ceiling fan in apartment

[targaboy]

Could somebody tell me if it is possible to fit a ceiling fan to an apartment ceiling as the ceiling is concrete. Can I mount it with dynabolts or the like?
Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
regards
Tony

[journeyman Mick]

Tony,
it's possible, physically, to bolt it up but other things to consider are:
How will you get the power to it?
Will the body corporate allow it?
Do you have enough head height for the fan to be effective? On a 2.4 M ceiling the fan has to be mounted very close to the ceiling to prevent decapitation. Mounted this close to the ceiling it'll mostly produce noise and not much breeze.

Mick

[Pulse]

Have you seen the realestate.com.au ad with the man with the afro....

[targaboy]

Tony,
it's possible, physically, to bolt it up but other things to consider are:
How will you get the power to it?
Will the body corporate allow it?
Do you have enough head height for the fan to be effective? On a 2.4 M ceiling the fan has to be mounted very close to the ceiling to prevent decapitation. Mounted this close to the ceiling it'll mostly produce noise and not much breeze.

Mick

Thanks Mick,
height isn't a problem as we have 9 foot ceilings, power is already there from the existing light and yes the body corp does allow us to fit fans. Any suggestions on the fixing side of things?

regards
Tony

[journeyman Mick]

Tony,
most of the fans I've seen hang off a big hook or eye, not sure about the newer ones. You can get large dynabolts with eye or hook ends, I'd be looking at something around 10 - 12mm diameter and 70mm embedment for a single point fixing. If it has a plate/flange with 3 or 4 fixings then maybe 8mm dia and 50 - 65mm embedment. Or maybe even get he suplier to open the box before you purchase to see if the manufacturer makes any recomendations. (What the hell, it doesn't hurt to read the instructions )

Edit: I almost forgot, I'm not sure you can run a ceiling fan off a lighting circuit, I wouldn't be at all suprised if you can't.

Mick

[Skew ChiDAMN!!]

I'd suggest forgetting all about going to Bunnies (or other "bit of everything" stores) and have a look around for a dedicated lighting/ceiling fan shop.

The prices are generally steeper, but you get the quality and choice of range to go with it. The counter staff in such stores also tend to know what they're on about (unlike Bunnies' pimple-faced time-wasters) and will be able to point you at suitably mounted fans once you describe the situation.

[Barry_White]

I'd suggest forgetting all about going to Bunnies (or other "bit of everything" stores) and have a look around for a dedicated lighting/ceiling fan shop.

The prices are generally steeper, but you get the quality and choice of range to go with it. The counter staff in such stores also tend to know what they're on about (unlike Bunnies' pimple-faced time-wasters) and will be able to point you at suitably mounted fans once you describe the situation.

I was in Bunnings yesterday wandering the aisles looking for some Awning Pulleys. I was being followed by one of those and when he caught up with me he asked me if he could help me. I said I was looking for some Awning Pulleys.

The shutters came down and the blank look appeared. I said "You don't know what they are do you" He stuttered and said no. I started to explain what an Awning Pully looked like and I said this is why I don't bother asking because half of the people that work here don't know what things are.

By the time I finished explaining what they were and the penny dropped he wandered to the end of the aisle and found them. If he had left me alone I would have found them anyway.

[ozkiwi]

Hi Targaboy, yes it is possible to fit a ceiling fan in an apartment .

I used Concrete Screws (ask at Bunnings, Mitre 10 - they are Blue in colour with a 5/16 bolt head from memory) to fit a couple of ceiling fans. All I had to do was drill a hole, smaller than the bolt diameter, then screw them in using a socket attachment (like you use for roofing screws) fitted to an electric drill.

I also used Remote Control Fans (with lights) instead of those with a wall mounted controller.. Cost for Remote Control is about double that of a wall controlled fan... But under $100.00 each. I also changed the light fittings from Edison screw types with a glass cover to 200mm round fluros with white plastic covers. These extra lights cost me $20.00 each but that was years ago.. No worrying about wiring heating up and or burning because of the heat from the globes.

That way I didn't have to worry about additional wires. The two I have fitted had two different mounting systems. The first was a 100mm "U" shaped bracket with a hook in the middle where a black rubber wheel fitted to an opposing hook hung from.

The second one is one of those that is commonly sold these days, it has a circular plate with a half ball system (also allowing use for sloping ceilings) that screws to the roof and then a decorative cap fits to the plate to hide the mounting system..

Personally (if the ceiling is flat) I prefer the rubber wheel mounting system as it doesn't make any noise once it wears in.. The half ball system tends to squeak as the plastic half ball wears a bit...

As for makes and models, the first fan was a 4 bladed (rattan) Casablanca/Catalina type fan and the second was a 3 bladed (metal) Arlec type fan.

Both have worked well for years now..

The only wiring used was the existing light wiring... Being remote controlled, there was no Fan Controller fitted to the wall or any additional wiring..

I hope this helps...

[peter_sm]

I was in Bunnings yesterday wandering the aisles looking for some Awning Pulleys. I was being followed by one of those and when he caught up with me he asked me if he could help me. I said I was looking for some Awning Pulleys.

The shutters came down and the blank look appeared. I said "You don't know what they are do you" He stuttered and said no. I started to explain what an Awning Pully looked like and I said this is why I don't bother asking because half of the people that work here don't know what things are.

By the time I finished explaining what they were and the penny dropped he wandered to the end of the aisle and found them. If he had left me alone I would have found them anyway.

I had a similar situation looking for timber window/ glass putty. First guy told me they didn't have it, second didn't know. I was walking towards the paint section as that is where I would expect it to be, and yep there it was.