You just want to lay back and relax with the gentle breeze your ceiling fan produces. Your would-be catnap is interrupted by an irritating squeak coming from your beloved ceiling fan. What can you do to fix a squeaky ceiling fan?

Fixing a Squeaky Ceiling Fan

There can be many reasons a ceiling fan would produce a squeak or other noise. Most likely it is a loose screw or just poor quality parts.

It would not be a bad idea to take this opportunity to clean your ceiling fan. Remove dust from the blades, especially the top, as well as the motor housing. If you have a can of compressed air you can use it to clean dust out of the motor housing. If you have a duster with an extendable handle they are very helpful for cleaning your ceiling fans.you do anything, however, turn off your ceiling fan and wait until the blades have expended all of their momentum. Find a sturdy ladder to stand on while you attempt to remedy the squeaky ceiling fan.

Find your screwdriver, usually a Phillips, and tighten the screws on top of the motor that connect the fan to the junction box. Note that this will require you to remove the canopy that covers these screws. It is unlikely that loose blades will cause a squeaky noise, but it would not be a bad idea to make sure the screws holding the blades and blade arms are tight. If you have an installed light kit, be sure that all of the components are snug.

Turn your fan back on to check if the squeaky has been resolved. Run the fan at higher speeds to through test the fan. If you bought a cheaper fan, it may just be part of the poor design. Low quality fans sold at home stores are likely to wear out quicker than high quality ceiling fans. If the fan is not wobbling, the motor is probably wearing out and there is nothing you can do except replace it. Consider buying a high quality ceiling fan that will last longer as a replacement.

If your ceiling fan does wobble, you will want to purchase a balancing kit from a hardware store to balance it. Ceiling fan blades can become unbalanced for a number of reasons and could potentially cause your ceiling fan to squeak and shorten your fan’s useful life.

What You Should Not Do

Many people suggest oiling your ceiling fan’s parts to eliminate a squeaky noise. You will not be able to oil the bearings as they are sealed. Oiling will not help your squeaky ceiling fan problem.

If you need help selecting a ceiling fan, please see our Ceiling Fan Buying Guide or give us a call.