dimmer to control ceiling fans?

[mobbie 10]

Hello All,

 

I would like to control a few ceiling fans I have around the house so during hitter weathet i have them turn on automatically.

 

in the case of the fans they traditional have a 3 way speed controller which basically reduces the voltages between speed one and two and then full voltage for speed 3.

 

Can a dimmer switch or similar act in the place of the switch on the wall?  Is there a way to speed control the fans?

 

Fyi im in Australia, 240vac.

 

Mobbie

[petergebruers 1,265]

Even if it would work, I would not do that... The dimmer causes the motor to hum at lower settings. Depending on construction and power rating, the hum can be louder than the fan. If you set it too low, the motor might stall...  I use the Fibaro FGD-212 on a small bathroom fan but actually this kind of load is not mentioned in the manual. Other dimmers might support it, but it does not solve the "hum problem".

 

Unfortunately, I cannot come up with a good alternative. I am not sure if regulations allow you to modify your existing controller. I am not allowed to do so in Belgium. If you are allowed and you know what you are doing, you might be able to replace the switches with relays. Unfortunately, the Fibaro Relays (that I know of) are not rated for and inductive load. It's OK to control a bathroom fan, that's about 20 W. A ceiling fan is 50 - 110 W? Also they might not have the flexibility to get what you want, please check the manuals... I am thinking out loud: use 2 Z-Wave relays, add 2 relays rated for inductive loads, assuming that is enough to replace the switches. That is a lot of work and probably not even legal.

 

For bigger fans, solutions do exist, but they are rather expensive. You can buy a motor controller for with a 0 - 10 V analog input and connect it to the output of a (Fibaro) RGBW controller via a "PWM to 0 - 10 V adapter" (about 12 us $ on amazon or ebay, this is not the issue). And a 24 V power supply for the module.

 

I have to admit, I have never tried to find motor controllers in the 100 W range. So they might exist! A ceiling fan is not often found in my cold, damp country, ... 

 

[Robert Folbigg 22]

@mobbie,

 

I have been looking for a solution to this for a while now and the best I have come up with is to install IR controllers for the fans and use a globalcache device to control them from a VD.

 

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[petergebruers 1,265]

@Robert Folbigg interesting device... It matches "Heller" fans... is that... "the fan" in Australia? Or is it compatible with other ceiling fans? Maybe this is a stupid question, but I'm curious... You have ceiling fans, we have French fries (actually, they are "Belgian") and bad weather.

[Sjekke 87]

On 11/7/2017 at 4:59 PM, petergebruers said:

@Robert Folbigg interesting device... It matches "Heller" fans... is that... "the fan" in Australia? Or is it compatible with other ceiling fans? Maybe this is a stupid question, but I'm curious... You have ceiling fans, we have French fries (actually, they are "Belgian") and bad weather.

 

Don't forget our beer and chocolates!

[Robert Folbigg 22]

On 08/11/2017 at 2:59 AM, petergebruers said:

@Robert Folbigg interesting device... It matches "Heller" fans... is that... "the fan" in Australia? Or is it compatible with other ceiling fans? Maybe this is a stupid question, but I'm curious... You have ceiling fans, we have French fries (actually, they are "Belgian") and bad weather.

 

@petergebruers,

 

Heller fans are available for purchase in Australia, i'm not sure of else where. My plan is to buy some of these units and remove the IR control module so it can be built into an existing fan. I haven't tried yet but summer is coming along quickly so ill try it soon and let you know how it goes.

[petergebruers 1,265]

@Robert Folbigg thank you for explaining this, this way I learn something every day! My guess is that these fan motors and 3-speed controllers are all very similar, ... you are about to find out "for the greater benefit of this community". You are a certified installer, so you are "a licensed electrician" as required by your local regulations.

[mobbie 10]

Thanks everyone, Robert be interested in your idea on the IR's, because it would be easy enough to use an IR sender (like I do on my AC's) with Fibaro to do the similar job.

 

Just remember for those in the northern hemisphere, our fans go in the other direction here in Australia

[petergebruers 1,265]

8 hours ago, mobbie said:

Just remember for those in the northern hemisphere, our fans go in the other direction here in Australia

I bet they do

 

Enjoy summer ... and "have fun with Home Automation"!