frustrating ceiling fan problem

[shireen]

Hi ...

In spring 2015, I bought an Emerson fan (Emerson Carrera Grande Eco Ceiling Fan -- $510).

It worked fine for a couple of months, then started to emit a burning smell when it was first turned on. Most of the smell dissipated over 15 minutes as the fan ran. (If the smell started strong, low-level odor would linger.)

Emerson sent me a replacement fan that was installed in early fall. It worked fine. Between then and June 2016, it was fine. Then the same problem came back.

When I contacted Emerson, they said that the odds of the same problem happening with two fans was quite low. They had no idea why this was happening, and asked that I get my wiring checked.

An electrician with a lot of experience with ceiling fans came over on Friday morning. And the fan worked properly! I could not believe it! He inspected the junction box at the ceiling, and saw no signs of burning. He opened the bottom cover that allows light fixtures to be attached and saw no visible damage on the motor.

Later that evening, when i turned on the fan, the damn odor came back. And this morning, it's even stronger.

I am at my wits end. I've already spent almost $400 with the installation, replacement and latest inspection. It's ridiculous. I can't believe this is happening.

[packman]

1. May not be from the fan, but something on same circuit???

is the fan on its own circuit? Probably not, when you added the fan it may be causing problems in a related circuit such as another nearby light or switch. Turning on the fan causes that to overheat causing the smell which is drawn up or circulated by the fan. Worth a shot. Definitely sounds like something along the line is overheating.

[shireen]

2. how do i track down the source of the smell?

Thanks for the suggestion.

This is a high ceiling in a rancher (so it's not that high) so there's no attic above.

[packman]

3. Not an electrician

but you could do process of elimination - what else is on when the fan is on? A light you can turn off, a computer , a TV, a monitor of some sort? In other words , shut everything down except the fan and see what happens and then if no smell turn one item at a time on.

Just for the hell of it , when the smell is noticeable go to the main power panel where all your circuits are and - careful now - gingerly touch each one to see if any of them is hot to the touch. This may give you a clue.

If worse comes to absolute worst, turn off the main power, disconnect the fan and remove it then hot wire the circuit on the fan and turn the power back on and see if the smell appears. Again, not an electrician and not sure if my suggestion is even safe. But....

It really seems to me that the fan is not the problem, you may have another problem that needs to be looked at like underamped breakers in your main panel.

Good luck

[shireen]

4. Thanks Packman

I'll give that a try.