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HN May 5th 06 12:45 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.




Toller May 5th 06 01:51 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 

"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.

You hook all the wires to the green. They are all the same; don't know why
they are different colors and names.



JerryL May 5th 06 02:04 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 

"Toller" wrote in message
...

"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires
Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box
white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.

You hook all the wires to the green. They are all the same; don't know
why they are different colors and names.

I've been following this alt.home.repair for many years. There used to be
very competent people here willing to give correct advice to novices. Slowly
the group changed and the wiseguys came and chased the good people away. If
someone asked a legitimate question there were 10 people ready to jump on
him and ridicule him. The above reply from was completely
uncalled for. A novice asked a serious question and this idiot Toller tells
him to short all the wires out. No wonder all the competent people left.
They didn't want to have to compete with complete, stupid idiots like
Toller. And Toller, you're just one of many idiots that have diluted and
spoiled this group. I hope one day in life you have to ask someone a serious
question and they asnwer "Go screw yourself".



RBM May 5th 06 02:07 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
Green ground wires and white neutral wires are not the same. Your green
wires should attach to your metal outlet box



"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.






Joseph Meehan May 5th 06 02:38 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
HN wrote:
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went
fine until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I
have is two wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked
Ceiling fan wires Black and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white
wire to the outlet box white wire. So What to do with the green
ground wires? Well I had no place to put it so I hook it up to the
White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and Ground is the
samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.


As for the black and blue wires, I can only guess that they are
different speeds. The paperwork with the fan should identify them and tell
you how to handle them. I would not suggest doing it the way you have it
unless it tells you to do it that way. It is also possible that the blue
wire is for a light in which case that would be OK if you understand that
you will have only one speed and anytime the fan is on the light will be on.
Again, please read the instructions that came with the fan.

Additional note. I hope you know that you don't just mount a ceiling
fan to a standard box. They are not designed to hold all that moving
weight. It is also important that the minimum distance from the fan blade
to the floor is maintained Note that I believe they require additional
clearance if it is located over a bed. This is a safety must.

As for the green wire, that is a ground wires and the fan should be
grounded. It should NOT be connected to the neutral. Neutral wires carry
current ground wires only carry current when there is a fault. You don't
what to do that wrong.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit



bob kater May 5th 06 02:40 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
the green will be earth ground, used to direct stray current harmlessly to
the ground, avoid using water pipes for this also. make sure your elect box
goes to a copper ground rod
"RBM" rbm2(remove wrote in message
...
Green ground wires and white neutral wires are not the same. Your green
wires should attach to your metal outlet box



"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires
Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box
white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.








RBM May 5th 06 02:49 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
As for the black and blue wires, I can only guess that they are
different speeds.
Joseph, don't confuse him, he's got it right. The black is the fan and the
blue is the light kit. Once he turns on the wall switch he can work the
light and the fan speeds from the pull chains



"Joseph Meehan" wrote in message
...
HN wrote:
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went
fine until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I
have is two wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked
Ceiling fan wires Black and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white
wire to the outlet box white wire. So What to do with the green
ground wires? Well I had no place to put it so I hook it up to the
White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and Ground is the
samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.


As for the black and blue wires, I can only guess that they are
different speeds. The paperwork with the fan should identify them and
tell you how to handle them. I would not suggest doing it the way you
have it unless it tells you to do it that way. It is also possible that
the blue wire is for a light in which case that would be OK if you
understand that you will have only one speed and anytime the fan is on the
light will be on. Again, please read the instructions that came with the
fan.

Additional note. I hope you know that you don't just mount a ceiling
fan to a standard box. They are not designed to hold all that moving
weight. It is also important that the minimum distance from the fan blade
to the floor is maintained Note that I believe they require additional
clearance if it is located over a bed. This is a safety must.

As for the green wire, that is a ground wires and the fan should be
grounded. It should NOT be connected to the neutral. Neutral wires carry
current ground wires only carry current when there is a fault. You don't
what to do that wrong.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit




Toller May 5th 06 03:16 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 

"JerryL" wrote in message
...

"Toller" wrote in message
...

"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is
two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires
Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box
white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.

You hook all the wires to the green. They are all the same; don't know
why they are different colors and names.

I've been following this alt.home.repair for many years. There used to be
very competent people here willing to give correct advice to novices.
Slowly the group changed and the wiseguys came and chased the good people
away. If someone asked a legitimate question there were 10 people ready to
jump on him and ridicule him. The above reply from was
completely uncalled for. A novice asked a serious question and this idiot
Toller tells him to short all the wires out. No wonder all the competent
people left. They didn't want to have to compete with complete, stupid
idiots like Toller. And Toller, you're just one of many idiots that have
diluted and spoiled this group. I hope one day in life you have to ask
someone a serious question and they asnwer "Go screw yourself".

You don't think maybe he is a troll? If you didn't know the difference
between a ground and a neutral, would you install your own fan?



Sev May 5th 06 03:57 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
He doesn't seem to have a ground from the panel- unless this is metal
clad cable.


[email protected] May 5th 06 07:15 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 

Tony Hwang wrote:
HN wrote:
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.



Hi,
You mean the boix does not have bare ground wire attached to it?
I'd connect green to the box.
Ground and neutral are tied together at the panel but they does
different function, safety, current path.


Thanks everyone for your replys, my news sever is down so I have use
google groups to read and post to this thread. Yes the Blue and Black
wire are for the fan motor and light kit. I hook the green fan ground
wires to the white neutral wire because the neutral wire was already
being used as a ground wire for the old light socket I removed. I
wasn't to sure it was right, and I'm glad you guys replyed so quickly.

So all I have to do is get some copper wire, hook it up to the metal
outlet box and hook the green wires to that. Ok thanks. And to the the
person who talked about mounting the fan to a standard box. The fan is
very light weight and install guide said to use the standard box. I
don't think it will fall on me, but while I'm up there I'll try to make
it stronger.

Thanks again everyone. Thanks for nothing Toller .


[email protected] May 5th 06 07:23 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
Black and blue to the hot (black), White to the (white), and the ground
to ground wire (bare copper wire) If there no ground or bare copper
wire at the box mount the green wire to the box. If the box is plastic
just cap the green wire.You'll be all set.


JerryL May 5th 06 10:09 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 

"Toller" wrote in message
...

"JerryL" wrote in message
...

"Toller" wrote in message
...

"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is
two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires
Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box
white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral
and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.

You hook all the wires to the green. They are all the same; don't know
why they are different colors and names.

I've been following this alt.home.repair for many years. There used to be
very competent people here willing to give correct advice to novices.
Slowly the group changed and the wiseguys came and chased the good people
away. If someone asked a legitimate question there were 10 people ready
to jump on him and ridicule him. The above reply from
was completely uncalled for. A novice asked a serious question and this
idiot Toller tells him to short all the wires out. No wonder all the
competent people left. They didn't want to have to compete with complete,
stupid idiots like Toller. And Toller, you're just one of many idiots
that have diluted and spoiled this group. I hope one day in life you have
to ask someone a serious question and they asnwer "Go screw yourself".

You don't think maybe he is a troll? If you didn't know the difference
between a ground and a neutral, would you install your own fan?

He could have very well been a troll but if he wasn't and he did what you
told him to do (besides him being stupid for doing it) would you feel ok
about giving him such advice? This is supposed to be a helpful forum yet
people are afraid to ask legitimate questions because they know they'll be
sniped at, laughed at and ridiculed in one manner or another.



JM May 5th 06 11:25 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
Neutral is white wire which carries return current and green is ground which
carries fault current. They are close to the same potential but they are not
the same. So hook them up accordingly.
Jim Mc

"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.






RBM May 5th 06 12:07 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 
I'm assuming it's a metal cable. If he has non grounding NM cable it won't
help


"Sev" wrote in message
ups.com...
He doesn't seem to have a ground from the panel- unless this is metal
clad cable.




HN May 5th 06 02:10 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 

"JM" wrote in message
t...
Neutral is white wire which carries return current and green is ground
which carries fault current. They are close to the same potential but they
are not the same. So hook them up accordingly.
Jim Mc

"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires
Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box
white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to
put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.






Thanks everyone, this was really big help.



Ether Jones May 5th 06 02:23 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 

The fan is very light weight and install guide said to use the
standard box. I don't think it will fall on me, but while I'm up there
I'll try to make it stronger.

In 2-story homes you can't get to the electrical box in the ceiling of
the first floor without cutting up the ceiling.

But there is another way.

Find a nice-looking piece of hardwood, like a small table top from a
garage sale or thrift store. Choose a square or round shape depending
on your preference. Paint it white if you like, or sand it and stain
it a different color. Locate the ceiling studs and screw the table-top
into the ceiling, making sure each screw goes into a stud, and feed the
wires from the electrical box through a small hole in the center of the
table-top. Mount the fan to the table-top, and patch the screw-holes.


[email protected] May 5th 06 04:42 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 

Bud-- wrote:
bob kater wrote:
the green will be earth ground, used to direct stray current harmlessly to
the ground, avoid using water pipes for this also. make sure your elect box
goes to a copper ground rod


The main purpose of the green wire at the fan is to provide a low
resistance path back to the source/neutral, to produce a high current,
to trip the circuit breaker if there is a short from hot to the box/fan
frame (or in general to exposed metal surfaces). If there is low current
'leakage' from the hot it is still back to the source/neutral.



Must be smart current they are using these days. It apparently knows
that if it's a low current leakage, it should go via the neutral. But
if it's a high current then it goes back via ground.



If you are referring to the water service pipe, for years a metal water

service pipe at least 10 ft burried length has been required to be
included in the ground electrode system. Municipal metal water pipe
systems will have a much lower ground resistance than a ground rod.

bud--



Tom The Great May 5th 06 04:51 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 
On Thu, 04 May 2006 23:45:03 GMT, "HN" wrote:

I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place to put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.



Do not hook up the ground to the neutral.

Look inside the ceiling box, you might see a ground wire off the
NM-B("romex") connected to a ground screw. Follow the manufactures
instructions, and get your grounds together. I wouldn't be surprixed
that any mouthing hardware will have to be connected as well.

Remember, only qualified personel should work with electricity, a
hired electrician is cheaper than a hospital visit. ;)

later,

tom @ www.Consolidated-Loans.info

IVB May 5th 06 05:16 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 
I'm with JerryL here. I used to be here daily, but I started some other
projects which kept me busy. This morning was my first visit back to A.H.R.
in 2 years, and I was a little confused by your first response; why would
anyone suggest that? In the other forums i'm on, we just don't feed the
trolls.

Oh, and I have to admit - 4 years ago when I first came to this forum, i
wouldn't have known the answer to that question. I probably asked dumber
questions than anyone else, but how else could I learn?

--
----------------------------------------------------
I'm building my own smarthome for pennies on the dollar!

www.myhomeautomationpc.com - My Personal website with my home theater & home
automation setup
homeautomation.wordpress.com - My Home Automation Blog

-----------------------------------------------
"JerryL" wrote in message
...

"Toller" wrote in message
...

"JerryL" wrote in message
...

"Toller" wrote in message
...

"HN" wrote in message
ink.net...
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went
fine
until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I have is
two
wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked Ceiling fan wires
Black
and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white wire to the outlet box
white
wire. So What to do with the green ground wires? Well I had no place
to put
it so I hook it up to the White neutral. It works just find, Neutral
and
Ground is the samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.

You hook all the wires to the green. They are all the same; don't know
why they are different colors and names.

I've been following this alt.home.repair for many years. There used to
be very competent people here willing to give correct advice to novices.
Slowly the group changed and the wiseguys came and chased the good
people away. If someone asked a legitimate question there were 10 people
ready to jump on him and ridicule him. The above reply from
was completely uncalled for. A novice asked a serious
question and this idiot Toller tells him to short all the wires out. No
wonder all the competent people left. They didn't want to have to
compete with complete, stupid idiots like Toller. And Toller, you're
just one of many idiots that have diluted and spoiled this group. I hope
one day in life you have to ask someone a serious question and they
asnwer "Go screw yourself".

You don't think maybe he is a troll? If you didn't know the difference
between a ground and a neutral, would you install your own fan?

He could have very well been a troll but if he wasn't and he did what you
told him to do (besides him being stupid for doing it) would you feel ok
about giving him such advice? This is supposed to be a helpful forum yet
people are afraid to ask legitimate questions because they know they'll be
sniped at, laughed at and ridiculed in one manner or another.




Mark Lloyd May 6th 06 02:13 AM

Ceiling fan install question
 
On Thu, 4 May 2006 21:49:58 -0400, "RBM" rbm2(remove
wrote:

As for the black and blue wires, I can only guess that they are

different speeds.
Joseph, don't confuse him, he's got it right. The black is the fan and the
blue is the light kit. Once he turns on the wall switch he can work the
light and the fan speeds from the pull chains


That's the way it was for the several fans I've installed. This allows
wiring to 2 external switches. Connect both together is you're using
one switch.



"Joseph Meehan" wrote in message
.. .
HN wrote:
I just installed a Ceiling fan in my bedroom and everything ok went
fine until I tryed to hook the wires up. From the outlet box all I
have is two wires Black (Hot) and White (neutral). So I hooked
Ceiling fan wires Black and Blue to the Black wire, and the Fan white
wire to the outlet box white wire. So What to do with the green
ground wires? Well I had no place to put it so I hook it up to the
White neutral. It works just find, Neutral and Ground is the
samething right? I don't want to burn my house down.


As for the black and blue wires, I can only guess that they are
different speeds. The paperwork with the fan should identify them and
tell you how to handle them. I would not suggest doing it the way you
have it unless it tells you to do it that way. It is also possible that
the blue wire is for a light in which case that would be OK if you
understand that you will have only one speed and anytime the fan is on the
light will be on. Again, please read the instructions that came with the
fan.

Additional note. I hope you know that you don't just mount a ceiling
fan to a standard box. They are not designed to hold all that moving
weight. It is also important that the minimum distance from the fan blade
to the floor is maintained Note that I believe they require additional
clearance if it is located over a bed. This is a safety must.

As for the green wire, that is a ground wires and the fan should be
grounded. It should NOT be connected to the neutral. Neutral wires carry
current ground wires only carry current when there is a fault. You don't
what to do that wrong.

--
Joseph Meehan

Dia duit


--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.laughingsquid.com

"Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what
to have for lunch. Liberty is a well armed lamb
contesting the vote." - Benjamin Franklin

lp13-30 May 6th 06 04:48 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 
There is a device made for mounting ceiling fans where there is no attic
access to properly mount a box sturdy enough for a fan. It amounts to
two metal bars with a barbed plate on either end. These two are threaded
into a center piece such that when the center piece is turned it pushes
the two two outward so the barbed end plates will dig into the rafters
on either side. Then there is a bracket on it to mount a metal box. The
whole thing can be manuvered into place (in most cases) from below
through a 4" hole in the ceiling. I used one a long time ago and it
seemed to work satisfactorily. They are not cheap-- about $16 then as I
recall, but well worth the money if needed. Larry



RBM May 6th 06 06:35 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 
Boy Larry, you're bringing back memories. I hated those horrible
contraptions. For the last ten years or so, there have been sort of a
screw - in - tube device with the same barbs on the ends, but incredibly
easier to use than the old ratchet type, but your point is well taken, there
is no need to have attic above


"lp13-30" wrote in message
...
There is a device made for mounting ceiling fans where there is no attic
access to properly mount a box sturdy enough for a fan. It amounts to
two metal bars with a barbed plate on either end. These two are threaded
into a center piece such that when the center piece is turned it pushes
the two two outward so the barbed end plates will dig into the rafters
on either side. Then there is a bracket on it to mount a metal box. The
whole thing can be manuvered into place (in most cases) from below
through a 4" hole in the ceiling. I used one a long time ago and it
seemed to work satisfactorily. They are not cheap-- about $16 then as I
recall, but well worth the money if needed. Larry





Bud-- May 8th 06 06:13 PM

Ceiling fan install question
 
wrote:
Bud-- wrote:

bob kater wrote:

the green will be earth ground, used to direct stray current harmlessly to
the ground, avoid using water pipes for this also. make sure your elect box
goes to a copper ground rod


The main purpose of the green wire at the fan is to provide a low
resistance path back to the source/neutral, to produce a high current,
to trip the circuit breaker if there is a short from hot to the box/fan
frame (or in general to exposed metal surfaces). If there is low current
'leakage' from the hot it is still back to the source/neutral.




Must be smart current they are using these days. It apparently knows
that if it's a low current leakage, it should go via the neutral. But
if it's a high current then it goes back via ground.


For either a short from hot-to-ground-wire or leakage from
hot-to-ground-wire, the current path is ground wire to panel,
ground-to-neutral connection (main bonding jumper), neutral service wire
to supply transformer. The current sourced at the utility trasformer on
the hot returns to the transformer via the ground wire and neutral
service wire. The earth is not part of the path. For a fault, the low
resistance of ground wire to main bonding jumper to neutral service wire
is critical to rapidly trip the circuit breaker.

bud--


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