Ceiling Fan Support Boxes Explained 

Showing what we would see in Home Depot is a great touch. That is usually has more frustration that wires in the ceiling box!

Fantastic video!! Very clear directions, no fluff, straight to the point & I love the Home Depot examples! Thank you!!!

Thank you for walking us through everything -- from installing the bracket to the wiring. I have a ceiling box like that and had an idea that the inside those slots was wood, but you confirmed it for me. Thanks :)

Love the video. I’ve watched countless home repair videos and yours is the very best I’ve seen. I’m now a subscriber and will go nowhere else. I’m kind of a handyman as well I have lots of construction experience when I was younger but it’s always great to have a second opinion on what I am doing. Thank you 🙏

Thanks for much for this. I'd watched several videos that did not go into detail on boxes, and whether or not they were meant for fans. I have a box that looks exactly like the one in the first part of your videos - oblong shaped holes instead of standard circular "screw" holes, and I was confused as to where I screwed things into. Your video really helped me understand!

Thank you! I had a side saddle box and never even knew they existed. Made me feel more confident to install my fan.

I know I'm a little late but I just watched this video and wanted to say awesome job explaining and showing everything. Excellent video!!!!

Went through dozens of videos before I found the answer in your video for the pancake box I had in my house. THANK YOU!

Excellent video showing how to determine if you need to install a more secure junction box to support the 15 - 20#'s of a fan/light fixture. I purchased a fan/light junction box with brace kit that I can probably do chin-ups on.

Your video was very concise and to the point. Thank you for explaining the different types of boxes.

Your voice is very relaxing and the way that you explain things is super helpful for beginners like me. Thanks for the video !

Steel Rafter Boxes are a MUST HAVE to cope with the Vibrations! Good job.👍

Great video. All the facts, right to the point, no extra filler or BS. Thank you! Subscribing to your Channel now!

Your video on installing a ceiling fan in your daughter's apartment in Florida brought me here. I hope she is still working for the mouse. I'm a CM in California. So we're practically long distance cousins. Lol. Anyways i loved the videos and they helped a lot with some questions i had. Thanks for the great content.

Hi, I am a subscriber of yours and also live in the UK so as you said the wiring is different even including the colours of the wires, to make things more complicated (and we know government love to change things) the wire colours have been changed and if you are in an older house this can cause confusion as brown replaces red and blue replaces black, thankfully they have made the earth wire from green to green and yellow. By the way I do enjoy your videos, sorry about the hum, mine works great without any noise.

I've installed fans before but as they say you learn something new everyday as I've done here, thanks for clear explanation, nice job, made a new subscriber

A picture of a fan, sent by a fan - fandemonium.

This is so helpful, giving me a lot of peace of mind in checking my chandelier box. Thank you!

Thanks 🙏🏼 I was looking for this information due that I have exactly the same ceiling fan support box in my house and I wasn’t sure to install my ceiling fan. Thanks again. Tomorrow I will install mine. 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼 ☕️☕️☕️

Thanks for the video it helped me feel more confident on installing a fan in my room :)

Thank you! Going to watch a few more videos to get completely comfortable with the process and then I'll tackle this with some help from my brother!

I have not found anyone like you you’re amazing thanks

Thank you for this video yes i agree any box that is metal attached to wood is suitable for fans. i like the first box shown as it has a joist righ above that is how it is intended the box just encloses the electrical whilw the joise carries the weight of the fan. and the sencond box you showed is an example of a box thats only for light fixtures. i enjoyed your video, i look foward for more to came.

Very good explanation and breakdown. Subscribed!

Exactly what I needed to learn. Great video! Thank you!

Thanks so much for a clear and concise video. I have a very similar box to what you show, but I don't see those slots you show on yours. I have a picture of mine and hope I can upload it to show you. I have some odd instructions on possibly where to use the screws, but, again, no slots, just pointers.

Thank you Chriss. I learned a lot from this video man. 👍 great video keep em coming!!

Very informative video, very well explained. Thank you.

Great easy to follow video. I had to hit the subscribe button 👍🏽

Very helpful and answered my questions!

Exactly the information I was looking for. Thx good sir. ☮️

Thank you for such thorough explanation.

Nice video thanks for showing the different type of support boxes !

Omg you save my day .. I have exact outlet box connecting to joist .. this helped me go to and install

Excellent video and review thank you very much for posting it has inspired me the confidence to try this on my own

Valuable info. very helpful. Thank you very much.

Thank you! This was quite helpful!

Wow thanks pops! Great video! Keep it up!!

Very nice video! Thank you!

The video I didn't know I needed. Thank you, I need to go buy a brace 😭

Thank you Master , by far you have the best video ever.

Thank you much. I have the same box, it’s a brand new house, I guess they are cheap. Never saw one like that and I thought they put the wrong box in. Now thanks to you, I will put up the fan👍🏼

very well done and helpful!

Thank you for this video! Saved me from taking a trip up to the addict or Home Depot

Very well done and helpful video. Thank you.

I like your video, you cover a lot, I did get a giggle in the first part of the video the actual lag screw to hold the fan bracket is mounted inside the box instead of being used properly and a drywall screw was used instead, improper.(hindsight) As for the boxes. A pan box (pancake box) shown, it is not listed, not marked, and not suitable for use with a ceiling fan. So if you have seen it used, like I have, I note it as improper or violation. NEC 314.27(c) the box shall be listed and marked suitable for the purpose of a Ceiling fan and may not support more than the weight rating. Keep up the videos, so many need this help as electricity hurts, burns, and kills.

Great video! Thank you!

U are awesome thanks some videos just show u everything but how to wire it or just do it like we know I'm trying to learn haha and u went beyond with the braces and stuff just what to expect I feel better did my patio one already now my son's room.

Very helpful video. Thank you 🙏

Great video. Thank you. I have the ancient brown light fixture box that somemeone hung a fan on before me😢 good thing i just removed it from my 2 month olds room! Jeez and i was lost for a bit. I did see they also make an ez brace 101 that you can screw right over the light fixture box. Makes it hold 150. Of course lowes doesnt have it tho.

Very helpful vid.

Very helpful thank you

Great video, right to the point. What is the extra screw for in the Jbox?

Awesome vid thanks

thank you so much, best virtual dad

Thanks Virtual dad for the explanation

Hello. Thanks for this video! I have a Legrand Slater ceiling fan plastic mount in my ceiling. When I push on it it moves like the one you should us that was for a light only; however, mind is definitely for a fan. Do these plastic mounts have some “play” movement to them?

Excellent! TY

Thanks Dad!

Thanks for the video. After seeing the plastic box (where the rough-in was supposed to be) I got worried :-).

This was a great, thank you

Thanks, great Video

Hi thanks for explaining things so simply and clearly. I have ceiling fan light combo that I attempted to install (unsuccessfully). It has a yellow wire with a green line on it. Might this be the ground wire that would be attached to the copper wire from the ceiling?

Thank you for the video! I’m installing my first fan and have a junction box that’s a few inches deep into the ceiling hole. I’m unsure what type of attachment or extension I would need to add so I could mount the fan. Would appreciate any tips or info!

Thank you so much!!!

Hi, I have a question. A couple years ago I had 80% of my ceilings completely replaced: new framing/joists, new insulation, new drywall, etc. I had 3 fan boxes mounted on steel fan joists, and one pancake box mounted to the center joist in my living room. The pancake box came with two screws to secure a bracket to the fan box (I think it has rotating tabs to mount lights or fans), but the other three did not come with any. At least, the one in my kitchen didn't, so I imagine the other two (master bedroom and small bedroom) did not either. Also, the fan boxes, except for the pancake box, have tabs rather than screw cylinders. I hope I'm making sense here.... My question is: should the screws to mount the bracket come with the fan box, or the fan itself? And if they are missing, where do I get the screws from? Or does it depend on what box and/or fan you get? For reference, I'm looking at fans from Hunter, Progress Lighting, Minka Aire, and Westinghouse. Thanks!

So helpful

Great video! At 7:34 you jumped straight back into installation and it was hard for me to tell what happened. Did you just screw the bracket into the wood through the ceiling? Any screws going into the support box itself?

I recently just bought a new home. In the process of the build, I did a "pre drywall" walk through. The builder told me the boxes behind the light fixtures were rated for ceiling fans as well. At the time I didn't think about what weight they could support. Is there a way for me to know that based on just looking at the box after removal of light?

This was sent to my by "One of my fans" ahhh okay man I'm onto you now 😂😂

Nice video, but what’s the weight limit on the prolonged box, also I was hoping you’ed explain where the blue wire connects to if you are using the remote. But you should still be able to use the light switch with or without the blue wire, so I like to always connect it to the remote box.

Thank you. I watched Home Depot's video on how to install my fan, but the box they had in the video didn't look like the one I have. The one I have looks just like the one in this video, though.

Great video, i just hired electricians to install / replace one that was done incorrectly. Still like to learn.

Thanks for the video! It looks like I have the pancake boxes. Are those rated for really heavy fans? Ty.

What would you do in a situation where you have an existing light fixture that you want to replace with a ceiling fan but the box that's currently in the ceiling is very loose with old wiring and will not support the weight of a fan? And you don't have attic access?

Hey this is an excellent video and very informative. However I have no red wire going to the light fixture in the living room. But there is a switch how would I go about wiring the fan? It gets hot in the summer and we don't have an AC so a fan is must have in there to circulate air better.

What is your recommendation for installing a ceiling fan with a new junction box where you can’t access from attic It’s for a mobile home

"This was sent to me by one of my....fans..." lol

I know this is an older video but when I looked at the box from my light fixture, it was plastic but wouldn't move at all. Does that mean I could install a ceiling fan or replace it with a different outlet box? I can't read what it's rated for, covered in pain from the builders.

So I just took the light fixtures down, looked through, and saw wood. I crawled up into the attic, and realized that our light boxes are nailed (with two nails) to a 2x4 (I measured) strung between the joists (1.5 x 5.25, so I'm assuming 2x6?). The 2x4 is attached with two nails through the joist into the end-grain on one end, and a single nail going through the other joist at the other end. I'm wondering how I tell if that's strong enough to hold a fan? The box wiggles a little bit, but not much, and since it's supported by those two nails directly across its middle, it doesn't wiggle up and down, just side-to-side. Thanks for the help!

I've always been skeptical of any fan box which does not actually screw into anything. Those metal bar ones which have sharp teeth that sink to the studs, who's to say it doesn't slip out in the future? Screws are designed so that it's pretty much impossible to pull them out of the material they are screwed into. So i'd rather try to use a pancake box than one of those, because at least the pancake box will screw into the truss/joist.

Regards the 1st box you showed is it really useful or can I connect directly to the stud? I feel like it's getting in the way

Hello. Thanks for your video. My fan only has three wires; ground, white and black. But my ceiling outlet has 4 wires. Is it possible to still control the fan and light separately from the wall switch? And should I connect both the red and black from the outlet, to the black from the fan? Thanks!

Is Canadian wiring the same as USA wiring? I like how USA wiring is easy, but I'm worried about if I find out it's a lot more complicated here in Canada.

Hi handyDad, do you have a video on if the fan box is a 4in and your support brackets are 6in?

Hi , do you have a video to see how remove a regular ceiling box and install one of support ceiling fan box? Thanks

heres a question - can i install direct into concrete? because i live in a flat - so theres NO box at all for any lights i have up but ive found celing fan/light that weighs 1.9kg (my currently lightshade weighs more then that but the difference will obviously be rotating motor - i cant rewire due to renting but i do have permission to change them to ceiling fans "at my own installation cost and research if its suitable") - i know an electrician (but he is busy with work) so im just wondering HOW would i install? (the one im looking at is a CHANFOK in the uk, so they are low profile, they replied "it can be installed into concrete" - but i just want to check HOW.. dont want to buy it pay for an electrician even on friends rates, to find my celing wont hold it! - but i need something as i cant afford AC with cost of energy now

what size wood screws did you use for the fan bracket; I tried using 3 inch wood screw that came with the fan and I am not able to send the screw in completely, thanks for your help; also did you send the screws into the oval shaped holes or did you use any other part of the fan box? I have the exact same fan box installed by my builder

Non contact tester is best for several reasons but don't rely solely. Recently had friend with electrical issues in an old house. There was no grounds. They lost power to multiple things. I went to an outlet first and found non contact tester beeped at the wire, yet had no votlsge on outlets tester. I then found the common/white had power indicating it wasn't getting back to the source. If I had touched the neutral I'd of possible been nailed if the wood was wet enough! Found a loose wire in a light in the wire nut. The wires dint twist inside.

Any advice on how to install a fan when a light fixture brace like the one you showed is already installed?

Just found your channel. Trying to change my light from garage into ceiling fan with my son.We had to put everything back the way it was because those black wires were hidden. Only two white wires and a red one screwed to the white plastic cover. What happens if I swap one white instead of one of those white ones? Thank you

0:52 "this was sent to me by 1 of my fans" even fans want to install fans

one og my outlet boxes is deep intho the ceiling dry wall, the bracket for my pendan light is too small to attach it to the ceiling, Should I get an outlet box extender or a different bracket (eventhough the bracket came with the pendan light), The weird thing is only 1 of the outlet boxes is like that, the other 2 are OK and flush with the ceiling. Any suggestions?

So how would you remove the ceiling box that won't hold a fan and replace it with a box that will? I'd love a video.

I can tell you as a homeowner when it comes to plumbing and electrical I NEVER get the best case scenario. It's always a typical 30 min job that is one screw up away from becoming an all day job. I've come to accept and embrace those jobs and IF I ever get a BEST CASE SCENARIO I am tickled beyond belief because that rarely happens to me. 😂😂😂

Ceiling fans are so nice to have! I recently replaced my light fixture with one and the box looks good for a fan. And the fan is not moving and is secure.

Great video thank you. And yet you skipped over a crucial portion at 7:35. Such a bummer you didn’t explain that bracket and the details of HOW you installed it. Ugh. That’s the part I need to know about.

Im installing a fan and do 3 wires red, black and white, the fan has remote built in to control light and fan can I just cap the red and just use the black thank you

I wouldn't trust the last 4" metal pancake box you showed. While my house had fans in it and they used that exact box and had no issues, I replaced them when I got new fans with a pancake box specifically rated for fans. If you look on the one your showed, it will specifically say "Not fan rated". The rated box costs $1 more and the brackets that take the machine bolts is better reinforced.

Someone mounted a ceiling fan using drywall anchors?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA