FAN and LIGHT switch/dimmer

[vdotmatrix]

Our house is 50 years old.

We have a Casablanca ceiling fan and light in our bedroom with a simple slide dimmer on the wall.

I got the bright idea of wanting to control the fan and the light at the switch.

So, i remove the fan from the ceiling, and the switch from the wall to see what we have for wiring.

supply comes in across the ceiling to the ceiling fan junction-box where it splits: one branch continues on across the ceiling and down the wall to feed the rest of the circuit; the other branch from the box is (3)-wire that goes to the light switch. I think the flow of electricity goes from ceiling to wall switch box where the (3)-wire's white and black connect with another branch that feeds the outlet on that wall and then continues down to the terminus at the ceiling outlet in the garage below, that feeds the garage door. In the wall switch box, the old slider took a black pigtail on one end and the RED wire on the other end of the switch, that went back to the ceiling fan.

AT THE CEILING FAN: all the WHITES were pigtailed ( 3 branches + fan white); all BLACKS were pigtailed (3 branches); grounds; the RED from the (3)-wire was pigtailed to the FAN's BLACK and BLUE wires (fan and light leads?)and the slider controlled the fan and light (NO-NO).

So I guess the problem here is I need a HOT wire to the switch box to be able to use the NEW Switch i bought that controls the fan and the light from switch- IN the old set up, the 3-wire was the source of the power in the black and white and the red came back to power the fan.

Is this reasoning correct? I can use the existing 3-wire but the juice has to come from the sitch box. I am thinking j-box run a branch to this box pigtail white and blacks, sending the power to the fan, through the switch.

vincent
vdotmatrix@gmail.com

It's sometimes better to be lucky than smart.

[HayZee518]

Try home depot - they sell a remote transmitter and receiver. The receiver will fit in the space occupied by the dome cover. That way you don't have to pull wires in the wall to the switch and you'll have independent control of the fan AND light. The fan will have three speed settings and the light ramps up to full brightness and then dims and finally off.

[vdotmatrix]

Thank-you. but the old switch has to be replaced.
I get so verbose in my careful explainations that my question gets lost:

The switch box on the wall merely needs a hot supply? YES?

It's sometimes better to be lucky than smart.

[HayZee518]

yup - one hot to the switchbox two returns to the fan one for the fan one for the light.

[vdotmatrix]

quote:Originally posted by HayZee518

yup - one hot to the switchbox two returns to the fan one for the fan one for the light.

YUP that's what I did! and it works like a charm. Funny how back in the old days they could use that ceiling fan box as a junction box for branches...not sure if that would pass NEC today?....not being readily accessible without dismantling the fan etc. the switch box is another one but readily accesible.

IS it common practice to to use 3-wire like that?

thanks for the come back

vincent






It's sometimes better to be lucky than smart.

[HayZee518]

Yes a three wire is normally used if the white wire is taped to resemble a hot wire, other wise you'd have to pull in anothe two wire with both whites taped. The red color helps identify the other leg.