For a front porch that's inviting and comfortable in the summer, consider hanging a ceiling fan out there. Any exterior ceiling that has an existing ceiling light can have a fan installed in place of it, with the fan wired to the same electrical box and controlled by the same wall switch. It's the same process as installing an interior fan, though the fan itself is specialized, with rust-resistant materials. Don't install in interior ceiling fan outdoors. (Note: If there isn't an existing light, you need to have an electrician run a circuit and install a ceiling box.)
Instructions
1. Cut power at the fuse box to the outdoor ceiling fixture.
2. Remove the old fixture, if there is one, by taking out the screws holding it to the ceiling. Pull it down enough to disconnect the wiring behind it, then pull it off completely. Leave the wires hanging from the ceiling electrical box. Generally, there will be a black, a white and a bare copper one.
3. Find the mounting plate that came with your ceiling fan. It will be a strip or plate of metal with screw holes in it. Attach it to the ceiling electrical box by lining up the screw holes in the plate to the screw holes in the box and inserting the provided screws. The wires from the box should still be accessible around the mounting plate.
4. Wrap the copper ground the ceiling box around the green screw on the mounting plate. Tighten the screw.
5. Bring your fan unit (without the blades attached) up the ladder and position it on top of the ladder, near the electrical box. Connect the white wire from the fan to the white wire from the electrical box, holding the wire ends next to each other and twisting a wire cap over both of them. Connect the black wire from the fan to the black wire from the box in the same manner. If your can has blue wire as well (for a light), attach the blue wire together with the black wires.
6. Hold the fan up to the box. Attach the fan to the mounting plate by lining up the holes in the fan unit to the holes in the mounting plate and inserting the provided screws.
7. Turn on the power and test the fan. Once you're sure the motor is spinning correctly, turn it off and install the fan blades, by lining up the screw holes at the inner ends of the each blade with the appropriate screw holes on the housing, and inserting the provided screws.
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