I wired our bonus room to include a 14/3 wire from switch to fixture with the assumption that I could hook up an "infinite" speed control fan. Come to find out that most if not all ceiling fans do not recommend this approach because it could burn out the motor or is otherwise a fire hazard? I don't get this. Our previous home had a variable speed dial to control the speed and I was hoping not to have to use those stupid remotes that run out of batteries or otherwise get lost. Certainly I could just replace the switch with a pole one and use a remote, but I was just wondering if I should proceed with my original idea or just default to the remote option?
Switch – use the dual light/fan dimmer switch on a ceiling fan
ceiling-fandimmer-switch
Related Solutions
If you want to use a wall fan control, you'll likely have to remove the remote fan control receiver from the unit. The remote receiver in the fan housing controls the fan speed, and will not allow the wall control to override it.
In the most basic case, the remote receiver will have "input" wires connected to the standard household wiring (ungrounded, grounded, grounding). The unit will then have "output" wires that connect to the fan, and/or light kit. Because of this, controlling the "input" of the remote receiver will have no effect on the "output".
The procedure for removing the remote receiver will completely depend on the unit.
Light dimmers use triac based phase control for dimming purpose. It chops the sine wave somewhere in between depending upon the knob position, which produces a signal like this:
(a) is pure sine wave. (b) and (c) represent modified sine wave going to the appliance depending upon dimmer knob position. This works well for dimming an incandescent bulb because they give off light based on heating of the filament.
However when you give this waveform to a ceiling fan, it won't behave very well. Most obvious issue will be a humming sound specially at a lower speed (corresponding to signal (b)). Lesser obvious issues might be increased energy loss in the coil.
Nowadays companies have started using a series capacitor to reduce the voltage while maintaining a sine wave which eliminates humming while reducing the fan speed.
Related Topic
- Switch – use a dimmer with the light in the ceiling fan
- Electrical – Wiring a ceiling fan and light switch with two three-cable wires
- Electrical – Is it safe to use a fan control with any ceiling fan as long as you wire it properly
- Wiring – Help Wiring Ceiling Fan With Dimmer Switch
- Electrical – Need Help Wiring Replacement Ceiling Fan
- Electrical – What kind of dimmer switch and ceiling fan are needed to correctly wire and control a ceiling fan
Best Answer
You should not use a dimmer that is designed to control lighting, as that can cause problems. Instead, you should use a fan speed control device, that is specifically designed to control a ceiling fan. You'll also want to make sure the control you're using, is rated for the maximum current draw of the fan you're using.
There's no real difference between the in wall speed control, and a remote speed control module. Both devices control the speed of the fan, external to the fan itself. The only difference is where the device is located (wall box vs. ceiling box).