Tried a dimmer switch on a ceiling fan and learned why that's a bad idea

I swapped out a standard switch for a dimmer on a ceiling fan in a rental house last weekend. 15 minutes later the fan started humming loud and the light flickered. I called my buddy who's been doing this 20 years and he laughed. Said dimmers are for lights only, not motors. I had to swap it back out for a proper fan speed control. Cost me an extra trip to the supply house and $12 for the right switch. Has anyone else made this mistake or know why it messes with the fan motor so bad?

3 comments

3 Comments

brian_hart4d ago

My cousin tried this in his apartment and within 10 minutes the whole light kit started buzzing like a nest of hornets. It's wild how fast a dimmer can mess up a fan motor, right? You'd think electricity is electricity, but apparently motors hate that gradual voltage drop. Live and learn I guess, at least you didn't burn the place down like my neighbor's brother did with his whole house when he tried the same thing.

lee.cora4d ago

Buddy saved you a trip to the hardware store and a call to the fire department all in one go. Gotta love warning labels written in smoke more than words.

joseph_bailey3d ago

brian_hart mentioned his neighbor's brother burning down a whole house with a fan dimmer hack. What exactly did he do differently that caused the full fire versus just the buzzing and smoke you saw? Was it how long he let it run or maybe the specific fan model he used? I'm curious because I've seen people argue online that certain older fans can handle a dimmer okay if you don't push it, but you got smoke almost instantly. Seems like the line between a close call and a total loss is way thinner than most folks realize. Did you catch any smell or specific sound right before the smoke started, or was it pretty sudden?