Wire a Ceiling Fan with Black & White Wire
Money-savers and decorative additions to a room, ceiling fans are easy to install. If you will be replacing an existing light fixture with a fan, the work is even easier. In other situations, you will have to thread wires behind walls and atop ceilings and make a few cuts, but installing ceiling fans is usually an easy project for most do-it-yourselfers.
Instructions
Replacing an Existing Fixture with a Fan
1. Cut the power to the circuit where you will be working.
2. Remove the light fixture. If the fixture's junction box and bracing is capable of supporting the weight of the fan, you can leave it in place. Otherwise, you will have to remove this hardware as well. Skip to Step 5 if you will not be replacing the hardware.
3. Insert the fan's support bar through the hole. Fasten the brace bar to the joists.
4. Pull the existing wires through the junction box and attach the box to the support bar.
5. Attach the power supply wires to the fan following the manufacturer's instructions. Attach the fan to the bracket and finish the installation according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Adding a New Fan Controlled by a Switch
6. Cut the power to the circuit where you will be working.
7. Make the cuts in the wall and ceiling where you will be hanging the fan and installing the switch. Cut a 6-inch hole between two ceiling joists where you will be hanging the fan. Cut a small hole where the ceiling meets the wall above the switch to make threading the electric cable easier.
8. Remove the power supply receptacle from its electric box.
9. Hang the fan's brace bar as described above.
10. Run the wiring for the fan and switch. Thread the fish tape from the hole near the ceiling to the location of the fan. Attach wires to the fish tape and pull it back toward the hole. Drop the wire to the power supply receptacle. Feed a second cable from the fan to the on-off switch. When this is complete you will have a pair of black and white wires running from the power supply to the fan and another pair running from the fan to the on-off switch. The power will run from the receptacle to the fan and then to the switch.
11. Make the electrical connections at the power supply. Connect all of the black (hot) wires together and all of the white wires together using electrical connectors.
12. Make the connections at the switch. First, mark the white wire at the switch box with black electrical tape. The other end of this wire will connect to the fan's black wire. On the switch, attach the marked white wire and the black wire to the brass screws on the switch.
13. Connect the fan to the circuit. At the fan, attach the marked white wire to the fan's black wire and the unmarked white wire to the fan's white wire.
Attach the fan to the bracket and finish the installation according to the manufacturer's instructions.
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