which, or, if they're coming from opposite directions, common sense.

Assuming this is the case:

The two blacks connect together. The fan black and blue connect to the white from the switch, which should be marked with some black paint or tape. The white from the fan connects to the white from the power source. All the grounds connect together.

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

The only difference in our answers is whether the white run to the switch was marked as hot. It'll work fine yours or mine, but we don't know without his looking whether the white was run hot to the brass screw and also marked as hot. It should be marked as hot anyway its run... juat needs to look at switch to know how to wire for the correct "off" position.

ceilingfanrepair · Aug 28, 2006, 04:15 PM

No, I'm saying he SHOULD mark it, not that it is already marked.

kp2171 · Aug 28, 2006, 04:34 PM

It should be marked as hot either way, yes.

The point I was trying to make is that you say black to black to switch. Then white hot to black at fan. I said black to hot white to switch. Then black to black at fan. This might confuse him seeing two people say two things.

It will work either way. Neither of us told him to check at the switch to see what actually was run to the brass terminal. Again, it'll work either way, but it drives me nuts when someone has a light "on" in the "off" position and its not part of a 3 way, etc.

wmcdonnell · Aug 28, 2006, 04:58 PM

I went and borrowed a Digital multimeter and checked to wires. THe 2 white with the black showed nothing, the 2 red showed 59.9 and the 2 black showed 59.?. I don't have a clue if this is a good reading or not? I thought it would show 110? Is this good or bad? I sure appreciate your help!

ceilingfanrepair · Aug 28, 2006, 05:09 PM

Originally Posted by kp2171

again, itll work either way, but it drives me nuts when someone has a light "on" in the "off" position and its not part of a 3 way, etc.

This won't affect that. The only thing that affects that is having a light switch installed upside-down.

ceilingfanrepair · Aug 28, 2006, 05:10 PM

Originally Posted by wmcdonnell

I went and borrowed a Digital multimeter and checked to wires. THe 2 white with the black showed nothing, the 2 red showed 59.9 and the 2 black showed 59.?. I don't have a clue if this is a good reading or not? I thought it would show 110? Is this good or bad? I sure appreciate your help!

Measure across each black and it's corresponding white (or each black to ground). One should show 120vAc, the other should show nothing.

kp2171 · Aug 28, 2006, 05:17 PM

Originally Posted by ceilingfanrepair

This wont affect that. The only thing that affects that is having a light switch installed upside-down.

Yup. Wasn't thinking there. Off is off with no connection across. Duh.

ceilingfanrepair · Aug 28, 2006, 06:20 PM

It bothers me too, though, even with 3-way switches. Up should be on.