Ceiling Fan/light
I have a single wall switch providing power via 14/2 wire to the fan. With the switch on, the fan runs and the pull chain provides the off/3 speed function as it should.
I then connected the 2-bulb light to the fan in the following: black from light to the black/white striped wire of fan; and the white from light to the white wire of fan. Result, the light comes on but the pull chain will not turn the light off. So if I only want the fan running I have to have the lights on. (So I had to remove the bulbs)
The only other wire I can see hanging down from the fan are (2) red wires which are connected together with a wire connector. Question: Can this operation work with only one wall switch? I see no blue wires or others as an option. Please advise.
Most all ceiling fans have the option of running the fan and light together or separate depending on how they are wired. Most have a pull chain to operate the fan and another one to operate the light.
If you are installing a ceiling fan in an existing ceiling box and it only has a black and a white wire and a bare copper or green ground wire (one cable entering the box) then you have no real choice but to operate the light and fan together. There are some options however.
1. Have an electrician rewire the box if possible to allow independent operation. This could be costly unless the box has additional wires in it. In that case they could be scoped out for possible use. Depending on how the ceiling box and wall switch were wired there could be an easy way to do this. If the power feed went to the ceiling box and the then to the wall switch (two or more cables in the box) it probably could easily be done but you have to know what you are doing.
2. Add a pull chain to the light. This would allow you to independently control the fan and light but the wall switch would still need to be on for either to work. Often this is the way people run their fans. A compromise but it works.
3. Buy a wireless remote or a fan that has a wireless remote. This allows remote control of the fan and light. In this case you would leave the wall switch on. Some remotes install on the wall in place of the switch or you just keep it on the table like a TV remote. Convenient if you are in bed and don’t want to get up to change the fan speed or turn it off.
If the fan is a name brand there is probably a web site for more info or diagrams.
