If you ever passed the ceiling fan aisle in your local home improvement store, the thought may have occurred to you that installing one would be a simple weekend DIY project. After all, most home improvement stores promote this idea. And in reality, a homeowner can install a ceiling fan on their own if they happen to have the right skill set. However, a ceiling fan is an electrical device, and there are plenty of things that can go wrong if you don’t know what you’re doing. To elaborate, here are some of the most common problems that arise from DIY ceiling fan installations.
Difficulty Removing Existing Electrical Box
When you install a ceiling fan in a room that doesn’t already have one, one of the first things you’ll need to do after turning off the electricity is remove the existing ceiling electrical box. Needless to say, such boxes weren’t installed with the intention that they’d get removed later. Occasionally, homeowners struggle with removing existing electrical boxes and can do significant damage to their ceilings. The problem is, though, that leaving an existing ceiling electrical box in place is typically not an option when you install a ceiling fan. This is because ordinary electrical boxes aren’t meant to support the weight of a fan or to handle the stresses created by one when it runs. Instead, ceiling fans require special electrical boxes with hanger brackets that spread out the load to the wooden beams within the ceiling.
Difficulty Installing Ceiling Fan Mounting Bracket
Installing the specific electrical box required by a ceiling fan is another thing that homeowners frequently struggle with during a DIY installation. This can happen for a variety of reasons. One is if the installation location isn’t in the exact right place on the ceiling. Ceiling fan mounting brackets must have two ceiling beams within reach to function properly. If you’re not sure where the beams are in your ceiling, it’s easy to botch the installation of the mounting bracket. If this happens, your ceiling fan won’t be stable and could fall from your ceiling when you turn it on.
Improper Fan Assembly
When you open up the box your new ceiling fan came in, you’ll find that it contains a variety of parts and pieces you must assemble yourself. However, depending on the type of fan you buy and the hardware it comes with, you may not require all of the parts in the box. This can create plenty of confusion for those who have never assembled a ceiling fan before. As a result, homeowners attempting a DIY ceiling fan installation frequently struggle to assemble their new fan properly before trying to install it. In some cases, this can lead to them having to remove their fan and make changes, which can waste quite a bit of time. Or worse, it can lead to the installation of a fan that’s missing necessary pieces.
Difficulty With Existing Electrical Wiring
Another thing that can go wrong with a DIY ceiling fan installation can happen when you remove an existing light fixture and find a nest of electrical wiring you can’t understand. This is especially common for those living in older homes. In older homes, it isn’t uncommon to find wiring that doesn’t conform to today’s standard electrical color coding. Also, older homes frequently have ceiling fixtures with multiple electrical wires meeting in them because lighting circuits frequently spanned multiple rooms. It is never a good idea for an amateur to try and make sense of older wiring. Even in newer homes, you can’t always expect to find hot, neutral, and ground wires in every electrical box. So, unless you’re an experienced electrician, you should always stop and call a professional at the first hint of any wiring confusion.
Choosing the Wrong Type of Fan
If you didn’t know, there are generally two types of ceiling fans sold in most home improvement stores. One type is meant for installation at the end of a downrod. These are the types of fans you’ll find in the majority of homes, assuming that those homes have relatively high ceilings. The downrod ensures that there’s plenty of clearance between the fan and the ceiling above it, as well as the fan and anyone passing below it. If your home has low ceilings, you may instead need the other major type of ceiling fan, called a flush mount ceiling fan. They’re more compact, so they will fit in rooms with lower ceilings without posing a risk to the room’s occupants. They also tend to feature different fan blade designs to ensure proper airflow in smaller spaces. If you choose the wrong type of fan for the room you’re putting it in, it may not give you the performance you desire.
Physical Injuries
It’s also very easy to injure yourself while trying to install a ceiling fan, especially if you’re unaccustomed to the work. Working on electrical wiring that’s over your head is a challenge, even for experienced electricians. Plus, it’s not easy to hold a ceiling fan up on your own while trying to mount it on your ceiling. This is why some ceiling fans now include a temporary installation hanging hook meant to make it easier for a single person to handle the job. However, this assumes you have the strength to get the ceiling fan in position to begin with.
An Imbalanced Fan
One of the most common problems that results from DIY ceiling fan installation is that the fan ends up imbalanced, leading to vibrations when running. Professional ceiling fan installers know how to precisely balance a ceiling fan’s blades to make certain that it won’t shake when you turn it on. They also know exactly how a ceiling fan must be mounted to ensure proper weight support and stability. Failing to do this can lead to damage to your ceiling fan and ceiling. If the vibration gets bad enough, your ceiling fan might even detach from the ceiling and fall into your room.
Local Ceiling Fan Installation Experts
The bottom line is that installing a ceiling fan isn’t really a DIY job, at least if you want to make sure it gets done right. That’s why you should trust Temp Air System Inc. to do the work for you. We’re a full-service HVAC company that serves residents in and around La Puente, CA. We offer HVAC installation, repair, and maintenance services. Plus, we offer duct cleaning, electrical services, water heaters, and indoor air quality solutions. We also offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee on all work we perform. That’s a big part of why we’re Better Business Bureau accredited with an A+ rating. It’s also why we have so many five-star reviews from satisfied homeowners throughout the area.
So, if you need a ceiling fan installed in your La Puente home, call the experts at Temp Air System Inc. and leave the rest to us.
