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Heating & Air Conditioning

Ceiling Light or Ceiling Fan/Light Combo

11 years ago

Hi folks,

I was hoping you could kindly share your suggestions on this topic. I'm currently having a new construction home being built outside of Baltimore. I'll have 4 bedrooms on the top floor and I opted for the builder to install the hard wiring in all the bedroom ceilings, so that I could later install either a ceiling light or ceiling fan/light combo. My first priority is that whatever it is, it has to provide ample lighting for the room. I understand the benefits of having an overhead fan because if one person in the house feels hot, he/she can simply turn on their ceiling fan without having to turn on the central air. But the problem is that all the ceiling fan/light combos that I have seen in stores and online provide just accent lighting and don't really appear to be a primary source of lighting. So I imagine if I were to purchase one of those units, then I would also have to having a floor lamp in each bedroom as well. On the flip side, if I just install a ceiling light (without fan), then I would probably need one of those floor fan towers at some point. We have a 'chicken and egg' thing going on here:)

Greatly looking forward to reading any feedback you could share!

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Comments (3)

Bruce in Northern Virginia
11 years ago
I have the combo units in each bedroom and I would call them area lighting, not accent. They are convenient to use when you enter the room and want a light on so you can get in and out quickly, but you will still need table or floor lamps for task lighting. I would install them again, but not spend very much on the light itself.

You could also install switched outlets, but I have found that arrangement seems to confuse guests (and sometimes spouses). You must have the light itself and the wall switch both on, and one or the other always seems to be off. Using the small ceiling light on the fan seems like its more foolproof.

Bruce
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mike_home
11 years ago
You can buy a ceiling fan with no light fixture and then add a light kit which can hold multiple light bulbs. I think most fans come with the light fixture, so your options may be limited if you choose to buy a separate fixture.

Personally I don't care of an overhead light in a bedroom. i think either a floor lamp or a table lamp sitting on a night stand or dresser is more appropriate.

How large is this house? You should consider putting money towards either zoning or installing separate HVAC systems for each floor. This would eliminate the need for ceiling fans.
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Thanks again. I did review a number of options before posting here for review by the big guns. :) I know some people love the remotes, but personally, I prefer simplicity and control via switches. A remote is one more thing to lose and/or have "hidden" by young children! And yes, our current switches are rotary-style combo setups (two knobs per switch) that control both lights and the fan - there are two settings for lights (low or high) and three speed settings for the fan - each controlled by its respective rotary knob. I've found plenty of switches that control both fan and offer dimming for lights - but all are rated for halogens or incandescents. It's just odd, and I wonder why. I did try a "dimmable" candelabra LED in our current fan/dimmer switch setup - it flickered badly on the low setting. I think some dimmable LED bulbs are okay with newer incandescent dimmers (per happy reviews from folks like JMVD), whereas other LEDs - even those rated dimmable - are more finicky. I won't beat a dead horse. I just wondered if anyone knew of combo switches rated for LEDs that I might have overlooked, or if there was a compelling reason for why they don't seem to exist yet. Maybe we'll try a Maestro switch though, and experiment. Thanks again!
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bobby1973
Original Author
11 years ago
Thank you for the suggestions Bruce and Mike! The house is roughly 2500 square feet, but only has one zone as far as I know. The attic has ridge vents which I understand should keep the top floor cooler than a house w/o ridge vents.)

Bobby
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