Fan Oil with Dispenser Bottle: amzn.to/2Z0fV5N Useful tool for oiling the bearings. Thanks (paid link) As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
HOLY CRAP! I thought this was a joke at first. Why don't they make these things easier to oil? Having an easy to access oil port that could be filled without having to take everything apart and shut off the electricity would be a god send!
My exact thoughts. Is this a joke? I’m thinking I’ll go with tightening any loose screws and spray wd40 all over, cross my fingers and hope it doesn’t die.
@@dominiqueh6790 How'd that work out for you? I have a very similar model to the fan in the video (although mine's 15ft high), and there are holes at the top that I sprayed wd40 into (I aimed for the bearings). The grinding sound stopped, but the fan doesn't turn as fast as it used to. Maybe once it dries out a bit, it will, but I may have ruined the fan lol. I'll have to get a big ladder to do it properly.
I wanted to let you know that more than four years later your advice is still proving invaluable. I had an repairman come to the house to fix my 30 year old noisy, wobbling ceiling fan and he was of absolutely no use. In desperation I decided to fix it myself. It was not until I found your video that I understood how fix the wobble by tightening the flywheel, and take care of the squeaky bearings with SAE 10 light motor oil. The "repairman" told me repeatedly it couldn't be done. Wrong!! Absolutely could not have gotten it working as good as new without your highly instructive video. Thank you very much!
dang man, I just want to drip some oil. shutting off the power and taking down my fan to get to the bearings of the motor, is something i may fail to re-assemble and have it fall on my head and kill me later, since I often mess up first, then learn from my mistake. I can't afford to learn from a fan falling onto my head. However, I'm probably going to have to hope for the best and do it.
My ceiling fan is about 21 years old and I just started hearing a grinding/scraping noise. I believe that oiling the bearings would indeed solve my problem. But at this point, if I take down my old ceiling fan I will just install a new nicer one. Thanks for the video. 🙂
Don't even know if you see comments on this video, as the last one was posted 4 years ago. My wife and I have a Hampton Bay fan over our bed. Probably installed between 10 and 15 years ago. None of our other ceiling fans has every squeaked, despite being run a LOT more. Followed the instructions here exactly, and went through a lot of anxiety hoping that the squeaking would be gone once the fan was all put back together. I had brain surgery for essential tremors back in January, and while the shaking is better now, trying to get a screwdriver into a screw head with one hand while holding the fan pieces with my other hand is a bit of a challenge. Plus my neurologist doesn't think a guy my age (70) should be up on a ladder any more. 😁 I had 5w-20 sitting around, so used that instead of 5w-30. According to what I read, they both have the same viscosity at room temperature, but 5w-30 has a higher viscosity at high temperatures. I don't suspect my fan is generating high temperatures. After oiling, I let the motor sit on a box in the garage for a week so any excess oil would have a chance to drip out, and not end up dripping on our bedspread. With my shaky hands, the oil didn't all go around the bearing. Finally.....when everything was finally put back together and the blades reattached, we turned the fan on. At first, it made a little rubbing noise like it had before.....but I assume the new oil got distributed inside the bearing quickly.....because suddenly we had a quiet fan that sounded as good as new! Thank you FunBubble! 😄😄😄😄😄😄
Great video Sir! I’m a renter and going to be doing myself!😳shhhh don’t tell! Heck I fix everything for five years that’s within my ability just because who can change out toilet tank guts,re-adhesive the soap dish in shower,re-chalk the shower,fix broken door jam. Just give her a receipt for anything spent. Have a fantastic day
I bet i can press the bearings out and replace them. If I'm already this deep, might as well go all the way! Fans should come with zerk fittings for maintenance IMO.
Ha! About 2 weeks ago I quit using my living room ceiling fan because it was starting to make a grinding noise. The only problem is that it is at the mid point of my vaulted ceiling, so it is 14 - 15 feet! My bedroom fan makes a light noise when it is on it's lowest speed. That one I can reach by standing on the bed, luckily. So I'm going to give this a try! Thank you for sharing your knowledge with us! Keep warm tonight.
yeah its a pain to take the whole fan down from the ceiling. Usually the bearing making the noise is the top one and its hidden under the shroud. Luckily they only need to be oiled after 10 to 20 years. Thanks.
@@FunBubble OK, good to know that. Yeah, the fan in the living room is over 25 years old. But the bedroom fan is less than 2 years old, even though it is a Hunter brand. They don't make things like they used to. Great video & thanks again!
Thanks for the video! A medicine dropper also works well for applying the oil. I was able to get my particular flush mount fan done without disconnecting the wires.
Not really. I have tried oiling my ceiling fans while still hanging, and the problem is there are two bearings. You can not get oil to the lower bearing without taking the fan down. Once you flip the breaker switch for the room the fan is in, or the fan's breaker switch, it is easy to do.
Our living room ceiling fan is who-knows-how-old, and it’s developed some bearing rattle. Our dining room ceiling fan, with four blades (LR fan has five), and a 10 inch shorter span, has a significantly longer spin-down, too. This is very helpful! I wish this could be done with it in place, though.
grease in bearings dries up and causes wear and it gums up bearing. This will work to extend the bearings, sometimes quite a long time, but eventually they will wear out. If you are skilled enough to pull the motor apart you can pull the bearings and replace them. They are just pressed on the shaft. There should be a number stamped on the shield of the bearing. Get that number and if you have calipers measure the id (bore) of the bearing. SOMETIMES the bearing with the same number will have several different bore sizes. (Special bore bearing) otherwise you may end up with the wrong bore.
Mine runs silent but catches on something every now and then. I thought it was a balance issue since it started after getting some roofwork done. I think it may just have excess dust in the motor.
Green Recycle Tip for my school: If your mom or wife colors her hair , a good bottle to oil is the hair coloring mixing bottle, it has the same spout! Hope I get an A!
I would say, if you have it, add a SHORT piece of heat-shrink tubing of the same color wire onto the wires you connect that don't match colors (red and blue). That way you will always know in the future or when exhausted or whatever. I know it's the only 2 that didn't match, but there may be something else you work on, which has a wire or 2 that is not in use, along with 2 mismatched colors that go together, which could cause you to connect a not-in-use wire to the mismatched color one instead, since those 2 colors also don't match. This could also be a hidden wire that becomes unhidden when re-connecting. A free-option is to just take pictures or video with your phone while doing it.
Appreciate your video...I just fixed an awful squeak that started years and years ago,and it just got unbearable a couple nights ago. Followed your instructions on a similar 25 yr old fan. It literally runs like new. One thing I would do differently, use less oil...Our bedroom smells just a little bit like the Gas Monkey Garage,
@@bhoot1702 The fan is of very good quality. I installed it myself. It’s quiet for 20 years until recently. I felt that replacing it would have taken me more time. So, I took it off and oiled it. It worked as before. Hope that it would last another ten years 😜
I'd suggest if you know nothing about wiring before you dissasemble to take a photo of how its wired or write down the connections so you can put back together easily!
My 6-yr-old fan started getting this weird noise and i didn’t do anything.. a month later, the fan just won’t rotate. I removed the blades and it started working again but the rotation is so slow.. i tried to put oil into the bearings but it didn’t help. Then i changed the capacitor (same 1.5uF) but the rotation was still slow and it’s still not rotating when I reinstalled the blades.. what could be the issue? :( is it safe to try installing a 2.0uF capacitor?
Hi. Im new to yr channel I like the way you explain...could you record a video on installing a ceiling fan with it lights but controling fan and lights with 2 gang switches...please
Excellent video, your simple visual and non-complicated steps toward fixing the fan was great. I've a fan that occasionally makes noise but if I wiggle the fan left/right it seems to at least temporarily balance (?) and make the noise/squeak go away. I'm not sure if it is in fact the bearings...but I'll try it. Thanks for taking the time to video this procedure.
Luckily I solved my issue with a 20 yr old westinghouse ceiling fan which started making a rythmic noise . I was thinking maybe it needed oil and but on checking there is no oil hole. Checked all fan blades for tightening but still the noise was there. I have 4 lamp holders on my fan 1 for each individual lamp which I seldom use. Anyway while running the fan had noticed a wobble but paid little attention , but as it turned out that loose lamp holder was the key. Once I secured that lamp holder the fan became quiet as a mouse once again. This is crazy this has been bothering me for days even though tv noise etc. did tend to drown it out. Good luck with your issue , check all screws and blades and lamp holders, Sure glad I didnt call an electrician.
That's what I was thinking. I know it would last longer. I am going to try it. Rather than take the entire thing apart, I am going to gease a swab and put it up through the holes and see if I can get the noise to stop that way. Worth a try - b4 I completely take everything apart. There are just too many moving parts that need to go back together perfectly. It's worth a try. I hope I can get rid of the squeaking. If I do HAVE to take it apart then this vid seems easy to follow. I appreciate that he had good lighting and went through it step by step explaining exactly what he was doing.
Thanks for the info. Just looks like to much work someone like me that doesn’t have that handyman touch. I can do a few things but when it comes to electricity I’d rather let someone with more knowledge than me plus a 60-100 dollar fan won’t be a dent like getting electrocuted or getting the fan to fall on me while I’m sleeping. But thanks for the info anyway. Cheers!
itd be hard to get the grease inside the bearings. the oil will seep inbetween the bearing carrier and race. A few drops of oil will last 10 years or more inside the bearing. They start to make noise after it totally dries out.
I have read NOT to use detergent containing oil. I see that you used one with detergent. Explain your reasoning, please. I'd like to se detergent oil because it is all I have on hand, but am hesitant.
My fan makes a loud grinding noise and wont move very much, maybe 10% speed. Left it on for 15 seconds to see if it would start but I started to smell the motor burning so I turned it. The fan spins just fine going the other direction too. Do you think I have a more serious problem than just lack of oil on the bearings? Maybe I should just get a new fan, I've always wanted one with a remote lol
Could be a capacitor. Get the # of wires and microfarad uF of each and you can order online for about $10. Easy to change if you are a 2 out of 5 for handiness.
Old technology was just as good as old people It lasted Longer But these days generation Intentionaly make things very fragile and not Long lasting Jus for Business Old people Gem
I'm 99% certain this is the same issue with my ceiling fan too. I wish I wouldn't have to go through all those steps. Looks like it's gonna take about an hour or so.
WD40 isn't a very good lubricant, really. It'll work for a little while and then the squeaking will be worse than it was to begin with. It's just not designed for this sort of thing. WD40's good for cleaning parts and getting screws unstuck. It'll lubricate things for a short while, which might be all you need sometimes. Something like a ceiling fan needs a proper oil.
Changing the bearings would have been an even more durable fix. It will cost around 7 dollars to buy a set of good quality bearings and install them. It might last 26 years again. But it will atleast last 15 years!
Oh, good grief. I wanted to oil my fan WITHOUT disassembling or turning of a breaker. Almost easier to buy a new fan. Not your fault, but the basic homeowner shouldn't have to disassemble and turn off a fuse to oil a fan.
And working above your head makes everything three times as difficult. I've a 40-year-old Hunter fan that I oiled maybe 10 years ago and again today, by just squirting a lot of oil into a couple of holes above the motor. Apparently, the fan spins on a ball bearing sitting in a puddle of oil.
@@bobsoft From WD website lubricant. Myth: WD-40 Multi-Use Product is not really a lubricant. Fact: While the “W-D” in WD-40 stands for Water Displacement, WD-40 Multi-Use Product is a unique, special blend of lubricants. The product’s formulation also contains anti-corrosion agents and ingredients for penetration, water displacement and soil removal. Comments: Thanks anyway.
LOL ... Spray grease on a surface Spray WD-40 on it. Watch the grease, the original good, made for the product lubricant get ruined by the cleaning agents in WD-40. WD-40 is a self fulfilling product when used as lube. Be prepared to do it over and over and over.
Thanks, pepsicolachao. Would you have any idea of approximately what year ceiling fans started being built with sealed bearings, as opposed to the older style that have 'felt oil washers'? I realize that's probably hard to nail down, and it might vary from one manufacturer to another, so perhaps the only alternative is to pull my 'hummer' down to see how it was constructed and then either repair or replace.
