Wifi Controlled Ceiling Fans

I have a GE fan wall switch controlling my master bedroom fan which works great. However while in that case the fan and light are wired separately in my main room there is only a single wire running to the wall switch and an RF remote to control the speed of the fan and light dimming.

As such I would either need to replace the fan or potentially get a retrofit module to automate the main room fan control.

What about this?

Fixture manufacturers and others need to start stuffing z-wave modules in their as well. This is what sells hubs.

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The fanlinc form factor is very cool, but is not compatible with smart things. That one is Only for Insteon.

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I am going to wake this topic back up as the fans are now available.

I will mention to be careful of the Hunter fan retrofit kit. I and my roommate bought the kit and after careful inspection found out it uses some sort of proprietary communications to a Bluetooth plugin module.

I got one of these a couple weeks ago. Haven’t found the time to install it yet. Will be nice if there is a way to integrate beyond Siri at some point.

Great, keep us in the loop! Was looking at these today, not willing to take a $400 gamble if I can’t integrate it with ST.

What about our own genius of the WiFi @erocm1231 with his excellent work on Sonoff WiFi Switch and H801 RGBW WiFi Controller?

Eric is there a possibility of making one of these WiFi type integrated ceiling fan/light controller to be adapted to SmartThings through your software coding magic?

UPDATE: My current recommendation for full control of ceiling fans into SmartThings is this ZigBee device from Home Depot. Allows for 4-Speeds and Dimming Light control all in one small and relatively inexpensive combo controller with multiple options for using wireless remotes. Works with Alexa and Google Home via SmartThings.

I’ve mentioned this elsewhere, but since this thread was opened I have become aware of yet another option for variable speed fan control, and this one does not require a neutral wire at the switchbox.

However, it will require a Harmony hub in the same room as the wall switch for the fan.

This is an older Lutron fan control device. Not the Lutron Caseta line which is supposed to be integrated with smartthings early this year.

Here’s how it works.

One) the Lutron control kit comes with three pieces:

A lutron device which goes in the fan canopy to control the fan motor

A single gang wall switch which will talk to that fan controller and can control both fan speed and a light kit

A Lutron handheld remote which uses IR to control the Lutron wall switch.

So far, so good, but this has no integration with anything else.

Two) now for the magic. You can use a harmony hub instead of the Lutron handheld remote.

So now you have integration with anything that harmony can integrate with. That includes:

Alexa
IFTTT (as the “that” but not the “If”)
SmartThings

So there you have it: a no neutral wire required single gang wall switch that gives you fan and light automation control of a variable speed fan.

It’s not an elegant solution, and it’s expensive, but it will work with many different types of fans.

That is a good question. If it has an ESP8266 inside and a way to flash it, then it would be no problem. Can you find any pictures of the circuitry?

I sent an inquiry out to the supplier to see if he could share some technical info or be willing to sell me two and not the 100 minimum. If so I’ll buy a couple and send you one

UPDATE: The manufacturer Shenzhen Asia Bright Industry Co. will be in Las Vegas, NV in a couple weeks (Jan30-Feb1) at the Convention Center for 2017 AHR Expo at Booth C863. I am going to see about sending someone over there to get more info and pictures for us of that device and maybe even pick one up if we are lucky?

OK, I was able to get a response directly from the device manufacturer out of China, is there any hope for flashing this for SmartThings use? It really has all the stuff we need from a form factor perspective like the Insteon so maybe they would share with you how to flash it?

Thanks for your feedback.

We don’t use the WiFi chip of ESP8266 on our WiFi product.

We have a similar Mini WiFi product. Please find the attached detailed specification for your reference.
u171: Mini WiFi On/Off Control Box
u172: Mini WiFi Dimming Control Box

Should you have any question, please feel free to contact me.

Thanks,

Michael
Thanks and Best Regards,

Michael Liu
Project Manager, Project Development
Shenzhen Asia Bright Industry Co., Ltd
Bldg. 10, Asia Industrial Park,Gangtou, Bantian,Shenzhen,China
Tel: (86) 755 89748200 / 89748211 ext. 235 Fax: (86) 755 89748778
www.a-brt.com liuyong@a-brt.com
Skype: michaelliu.asiabright Mob.&Whatsapp: +86 -13352969269

Are they implying that the u171 & u172 DO have an esp8266 wifi chip? If so, and they have a way to flash them, then it is totally possible to get these going.

Sorry @erocm1231, they guy sending me info is sending me info on the incorrect product. It should have been the uCF281 I sent back the email to see if he can help with the right one.

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@dalec & @erocm1231, it would be super cheap to design a controller from a wemos d1 mini and some relays, not quite sure how ceiling fans work as far as changing the speeds. I have access to a 3d printer so I can design an enclosure if someone else wants to develop the rest.


here is an AC dimmer developed for use with the wemos d1 mini. 2 of these and the wemos d1 mini in an enclosure would be under $50

Never use a dimmer intended for lighting to control a variable speed motor, including a ceiling fan. The physics are different and you will likely burn out either the dimmer control or the fan motor itself. :scream::rotating_light::fire_engine:

See the FAQ:

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So how would you diy this?

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The Leviton Fan speed control capable switch has been discontinued in the new product line. It is still available however. Part number VRF001-1LZ

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I bought the Hunter WiFi ceiling fan and installed it.
Hunter Symphony Fan

Works great with Siri but now reviving this thread to see if anything has changed recently with regards to integration with ST. Any advice/help would be very much appreciated.