Picking out a new ceiling fan isn’t always easy. You might be surprised at how much goes into it. You have more to consider than just your taste – although that’s important, too.
First and most importantly, you have to consider the size of the room where you’ll hang the fan. Measuring the size of that room will help you decide what size fan to buy. You’ll have other things to consider, too, like how far the fan will be placed from the walls and what kind of fan controls you want. Once you have narrowed down the basics, you can consider which fan style will be best for your home decor.
Measure the Room
To measure a room for a ceiling fan, take a tape measure and measure one long wall and one short wall. Multiply those two numbers together to arrive at the square footage of the space. For oddly shaped rooms, try breaking the shape into smaller rectangles or triangles, and then go from there.
Once you have the square footage of the space, you’ll know what size fan to buy. Fans come as small as 22 inches and as big as 80 inches or more.
Ceiling Fan Buying Guide:
- Rooms up to 75 square feet should have fans no wider than 36 inches.
- Rooms 75 to 145 square feet should have fans 36 to 42 inches wide.
- Rooms 145 to 225 square feet should have fans 44 to 50 inches wide.
- Rooms 225 to 400 square feet should have fans 50 to 54 inches wide.
When choosing a fan for your space, you also need to consider where and how the fan will hang in the room. Will the blades be at least 18 inches from all walls? Will there be at least eight inches between the ceiling and the top of the blades? Will the fan be able to hang at seven to nine feet off the floor?
These were all questions you’ll need to answer when shopping for Hunter Fan ceiling fan.
Consider Functionality and Design
Ceiling fans create airflow through your house (or even outdoors on your patio, gazebo, or porch) and some have built-in light fixtures to help with illumination. If the room where you’ll hang your fan has a lot of natural light already, you probably don’t need a fan with a light fixture (although it could come in handy at night). If the room doesn’t have much natural light, you’ll probably want a fan with a light fixture so you can retain that functionality from the fixture. Ceiling fans with dimmable light fixtures allow you to have exactly as much light as you want in the room.
There’s more to fan functionality than just whether or not it has a light fixture. You’ll also want to make sure any fan you buy has reversible blades so you can change the blade direction to clockwise in the winter. This will prevent warm air from rising to the ceiling so you’ll feel warmer. You may also want a fan with a wireless wall control, so you can control the fan from a wall switch without installing more electrical wiring, or a smart fan that you can control from your phone or through your smart home device. If you’re not that high-tech, you can consider ceiling fans with remotes so you can still control the fan speed or adjust the lighting without getting up.
Of course, while your ceiling fan is there to do a job, you also want it to look good, too. Think about your overall decorating style – is it more rustic and country, or more of a coastal vibe? Is your furniture very traditional, or do you like the Scandinavian look? You can choose a palm-leaf fan for a beach house, or a minimalist two-bladed fan for a contemporary urban home. You might have to do a little shopping, but these days, you can always find a fan that will fit in with your home’s architectural style and your furniture and decor. Take the time to look around and really see what’s out there so you can get something that you’re really pleased with.
Summing Up
Finding your perfect ceiling fan may feel impossible, but it isn’t. You just need to know what to look for in a ceiling fan for your space. Then you should take your time to shop around and see all the options available to you. There are so many nifty fan designs in so many styles, you’ll be sure to find something you adore.
