Installing Ceiling Fans- Part 7

SWAG KIT USE

• Swag kits are available if you wish to have a super-easy installation and a degree of portability in a ceiling fan. These replace the above-ceiling wiring job. In this case, though, the hanger bracket is screwed directly into a ceiling joist (see image).
• The swag kit is wired into the fan, and the fan assembled as described earlier. Then slip it into the hanger bracket.
• The chain and cord are hung from hooks carried across the ceiling, toward a wall and down the wall, where the cord plugs into a handy receptacle.
• A swag-mounted ceiling fan can be taken down in a few minutes and moved to another location.

ELECTRICAL SAFETY

• Use extra care when working with electricity. Less current than it takes to light a 60-watt bulb can be lethal.
• All wiring should conform to local electrical codes as well as to the current National Electrical Code (NEC). You can probably find a copy of the NEC at your local library.
• Never trust a light switch to render a fixture ‘dead,’ because sometimes the power enters at the fixture, even when the switch is located in the circuit beyond it.
• Turn off the circuit you’re working on by switching off a circuit breaker or by unscrewing a fuse (the house main switch should be off when handling fuses). Then padlock the panel if you can.
• Make sure the circuit is truly ‘dead’ before touching any wires or terminals. Check with a high-voltage neon tester. Test from the black wires to a grounded metal box or other good ground, then to the white wires. Also test from the white wires to a ground. Since there may be more than one circuit inside an outlet box, before you take off a cover, see that all of its circuits are off. Also, be sure your tester is functioning by first trying it in a live receptacle.
• Test your finished work with the power on using the neon tester. Check black to white and black to a ground. It should light. Test white to ground. It should not light.
• If you aren’t knowledgeable about working around electricity, call in a professional.