Ceiling fan Down-rod

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Come on....you don't jamb a Ideal 454 blue into a 1/2" ID pipe? :grin:

Wheres your sense of adventure? :cool:

As far as butt connectors making me nervous, they might if we where passing some heavy current but the amp or two the fan will take using a 14-16 butt connector with stranded wire does not worry me at all.
 
iwire said:
What I have done is extend the fan leads using butt splices in the down rod.
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I'm going to ask a strange question here ... in the industrial work with which I'm involved, that wouldn't fly, but no one mentioned industrial ... but I've been following another thread on "fixture wire" ...

I'm going to ASS_U_ME that you aren't butt splicing to NM, but ... BUT ... would THHN/THWN/THHN-2 be ok? Ii isn't fixture wire. Golly, it might even be solid ... and I'll admit that I've accepted rewiring with MTW in similar situations. I THINK that I would insist on a x37 stranding in #14 or #12. TFFN is 26 strands in #16 and 16 strands in #18 ... but much THHN is also MTW rated ... and a quich look at the Southwire site shows that there is #14 MTW from 7 to 41 strands.

I TRUST the MTW, but is it legal? Interesting ...
 
I don't butt splice to NM, I splice to more of the same wire. I just pick up the three-foot scraps I cut off of other fans and keep some on the truck for just such a situation.
 
Jim W in Tampa said:
Lets see if i got this right.Butt splice in 10 foot down rod ok but but splice in rigid is not ok ?
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I'm with you here Jim, as soon as I get done with the dishes Bob is going down! Game on!
 
iwire said:
Chris it's a done deal, parts of appliances are not NEC wiring methods. :cool:
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Bob again I don't do fans. But I have a hard time not seeing a down rod as a piece of RMC or IMC. You got me with the support thing but I feel the need to look into this further.
 
Wow....you "Everything must be UL listed" guys are really going to hate me. I once had to do an 8' down rod (fan box was at the top of a really high cathedral ceiling - I needed an extension ladder to put it in.)

Anyway, I used a piece of black iron pipe for the down rod, had it painted to match the fan, and used that kit they sell at "the orange store" with the butt splices and long leads.

I don't know how I live with myself. ;)
 
They make a ceiling fan extension lead "kit" that is basicly 4 lengths of TFFN in the appropriate colors and four red butt splices.

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peter d said:
Wow....you "Everything must be UL listed" guys are really going to hate me. I once had to do an 8' down rod (fan box was at the top of a really high cathedral ceiling - I needed an extension ladder to put it in.)

Anyway, I used a piece of black iron pipe for the down rod, had it painted to match the fan, and used that kit they sell at "the orange store" with the butt splices and long leads.

I don't know how I live with myself. ;)
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Not sure why you didn't just buy an extension rod...
 
peter d said:
I'm not sure what you mean. You mean have a coupling in the middle?
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Unless i've misread your post you said you installed a 8' extension? I've bought 8' extensions before...




EDIT to add, they we're special ordered, so your way was probably faster and easier... :)
 
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chris kennedy said:
. . . I have a hard time not seeing a down rod as a piece of RMC or IMC.
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Granted, it is possible to make a down-rod from a piece of conduit, just as one can be made from almost any tubular material. But, does that make the down-rod "conduit" because it could have been used as such?

I've never seen a downrod terminated with a pair of locknuts, or the conductors within protected by bushings. Also, aren't the rules for sections of conduit used as sleeving slightly different than the rest of them?
 
chris kennedy said:
I take the top of the fan off and rewire with 14 stranded. It doesn't take long.
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I find this easier. I've done the butt splice-in-downrod, (and don't think it's a violation) but I think it's simpler to just rewire.

Had a butt splice come apart on me once, and didn't enjoy taking the fan back down and back apart.
 
JohnJ0906 said:
I find this easier. I've done the butt splice-in-downrod, (and don't think it's a violation) but I think it's simpler to just rewire.

Had a butt splice come apart on me once, and didn't enjoy taking the fan back down and back apart.
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I have done both ways. I actually prefer the downrod splice depending on the fan, but one of my concerns has always been opening up the fan and "violating" any warranty or UL listing by changing connections and/or wire lengths from manufacturer design.
 
If you can get the wire nuts into the rod, fine. But you can buy the butt splices at any wholesale house, the Big Blue/Orange Boxes, auto supply stores, gas stations, Wally World....
 
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