Ceiling fans?

[meags816]

DH and I are under contract for our first home. All we're waiting on is the commitment letter from the bank. Hopefully we'll be cleared to close in the next 2 weeks!

Anywho. We've got quite a list of things that we need "to do" in the house - mostly small stuff, but the one big thing is to upgrade the electrical system to at least 200 amps.

That said - one thing I'm thinking about, is that I'd really love ceiling fans (there are none) in the bedrooms. Is this something we should ask the electrician about - if he's going to be doing work anyway, would it be wise to have the wiring for those done at the same time? Does anyone have any idea what that sort of thing would cost?

I know ZERO about this sort of thing...so I'm throwing it out to y'all! ;D

[mrs.jacinthe]

I'm not 100% on this, so hopefully someone else will chime in here. Unless you want "fancy" ceiling fans, your existing wiring will certainly run a ceiling fan. The only catch will be if you don't have boxes rated for the weight of a ceiling fan. If that's the case, you will have to buy a retrofit kit (which goes out over the drywall to spread the weight out). But they're not expensive and it's a pretty easy thing to use. Heck, if you're not sure, you can always buy and use a retrofit kit anyhow. It won't harm anything to use one, even if your box could support a fan.

FWIW, installing ceiling fans is certainly something you can do on your own. Most come with step-by-step directions and it's a project that you can probably complete in under an hour, start to finish, even if you don't know what you're doing.

[minniebee]

Are there currently ceiling light fixtures in the bedrooms? If so, you can replace the light fixture with a fan pretty easily. It's not any different than switching out light fixtures.

If there are no ceiling light fixtures, you'll have to do a little work to add electrical wires into the ceiling and connect them with a wall switch. Personally, I would hire an electrician because I don't feel qualified to do that work myself. It can be done DIY, but don't mess around with it if you don't know what you're doing.

[kaylie]

I would definitely get an electrician to do them. We have one in each bedroom and it's obvious that the previous owners had a handyman do them because of the way that they're hung and the fact that the light switches are not connected to them.

I don't know how much it would cost, but if you have Angie's List they might have something for it in their big deals section. I see panel upgrades there all the time. Also make sure you get at least three estimates. I just got some for work that we want done and the prices varied quite a bit.

[InBetweenDays]

I agree with mrs.jacinthe. If the room already has wiring for a light fixture it's a pretty easy job to hang the ceiling fan - as long as box can support the weight. We installed two ceiling fans in our last house and electrical is probably my least favorite DIY task. But was still a pretty smooth process.

If there aren't ceiling fixtures then (personally) I'd leave it up to a electrician to run the wiring and install the fans.

[meags816]

I swear you ladies on this board are so helpful!

I should have mentioned that there are NOT currently ceiling light fixtures, thus my question about the electrician.

Now I am sure this is definitely something I will be asking for when I call for quotes! I really want ceiling fans and lights..and am willing to pay since electrical work is NOT something I want to try and DIY.

Thanks!!

[mrs.jacinthe]

ohhhhh!! Well, in that case, yes. As the electrician for a quote to install wiring.

[Susie]

When you say "there are none," do you mean there's a light overhead but no fan? Or there's no ceiling fixture at all?

This spring we had ceiling fans put into all 4 bedrooms, where there previously was no power at all. The existing light switch went to a wall outlet. We chose lighted ceiling fans, and had them wired and installed, along with separate wall switches to control the light and the fan blades on each. The wall outlet was taken off the switch.

The work was done by a licensed electrician, since it was kind of involved. If you need to do all that, then yeah, I'd do it at the same time as the rest of the electrical work. I think the work might have run about $1k for 4 fans. It's hard to say exactly because he did other work too, including the wiring for a whole house fan in the hall, putting in a new outlet in the kitchen, a new receptacle on the deck, etc. Our total bill for all of it was in the $1400 zone I think.

FWIW, we really like having it done.

[simpsongal]

Electricians around here usually charge $200-250/per fan installation. Contrary to the other nesties, I think installing a ceiling fan is a little tricky and best left to an electrician (even if there's already a light where you want the fan).

I also recommend going to a good lighting supply store for the fan - the ones at Home Depot & Lowes are super cheap/low quality. We paid a little over $300 for our Casablanca fan and another $40 or so for the wall mount control switch (speed control, light, etc.).

ETA: I'm in a HCOL area. Maybe some of the fans at HD and Lowes are fine - the floor models seemed flimsy to me though. We plan on staying in our house for decades, so that should be a consideration when you're investing in fixtures.

[Deleted]

May 25, 2012 8:56:50 GMT -5 simpsongal said:

Electricians around here usually charge $200-250/per fan installation. Contrary to the other nesties, I think installing a ceiling fan is a little tricky and best left to an electrician (even if there's already a light where you want the fan).

I also recommend going to a good lighting supply store for the fan - the ones at Home Depot & Lowes are super cheap/low quality. We paid a little over $300 for our Casablanca fan and another $40 or so for the wall mount control switch (speed control, light, etc.).

Holy hell $250? You must obviously be in a different COL than me. My electrician did 4 ceilings fans for me and it was less than $200 for all them..and a couple he even had to wire in. It's like a 10 minute project if it's all wired in.

And not all fans at Lowes?HD are super low quality. I have a line of Hunter in my house that came highly recommended by our contractor and electrician. They didn't come cheap but held up well. Obviously don't buy low quality/super cheap in the first place...but their are good options out there that are affordable and easy to get.

[thewop]

I agree with dairy. Our ceiling fan is a Hunter from Lowes and it's just fine. I don't live in a mcmansion, so spending $$$ just doesn't make sense. It's solid, and functional. We spent $300 total for two fans including the hardware to install them (we had no existing lights), and work great for what we need. No complaints.

[sassafrass]

I don't have much to offer as my husband installed all of ours but I would suggest getting remotes for all of them. They're fairly cheap and the reciever part gets installed when the fan goes up.

I couldn't live without the remotes now!

[emoflamingo]

Hell, one of the fans in my house is from Walmart (all together now when you gasp so I can hear it here ;P) and it's fine.

I know my FIL does NOT mess with electrical and he is a handyman by nature and built his own house from the outside walls in -- excluding electrical work. I would call a few electricians and get quotes. I find that ceiling fans here are a necessity and if I plan on staying a good while, worth the investment on installing.

[sawyerthedestroyer]

If you're already going to have an electrician at your house look into getting the ceiling fans installed at the same time. H and I have installed our fair share of fans and it is always a PITA and usually results in a lot of profanity and flaring tempers.

ETA: I just saw your response. Don't DIY if there isn't already any kind of fixture in the ceilings. Electricity is not something you want to mess with.

[bonquiqui]

We had the builder install rough in's and the H just installed them later. It took us forever to find what we wanted