Hampton Bay Ceiling Fan Speed Problem

A problem that is sometimes reported by site visitors, is that a Hampton Bay ceiling fan is slow at all speeds. How does this happen, and how do you troubleshoot it or diagnose the problem?

When searching online and looking at reports from Hampton Bay fan owners, we find that one of the ways to diagnose this problem is to open the housing and look inside of the fan. Do you see any scorched capacitors or wiring inside? Often a capacitor is responsible for this problem. This is because the capacitors store energy, and help transmit it in the circuit, that the fan or motor needs in order to make the fan turn. If a capacitor is scorched or there is any signs of physical damage inside of the fan, you should stop using the fan and replace it immediately. This is generally something that can be redeemed under warranty, if your warranty is still valid.

Ceiling Fan Capacitors inside the housing
When looking inside of the ceiling fan housing, you will find capacitors like this. These capacitors are not blown or melted, they look pretty normal.

If your Hampton Bay fan has a switch located on the fan, make sure it’s also set to high – especially if you also have a wall switch which controls the speed. Essentially you want to make sure there’s no manual input mechanisms, like switches, that may be causing the problem. Assuming that all switches are toggled properly – then you know for sure, it’s not an input problem that can be causing the issue. Best to eliminate as many variables as possible. You want to avoid the mistake of having the fan switch set to medium or low.

Bulging ceiling fan capacitor
This is what a blown capacitor looks like. Look for the “bulge” – the capacitor looks fat, or looks like it has a bulge like this. This is an indicator that the capacitor is blown and needs replacement.

Capacitor related ceiling fan issues

More often then not, once you’ve eliminated other variables, the problem is likely a capacitor issue. If you cannot find the problem, and you don’t feel comfortable opening up the fan housing to look inside – that’s totally OK. In many cases you have to take parts down from the fan to do this, or take the fan down itself. If this is the case, it may even be better simply to call Home Depot, open a warranty case and ship the fan back to Home Depot (if under warranty). If not under warranty, on the plus side the cost to replace a Hampton Bay fan is not overly expensive – usually. If your fan was $100, it may even cost less in terms of shipping costs, time and money to just buy another fan.

If you’re looking for support in terms of replacing a ceiling fan capacitor, we have a troubleshooting FAQ that will help with this. This article provides a step by step in terms of replacing a blown ceiling fan capacitor, as well as a selection of replacement capacitors that can be purchased and installed.

Hampton Bay Ceiling Fan Speed Problem – Troubleshooting Video

The video below may be able to offer additional assistance with this speed problem. We’ve posted this video below as this seems to be a larger issue with many people who own Hampton Bay ceiling fans in their homes, or businesses. We hope this video helps you to figure out the root of the problem, and resolve!

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