Electrical quandry...

I would like to install a ceiling fan on my porch. However, the only power source on the porch is the porch light beside the sliding glass door. If I tap into this source the fan will be turned on and off by the light switch. I want to control the fan separately. How can I make this happen?

 

I suggest you look over some books on home wiring. Your need is exactly the kind of project that these books walk you through and tell you how to do with colorful pictures, safety warnings, education on proper techniques, code advice, and step-by-step instructions.

You need to find some source of continuous power, run that power to where you want the switch, and then on to where you want the fan (or vice versa). There are a large number of possible sources of continuous power. If the power is not already outside, a drill bit is all you need to bring inside power outside. Here are some ideas:

• Maybe you can get power from the basement, drilling a hole through the rim joist.
• Maybe you can get power from the porch light after all, or if not, from the switch that controls it. There are two ways to wire a switched light. In one of them the power is at the switch and in the other the power is at the light.
• Maybe you can get power in your attic and bring it out through the eave or gable.

There are so many possibilities, it's not likely that we'll be able to choose the best one for you without seeing it.

Get the book(s). Explore the options.

 

Thanks for the quick response! I will look into the books!

 

This MAY be possible----Home Depot stocks a "wire-less" fan/lite control package.It requires a "constant" 120 volts at the fan outlet-box which connect to the "Line" wires of a block which is set in the fan canopy.

You would need 4 wires between the existing fixture-box and the new fan outlet-box. 2 wires, Black and White, are the 120 volt "feed". The other 2 wires connect between the "Load" wires of the control-block which normally connect to the lamp-sockets mounted on the fan assembly ,and the 2 wires of the existing wall-fixture.

 

Have you opened the light and looked at the wires inside? If there are more than 1 black wires then you might have a power source at the light you could use for the fan.