ceiling fan box

itin1200

Will be installing a ceiling fan in the living room soon. Well, as soon as my wife finds one she likes. Could be 2016 by then...

Any ideas/opinions on what type of ceiling box is best for a 46"-52" fan with a light? It's between two switches, so will have two 12/3 cables entering. The room is open to the joists, so any type of box can be installed pretty easily. Just not sure what I need.

Any advice is appreciated.

Bill

dSilanskas

First of all you only need a 14/3 romex not a 12/3. That is a little over kill unless the room is wired in 12.... Anyways there are many types of fan rated boxes you can use. However if you have open joists I recommend this box but you really can go with whatever box is fan rated.

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...atalogId=10053

Good luck and make sure your working with dead circuits

Jim Port

You may want to run the cables a different way to cut down on the amount of splicing in the fan box. This will be especially true with a remote receiver.

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Answers based on the National Electrical Code. Local amendments may apply. Check with your local building officials.

brric

Assuming your situation is a 3-way with the two 12-3s, you definitely need a deep box similar to the one pictured previously.

itin1200

Thanks for the replies.

Took another look at it this morning in the light of day and with some coffee on board.

Will certainly be easy enough to run the 12/3 between switches and end run into the fan/light with just one cable. Will definitely reduce number of conductors in the box. Wasn't thinking too clearly last night after a 14 hour day...

dSilanskas, our local HD didn't have that box in stock a couple days ago. I'll have to look around. A problem we will have is that this is an old house with full 2X framing lumber. Most of the joist and stud bays are about 13.5 inches, so will probably have to cut the bar down a bit. A reviewer on Amazon did just that and was very happy with the result. I've done it with sliding bar Carlon boxes with good results, too.

And as for the 12 vs. 14 wire, I like 12 better. True, it's harder to work with at times, but gives me a little peace of mind. And future proofs a little.

Thanks again.

Bill