A ceiling fan
will do more than just give your
air conditioner a break in the
heat of summer - it'll also take a
load off your furnace in winter by
recirculating heated air that
rises to the ceiling.
Then, your only extra preparation
might be to beef up the
weight-carrying capacity of the
electrical box and maybe run a new
wire to the wall switch if the fan
and light operate with separate
switches. This last requirement
varies, so always follow the
wiring instructions that come with
your fan.
SKILL
SCALE
Medium
TIME
REQUIRED
If
you already have a ceiling light,
the job should take a half-day or
less.
MATERIALS
Electrical
fixture box
Cable clamps
Metal brace bar
Wire connectors
STEPS
Turn
off power to the existing light
fixture at the main service panel,
test for power, and remove the
existing fixture and electrical
box. Attach a 1 1/2-inch-deep
metal light-fixture box to the
brace bar using a U-bolt and two
nuts.
From
the attic, position the brace
between ceiling joists so the
bottom legs are flush with the
bottoms of the joists. Rotate the
bar by hand to force its end
spikes into the joists
Attach
the included stove bolts to the
adapter plate with locknuts. These
are the bolts that will support
the fan. Insert the adapter plate
into the box so the ends of the
U-bolt fit through the holes on
the adapter plate.
Secure
the adapter plate by screwing two
locknuts onto the U-bolt. Open one
knockout for each cable that will
enter the electrical box, and
attach a cable clamp to each
knockout.
Tighten
the brace bar one full rotation
with a wrench to anchor it tightly
against the joists. Feed the
existing circuit cable into the
electrical box, and secure it with
a cable clamp.
Place
the ceiling fan's mounting plate
over the stove bolts extending
through the electrical box. Pull
the circuit wires through the hole
in the center of the mounting
plate. Attach the mounting nuts,
and tighten them with a nut
driver.
Hang
the fan motor from the mounting
plate's built-in mounting hook.
Connect the wire leads using wire
connectors: the black circuit wire
to the black wire lead from the
fan; the white circuit wire to the
white lead; and the grounding
wires to the green lead. Finish
assembling the fan and the light
fixture according to the
manufacturer's directions.
