Bedroom ceiling fan making clicking noise, what to do?

15 years ago

I purchased a ceiling fan at Home Depot, electrician installed it yesterday morning. My DD told us now that it has a clicking sound that you don't hear at the beginning but becomes apparent as the fan picks up speed.

Is the sound caused by an installation error or is it something to do with the fan? I believe the clicking is caused by the fan vibrating and if so, what can be done about that. Any info would be appreciated.

Featured Answer

annzgw

15 years ago

What's the brand? I would call the 800# of the manufacturer and try to get customer service. Older fans often click when they need oil, but I wouldn't think this is your case.

My DM has a fan that doesn't run as quiet on high speed, but she accepts it since it's an inexpensive fan. Plus, it's in a room she rarely uses!

Comments (8)

gayle0000
15 years ago
If it's got any pull-chains for the fan speed and/or the light, that could be bumping and clicking.
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brutuses
15 years ago
It could be unlevel.
shelende
Original Author
15 years ago
It's not the pull chain as we held it as the fan was moving and there is no difference in the clicking sound.
justgotabme
15 years ago
Yep, I'm with brutuses. It's probably out of balance. And that would be a problem with instalation. I've installed many fans before, but always double check the balance or you'll hear the clicking.

I would first check to make sure it's not the chains though. They can make a sound when the fan is on high from the breeze blowing on them. But then again, that too can be caused by being a bit off balanced.

Call your electrician and ask him to stop by to see what's up. It's his responcibilty to make it right.
johnmari
15 years ago
I had the same problem and it was exactly as gayle said, it was the darn pull-chains knocking against the fan housing! I used a tiny bit of museum wax to stick the chain to the fan housing, no more click-click-click.

If the fan's really shaking a lot once it gets going, it probably isn't supported well enough. This is common when a conventional overhead light is replaced by a ceiling fan. Take the fan down, disconnect and remove the electrical box, and insert a retrofit brace like this one, available at any hardware store or home center. It slides right into the hole, very easy to install. Then electrician puts wires back into box and puts ceiling fan back up. Should take less than 30 minutes unless your electrician is a total yutz. ;-)

Oh, and a P.S. - if the fan has a light kit, the bulbs will last a lot longer if you use the special ceiling fan bulbs. They are made to better withstand the fan's vibration, which weakens the filaments in regular bulbs. They're also smaller, which looks far more attractive in kits with downlights.
redbazel
15 years ago
When ours starts making noise, my DH checks to see if the blades need leveling, since checking the pull chain is pretty easy and can be eliminated as the problem quickly. One fan in our house simply needed to be replaced, since it was a cheap one and wasn't worth having. Check out this link.

Here is a link that might be useful: Most family handymen can do this fix
justgotabme
15 years ago
oops. I must have been writing when you were. I'd contact the guy that installed it or the store you purchased it from if you arranged the install through them.