Home electrical question

Instrument 41 · 06-23-2011, 01:09 PM

In my office the power from the switch on the wall goes to a receptacle, not a ceiling fixture. I want to put a fan in. Do I tap into the top side of the switch and run power to the ceiling or do I go to the receptacle and run power to ceiling from there? Any advice is welcomed on this.

Burnin' oil · 06-23-2011, 01:15 PM

I am not entirely sure of your layout, but it sounds like you want to install a ceiling fan that is controlled by a wall switch, but the wall switch currently controls an outlet.

Does power come into the switch box from above? or through the outlet?

Do you want to keep the switched outlet?

Do you want to have the ceiling fan on the switch?

vash · vash's Garage

my nickname in college was "sparky"..

this is the direction i would take.

Instrument 41 · 06-23-2011, 01:27 PM

I want the fan to come on via the switch in the wall. But I also want to keep the power to the receptacle the same, via the switch. I know there is constant power at the switch but also power to the receptacle when the switch is turned on. What would be the easiest to do, and or safest?

Burnin' oil · 06-23-2011, 01:28 PM

So two switches then? One for the outlet and one for the fan?

A930Rocket · 06-23-2011, 01:34 PM

Either the switched outlet is hot on the top and bottom or is a switched half hot, meaning the upper or lower is always hot and the other half hot when switched on. Code requires a light to come on when you enter the room, via clg fixture or a light fixture on a wall outlet.

You could make the single gang switch a two gang, having a switch each for the outlet and the fan. Run a 3-wire so you can have a switched light (then you would need a 3 gang switch).

What's above the office ceiling? Attic space would make it easier to access. You could run the wire from the switch up to the attic and then over to the fan. You can nail or screw (better) a 2x4 or 6 in the attic between joists to mount the fan on.

Zeke · 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Instrument 41

In my office the power from the switch on the wall goes to a receptacle, not a ceiling fixture. I want to put a fan in. Do I tap into the top side of the switch and run power to the ceiling or do I go to the receptacle and run power to ceiling from there? Any advice is welcomed on this.

(wrong info deleted)

Burnin' oil · 06-23-2011, 01:49 PM

You run a line from the switch to the fan. I don't understand why you would run from the switch to the outlet to the fan, which would mean that the switch controls both.

Instrument 41 · 06-23-2011, 03:40 PM

The fan has a chain actuated switch for the light and fan.

Burnin' oil · 06-23-2011, 03:48 PM

Ah, so you only need power to the fan and no wall switch. Then grab power from the switch or from another source in the attic.

Zeke · 06-23-2011, 03:51 PM

I stand corrected on my post. I did think about it and then posted incorrectly in spite of knowing better.

If the switch is wired as a switch leg, the white won't be a neutral and you can't make a circuit to the fan from there, only the plug in the wall. Sorry about that. Look in the box where the switch is and see if there is only one romex coming in. If so, it' a leg. No matter how you go about this, you will have trouble with room if these boxes are single gang.

Get an electrician so's ya don't have to listen to idiots like me.

Burnin' oil · 06-23-2011, 03:59 PM

I am assuming power comes into the switch. If so, you can use that as a power source for the fan. If not, see Milt's comment.

Instrument 41 · 06-23-2011, 04:43 PM

Milt, thanks for the info. Your definitely no idiot. When we bought this house the majority of bedrooms and my office were configured that way, the wall switch supplied power to certain receptacles. In the process of putting in lights and/or fans. I guess its to simple to think that I can go to the receptacle thats controlled by the wall switch and just tie into that supply and run it to the ceiling?

URY914 · URY914's Garage

Buy yourself a small Honda generator to power the fan. Those things are really quite now. Run a cord up the wall and across the ceiling to the fan- no need to get into the walls. This is much faster than what those smart guys above are talking about.

imcarthur · imcarthur's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by milt

If the switch is wired as a switch leg, the white won't be a neutral and you can't make a circuit to the fan from there, only the plug in the wall.

Exactly. Even the ground might be suspect.

Ian