This fan appears well built, has clear instructions with useful, accurate, descriptive images, and the design looks sharp. It really outperforms what I had before.
So why only 4 stars? My issue, which is probably resolvable, is this: At any speed above 1 (5 speeds total), it makes a repetitive ticking sound. Its not so loud that it impedes conversation, or watching TV, but it is irritating, especially because I know its not supposed to do this. This ticking is probably a common occurrence, as the manual addresses how to troubleshoot it directly. The company recommends giving the fan an adequate break-in period of several hours to several days, and then to take the steps outlined. You can see those one of the pictures above. Herein lies the problem for me. My living room is double height. In order to get to the fan, I needed to rent a 16 ladder and have it delivered from across town, an investment of a couple hundred dollars (the ladder rental as only a small part of that. The delivery/pickup charge was the bulk of the cost). I dont have a vehicle capable of transporting a ladder of this size, so delivery was the option. And while Im a big guy, a 16 ladder is a two-person job to set up, and when youre on it, you need the second person as a spotter for safety. And the ladder open takes up the entire living room, so once Id installed the fan, I couldnt test it without taking down the ladder. Once the ladder was down, we heard the ticking sound. But the manual says wait for the break-in period. Well, that period is long over, its still ticking, and the ladder has been picked up and taken away already. So I have a fan that ticks and if I want to fix it, I either have to spend a couple hundred dollars, rope a friend into helping, and use a morning get up there and figure out why.
I am inclined to think the problem is with my installation and not with the product, but I dont know for sure, and I cant verify for the reasons outlined above. What do I take away from this that might be helpful to you?
1) I probably could have paid an electrician about the same amount of money as the ladder rental, and certainly if I have to rent it twice, to have this professionally installed. I know what Im doing and this was still difficult. Its probably better to pay a pro than to do this yourself unless youre really comfortable with all the steps
2) if it was professionally installed, and made this ticking sound, it would be the installers responsibility to fix it until it didnt. Even at their hourly rate, thats still cheaper than the ladder rental and delivery
The weekend I installed this fan, I also installed a fan in the unit directly next to mine, with the same double height ceiling. Doing two in one day was revealing: the second fan had terrible, incomprehensible instructions. But once my friend and I had figured it out, it works flawlessly, at all speeds, and its perfectly silent. Its not quite an apples-to-apples comparison, as that fan has a different mounting apparatus, and I still think the source of the problem with my fan was me, not the fan, but until I get back up on a ladder, 16 feet into the air, I wont know whats defective: the fan, or the dude who installed the fan
My recommendation to you:
1) if you have a normal height space, and youre comfortable doing installations that combine structural work with electrical, and you have a friend to help, this is a manageable project. And my assessment of the fan and the instructions suggests this is a quality product. But if you have a space like mine, then consider hiring a professional. I should have. And when I start to do that math, say $500-$600 for the installation, it becomes very tempting to have them install something that I know will last for a long time. It sure would be frustrating to pay someone to do the installation for you and then have this unit stop working in a year or two
Looks great, good instructions, but....
This fan appears well built, has clear instructions with useful, accurate, descriptive images, and the design looks sharp. It really outperforms what I had before. So why only 4 stars? My issue, which is probably resolvable, is this: At any speed above 1 (5 speeds total), it makes a repetitive ticking sound. Its not so loud that it impedes conversation, or watching TV, but it is irritating, especially because I know its not supposed to do this. This ticking is probably a common occurrence, as the manual addresses how to troubleshoot it directly. The company recommends giving the fan an adequate break-in period of several hours to several days, and then to take the steps outlined. You can see those one of the pictures above. Herein lies the problem for me. My living room is double height. In order to get to the fan, I needed to rent a 16 ladder and have it delivered from across town, an investment of a couple hundred dollars (the ladder rental as only a small part of that. The delivery/pickup charge was the bulk of the cost). I dont have a vehicle capable of transporting a ladder of this size, so delivery was the option. And while Im a big guy, a 16 ladder is a two-person job to set up, and when youre on it, you need the second person as a spotter for safety. And the ladder open takes up the entire living room, so once Id installed the fan, I couldnt test it without taking down the ladder. Once the ladder was down, we heard the ticking sound. But the manual says wait for the break-in period. Well, that period is long over, its still ticking, and the ladder has been picked up and taken away already. So I have a fan that ticks and if I want to fix it, I either have to spend a couple hundred dollars, rope a friend into helping, and use a morning get up there and figure out why. I am inclined to think the problem is with my installation and not with the product, but I dont know for sure, and I cant verify for the reasons outlined above. What do I take away from this that might be helpful to you? 1) I probably could have paid an electrician about the same amount of money as the ladder rental, and certainly if I have to rent it twice, to have this professionally installed. I know what Im doing and this was still difficult. Its probably better to pay a pro than to do this yourself unless youre really comfortable with all the steps 2) if it was professionally installed, and made this ticking sound, it would be the installers responsibility to fix it until it didnt. Even at their hourly rate, thats still cheaper than the ladder rental and delivery The weekend I installed this fan, I also installed a fan in the unit directly next to mine, with the same double height ceiling. Doing two in one day was revealing: the second fan had terrible, incomprehensible instructions. But once my friend and I had figured it out, it works flawlessly, at all speeds, and its perfectly silent. Its not quite an apples-to-apples comparison, as that fan has a different mounting apparatus, and I still think the source of the problem with my fan was me, not the fan, but until I get back up on a ladder, 16 feet into the air, I wont know whats defective: the fan, or the dude who installed the fan My recommendation to you: 1) if you have a normal height space, and youre comfortable doing installations that combine structural work with electrical, and you have a friend to help, this is a manageable project. And my assessment of the fan and the instructions suggests this is a quality product. But if you have a space like mine, then consider hiring a professional. I should have. And when I start to do that math, say $500-$600 for the installation, it becomes very tempting to have them install something that I know will last for a long time. It sure would be frustrating to pay someone to do the installation for you and then have this unit stop working in a year or two