Seems there is no good options to control a ceiling fan that’s either not very expensive or just not a good fit for me. If I bought the Leviton controller (or any controller) I would need to replace my entire fan as it’s a Hunter that can only be controlled by remote, there is a wall switch (I actually have 2 wired to the box but only one is used) that turns the entire thing off. I must use the remote turn the fan or light on/off, set speed and reverse direction - there are no pull chains. The fan connections to the remote receiver with like 6 or 7 wires… I know I must change the fan to use any of the off the shelf options and I really don’t want to change the fan as I really like it and it was not a cheap-o I want to give away so soon.
I know at one point I saw a thread where someone had hacked up a remote for a ceiling fan and was controlling each button using relays, problem is I can’t seem to find that thread again. I am looking for advice for the best relay product to use or to see if anyone else has done this same thing (I can’t seem to find it searching ???)… My remote has 6 buttons on it but I only want to control 5 since I could care less about direction. I thought about getting a relay board for my Vista 20p security system and controlling it that way but it only has 4 relays. It seem’s the other relay boards out there are very expensive, ridiculously expensive actually.
[quote=“ilovfriday, post:1, topic:175907”]Seems there is no good options to control a ceiling fan that’s either not very expensive or just not a good fit for me. If I bought the Leviton controller (or any controller) I would need to replace my entire fan as it’s a Hunter that can only be controlled by remote, there is a wall switch (I actually have 2 wired to the box but only one is used) that turns the entire thing off. I must use the remote turn the fan or light on/off, set speed and reverse direction - there are no pull chains. The fan connections to the remote receiver with like 6 or 7 wires… I know I must change the fan to use any of the off the shelf options and I really don’t want to change the fan as I really like it and it was not a cheap-o I want to give away so soon.
I know at one point I saw a thread where someone had hacked up a remote for a ceiling fan and was controlling each button using relays, problem is I can’t seem to find that thread again. I am looking for advice for the best relay product to use or to see if anyone else has done this same thing (I can’t seem to find it searching ???)… My remote has 6 buttons on it but I only want to control 5 since I could care less about direction. I thought about getting a relay board for my Vista 20p security system and controlling it that way but it only has 4 relays. It seem’s the other relay boards out there are very expensive, ridiculously expensive actually.[/quote]
Probably going to be cheaper to replace the fan than try to independently control 5 relays.
You could go with a pair of the itach devices for $100 each and that will get you 6 relays you can control over IP.
I had a fan I liked, but the remote was more trouble than it was worth. I replaced the remote receiver with a pull cord controller that I picked up at Homedepot.
Now I don’t care much about the direction or controlling the speed remotely, but on and off I do care about. I have a wall z-wave switch for that. The light is controlled by a separate wall switch.
[quote=“ChrisK, post:3, topic:175907”]I had a fan I liked, but the remote was more trouble than it was worth. I replaced the remote receiver with a pull cord controller that I picked up at Homedepot.
Now I don’t care much about the direction or controlling the speed remotely, but on and off I do care about. I have a wall z-wave switch for that. The light is controlled by a separate wall switch.
It might not be ideal, but works for me.
Chris[/quote]
For me speed is important… I might end up buying the Leviton VRF01-1LZ and a new fan and get a 2nd switch to control the light; not what I wanted to do but seems my options that don’t cost a lot are limited.
If you have the install manual for the fan … it will show how to disconnect the remote and wire to
two separate switches … one for light and one for fan. (I ripped my remotes out)
I control the Fan with a Leviton Fan Contol … 3 speeds and the lights with a Leviton Dimmer.
I bought a bunch of bulbs before they decide to stop making any incandescent lights.
[quote=“ChrisK, post:3, topic:175907”]I had a fan I liked, but the remote was more trouble than it was worth. I replaced the remote receiver with a pull cord controller that I picked up at Homedepot.
Now I don’t care much about the direction or controlling the speed remotely, but on and off I do care about. I have a wall z-wave switch for that. The light is controlled by a separate wall switch.
It might not be ideal, but works for me.
Chris[/quote]
Same here. i have three ceiling fans on simple on/off wall switches. i don’t think i’ve changed the speed or direction in years.
[quote=“RichardTSchaefer, post:5, topic:175907”]If you have the install manual for the fan … it will show how to disconnect the remote and wire to
two separate switches … one for light and one for fan. (I ripped my remotes out)
I control the Fan with a Leviton Fan Contol … 3 speeds and the lights with a Leviton Dimmer.
I bought a bunch of bulbs before they decide to stop making any incandescent lights.[/quote]
No that will not work for me… This is a 7 wire fan as I had stated earlier, I will link to the manual so you can see what I am talking about. Thanks for the thought though…
More thoughts on using relays or something to transmit RF control: that might not work so well specifically for the light since it’s one button and not a discreet on/off setup. My only choice is to replace the fan which I so don’t want to do - it fit’s that room perfectly and is quite, on low you can’t hear it running, no hum or anything. On the positive side I do have problems from time to time with this fan just turning on (light or fan) on it’s own - reading posts on the internet it’s a common problem. I get that I could probably rig something up since the multiple wires control speed, light and direction but I don’t want something that hacked together. I went out tonight looking at ceiling fans but have yet to find one I like… This is in my Master Bedroom; last time the search took weeks because I can never settle on furniture/fixture purchases so I am not looking forward to this.