so i want to install a fan, but i dont have any roof/attic access and dont want to put a hole in my ceiling anyway. So, I thought of something, but i wanted to run it by some other people (hopefully someone with electrical experiance) before i try it. First some overview: I bought a cheapy light/fan combo from target thats supposed to be a easy installation if theres a light socket in the ceiling (which there isnt). anyway, theres a green (ground), white (common wire for fan and light), blue (hot wire for light) and black (hot wire for fan) wires all sticking out of it. They all look to be 16 guage, and on the instructions it says i would be connecting it to a 120v power line if the light socket were there. Now, the idea... So, im thinking, how bout i get a piece of plywood and mount the fan to that, then mount the plywood to the ceiling by drilling it into the studs up there (its not a heavy fan, maybe 10 lbs im guessing, with all the stuff attached to it). Then (heres the part where i start making stuff up), in order to give it power, cut a 16 gauge extention cord in half and splice the wires for the fan into it and run it to the wall socket. Im not sure if this would even work, and if it did, if i would need to splice the hot light wire and hot fan wire in on different extension cords or not. At the moment what im thinking would work is to splice the hot wire for the fan, common, and ground wire in one extension cord, then get another cord and splice in the hot wire for the light and add in an extension from the original common and ground wires to make them run through that cord to. So, is any of this feasible? or is this all just an elaborate way to burn down my house? haha. Kinda lengthy, but i was trying to make it clear, thanks for reading.
you got directions with the fan, the best way is follow the directions..as we do not know the set up at ye home if its a Ceiling Fan How to Install a Ceiling Fan http://www.homedepot.com/HDUS/EN_US/energy/en_project_cfan_01.html
Hi Bobbinbob, Your plywood mounting idea should work if you don't mind the way it will look. As to the wiring, you can use your idea for that also but here is a slight suggestion. If your wall outlet is the grounded 3 prong type, I would do this. Get a 14gage 3 wire extention cord. They cost a little more but will be better as I will explain. Green wire is the safety ground and would go to the extention cord wire that goes to the small round prong. The small blade wire is hot and you can tie it together with the blue hot and black hot with one connector or wire nut. The big flat blade wire is common so tie to all white common wires. Now you can plug it into the outlet safely and the fan and light will work off the switches in the fan itself. The green wire in the fan is the secondary safety ground. Its not really necessary for the operation but is there in case the fan shorts to the outer case. You can probably use a 16 gage extention but try to find one that is 3 wire and do the same wiring I suggested for the 14 gage cord. I just think the 14 gage is a better way to go. Most house ceiling lights are wired with 14 gage. Hope I didn't confuse you too much. Jerry
get a electrician or a friend who knows how to do this properly. your insurance company will not like you at all if you cause an electrical fire.
i do agree 100% on ye post ddp.. when a guy ask for help i can see hes not to sure how to install the fan...its best to let a electrician or friend to do the job..
ireland & ddp - as i said (perhaps not clearly enough) the instructions that came with the fan are only in there was a pervious light fixture there, in this case there is none. If i had a friend who knew electricity id ask em and i wouldnt be here : P and electricions cost money, ive done basic splicing of wires before so if i can, id rather do it myself and buy food with the money that would have been used on the electrician. Thanks for the criticism anyway, alls appreciated. Jerry- very helpful post, just want to clarify though. So your saying i can go to home depot and buy a 3-wire 14 guage extension cord (they do make extension cords with different gauges im guessing?), cut it in half and there will be 3 wires inside it. Attach the green (ground) wire to the wire that goes to the round plug, attach the white (common) wire to the wire that goes to the small flat piece, and both the black (hot fan wire) <b>and</b> blue (hot light wire) to the wire that leads to the larger flat peice? One other question, how do you know which wire in the extension cord goes to which piece of the end of it? (eg are all round plug wires purple, and all small flat piece wires brown, ect) Ill probably sand the plywood a little and stain it so it looks more acceptible : )
You have the small flat and big flat reversed. Small is HOT, big is common. Just be extremely careful as ddp and Ireland are correct that we don't want to cause any fires. Safety First. Hopefully the wires in the extension cord are color coded green, black and white. If not you may need a continuity meter to make sure. Jerry
