[earhlr]

I am trying to connect a ceiling fan to the ceiling (LOL) the wall has two switches, and I would like to connect one switch for light and one for fan, but I don't know what is what.

The fan has a Solid Black wire, a solid white wire, a black and white wire and then a green wire (from the base of fan not in wire bundle with the others)

The ceiling has a naked wire (no plastic/rubber coating), as solid white and a solid black wire all coming from the wire bundle in the ceiling and then a solid green wire on the bracket on the ceiling.

So my question is what combination means what and what color wire means what. I have tried a few combinations and I can get the light and fan to work but from only one light switch so I have to pull the cords to turn one off or on. I would like to just use wall switches, and then use cords if necessary to control fan speed.

Thank you for any assistance you can provide. I'm a total amateur electrician. I'm just a simple Airborne Infantryman by trade. Basically better at destroying stuff than putting stuff together. LOL.

[hkstroud]

First some general information and terminology. Bare wires (those naked ones) and green wires are ground wires. All ground wire get connected together and connected to any metal enclosures. No exceptions. Ground wires are a safety thing and do not enter into the wiring circuitry. White wires are most often neutrals but there are exceptions. A switch loop, which you may or may not, have here is one of those exceptions. Blacks and other non white wires are hots. There is a proper name for hots but hot is the term most often used.

Analogy:
Water comes into your house through supply pipes. You use it and it goes out through drain pipes. Electricity comes into your house on the hots wires. You use it and it goes out on the neutral wires.

From you description it is most likely that only one of the switches controls the this ceiling fixture. The other one most likely controls something else. That something else could be an outlet in the room.

To tell you proper connections you will have to describe the wire bundles. Describe like this, " I have two cables, each with a black and white wire. The black of one cable is connected to the white of the other". Or "I have three cables, all the blacks are connected and all the whites care connected with a pig tail".

A wire is a wire, a cable is two or more wires in an outer covering. A "pig tail" is a short piece of wire, usually added to a wire bundle so something (such as your fan wiring) can be connected to the bundle, without disturbing the connection.

The white coming from the fan/light is the neutral to the fan and the light. The black is the hot going to the fan. The black with white stripe is the hot going to the light.

Describe the wires in the bundles in the ceiling box. Remove the switch cover plate. Describe the wiring in the switch box. Look for something controlled by the second switch.

This may be more information than you wanted but you are getting it because you said please.