after fighting with my old ceiling fan for weeks, i finally decided to get my butt in gear and buy a new one. the old fan was ugly, noisy and on the "slow" setting it would often just stop altogether.
so after waking up on yet another morning covered in sweat (the damn thing having come to a halt overnight) i vowed to do something about it. i went to the HD after work, quickly chose the most contemporary-looking model that was under $100, and set to work.
i wished i had thought to blog the whole installation process, but i was too focused on my mission. the box said "easy to install! anyone can do it!" but having never replaced a ceiling fan before i figured i was in for an all-night adventure.
and i was right. it took about 3 hours.
about half that time was spent getting the old one down. since i was not the one who installed it, i didn't know which screws to loosen first. i've seen countless home improvement shows where the whole fan comes down as one unit but that definitely wasn't possible in my case. the blades had to come off, then the upper collar, then i had to release it from the mounting bracket. the entire time, little crumbs of plaster were falling in my face. yum.
once the old fan was down (and my rug covered with dust) i sat and read the new fan's installation instructions cover to cover. this is a new strategy for me, actually... i usually read step one, then perform step one, read step two, then perform step two. this method has gotten my butt in trouble more times than i'd care to share, and since i was dealing with something heavy, with the potential to send large currents of electricity through my body, i decided to be thorough. just this once.
though i must say, i'm no stranger to wiring light fixtures. i've done it in my hall, twice in the kitchen, and even on random lamps. i felt so sure of myself, in fact, that i didn't turn off the breaker this time. i just shut off the light switch and kept the black & white wires away from each other. i felt like a pro... a pro living on the edge.
and i did the whole thing myself, carefully, making sure i had all the connections secure and all the screws tightened. i even lifted that damn 50-pound motor into place myself. and when i pressed the remote control it all worked. nothing fell, nothing wobbled, and i had the reward of a silent, cool breeze.
Posted by xta at July 20, 2005 11:42 AM | TrackBackthat is a beautiful fan! and whoa! am i impressed! also, that light in the hallway is gorgeous!
Posted by: joy at July 20, 2005 12:37 PMshit that old fan was ugly.
bravo!
your mechanical skills never cease to impress me.
Christa rocks the hizzouse! You are my superhero.
And boy do I love that picture of s*xy Mr. David Byrne on the wall!! I would NEED the fan to cool me off if I was standing there gazing upon that. Yowzah!
Posted by: minty at July 20, 2005 02:48 PMDamn, Xta, can you make it so your comments don't think that Ess-Ee-Ex-Why is a naughty word? Honestly.
Posted by: minty at July 20, 2005 02:49 PMagain, I am impressed by your masterful home-improvement skills. Having once watched my dad swearingly install several ceiling fans in the same week (it must have been a new fad or something) when I was a kid - I expect that they take more time than the instructions say, and lots of swearing is involved.
Your new fan is sweet! And the old fan - gawdawful.
Posted by: pinky at July 20, 2005 03:08 PMWait a minute--you can say "shit" in the comments but you can't say "s*xy"? That is fucked up. Can I say "fucked up"?
Posted by: minty at July 20, 2005 04:59 PMminty, cool your jets, you pottymouth.
i'm going through my spam filters now to see if i can figure out what's up with s*xy...
hee hee - you said cool your jets! and called minty a pottymouth!
(she's just fulfilling a new year's resolution - right, minty? i fear i've fallen down on the job in terms of f-words in '05. see? i can't even do it.)
Posted by: pinky at July 20, 2005 08:49 PMha HA! i fixed it!!
sexy sexy sexy!
the filter that catches my comment spam was looking for the string "sex"; i told it that "sexy" was ok. at least i think i did... we'll see if i get slammed by spammers overnight.
apparently, comment spammers don't use the other nasty words y'all have been spewing, consequently there's no filter set up for those. so rock on with your potty mouths!!
Posted by: christa at July 20, 2005 10:41 PM"Virginity's no crime. S...x (S-E-X)" Adam Ant.
Hey, how do I make a backwards "d" in .html? :-)
I can't believe you don't already have a billion requests for help doing the same at other people's houses.
Posted by: Phil at July 20, 2005 11:20 PMMy new favorite word is the Pinky-coined adverb "swearingly." So many uses!
I'm so glad I can say "sexy" in your comments now. That's some fucking sexy shit! Damn sexy!
Posted by: minty at July 21, 2005 08:21 AMI love your fan. Do you know if you can replace a regular ceiling fixture with a ceiling fan? Or do you need an actual electrician for that?
I'm blushing from all the smutty talk in your comments.
Posted by: lainey at July 21, 2005 12:00 PMlainey-
you absolutely can replace an ordinary ceiling fixture with a fan. the wiring is the same for the fixture as it is for the fan: one black wire, one white wire, and one green (grounding) wire.
btw, i had no idea you were such a delicate blushing flower! :-)
Posted by: christa at July 21, 2005 12:06 PM