Fix a wobbly ceiling fan for only $0.03

Is this the best way to fix a ceiling fan? Definitely not. Is it the cheapest? Absolutely. Here's what I learned about how to repair a wiggly ceiling fan for the absolute lowest cost ever!
I believe in repairing things instead of throwing them away. Why contribute to the public landfill when we can repair broken things?

[@brianclare4143]

Your video covered all the bases and was short enough to summarize all options and got my wife off my back. Thanks

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

mission accomplished!

[@christophermanley3602]

Measured the distance from the ceiling- found two were lower. Loosened the screws (about a half turn) on the others. Now they’re all even. And no more wobble. Thanks for the idea!

[@killingsleep]

Thanks for the idea.

[@robopopmark1]

I've used the aftermarket kits before, and though I have 2 engineering degrees and work as electromechanical maintenance for the last 17 years....I would NOT have thought of the chip clip short cut....thank you for saving me time and temper

[@loninappleton]

I'd test this with a clothes pin on my 20 in. box fan blades which are feather light. I already had to fix a broken blade with a shaped template of cardboard. Upped the entry. Gratitude.

[@robert1340]

Well, I went 33% over budget (had to use FOUR pennies), but my fan no longer looks like it’s about to rip itself from the ceiling. Thanks for saving me the expense of a kit plus the drive down to Lowe’s.

[@cookieladycarriej8829]

🤣🤣🤣💯💯

[@markvirkler2938]

Well you are a blessing. Loved the clarity of your teaching. I used it and fixed my wobbly fan for 2 cents!!! YA!

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Thanks for taking the time to say so Mark! Comments like yours keep me going :)

[@RonnieReeder-c6d]

Short and sweet...same peoblem...for years! I had just begun to carefully measure the distance from the ceiling to each blade tip when I noticed that one of the fan brackets was causing that blade to be somewhat flatter. I GENTLY twisted the bracket by positioning my hands on either side of the blade at the point that the two outer screws held on the blade. Once I had that blade at an angle similar to the rest, I turned on the fan. Unexpected Success!!! Cost - $00.00 Time - 5 minutes Equipment - Ladder Problem Solved!!!

[@atina659]

Thanks!! This worked great for me and only cost time. I just left the chip clip on and works like new!!!

[@rachelblack3816]

My newly installed (but used) ceiling fan was running ok on slow and medium speeds, but at high speed it swung pretty violently and couldn't be used at that speed, so I watched your video and learned! I measured the distance between the ceiling and the upward-pointing side of the blade bracket, and I realized that all of my blades had the same twist, except one, which was out almost flat. It turns out (on my cheap fan, anyway) that the metal brackets for the fan blades can twist fairly easily, so I twisted the one odd bracket to match the others to my best guess, and now my fan is nearly perfect even on high speed!

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Yes! Well done!

[@cab0316]

wow. fixed in 5 minutes because I got really lucky. Used a quarter since mine must have been really off but it worked a treat. Thank you!

[@kramretlaw4823]

I have a crazy out of balance fan. Going to try the 3 cent approach. Thanks

[@TouchofShunshine]

I have been having this problem for so long. I had stopped using the fan. I can't believe it, it was this simple to fix. I will be returning this new hundred dollars ceiling fan.

[@pedromarques593]

cool I really needed this video since I have two exactelly fans and this was causing issues! Thanks. This should have been on their manual!

[@TouchofShunshine]

Yes, it should.

[@laurabarber6697]

Mine wiggles like a hula dancer and squeaks! I I'm going to try to get it to stop wiggling and then I'm sure it will stop squeaking! Thank you

[@readmusicstudio6481]

Accurate description of a wobbly fan! lol

[@websterbillingham8873]

My ceiling fan was also off center. I took it apart and was able to recenter the fan in its housing so it wasn't rubbing the sides, then following these instructions I was able to balance it almost perfectly. Thanks!

[@wannamontana4130]

Luv the coin and clip idea. Did it. Worked perfectly. Saved a trip to Lowes! Thank you

[@Just__Chillin]

I used the smallest binder clips, which are similar to paper clips, but have 2 handles with a black center piece. No tape required, but I may regret that decision when they fly off some day. My fan took 4 :) Great video!

[@dmill242]

Took me 4 cents this morning.... thank you for the video!

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Way to go D Mill!

[@ijvtoca]

I used some black paper clamps on a dark brown ceiling fan... no one has even noticed. I just removed the silver handle of the clamp on the side that's visible

[@gregoirnieuwenhuyse8773]

Handy, you're the man ! Thx to your video here, i fixed it in less than 5 minutes, it actually worked right away ! yessssssssssss ; )

[@gmac94]

Holy cow, I cant believe it worked. In my case it was 4 pennies and some duct tape! I am LMAO right now! Thanks dude!!

[@jenniferoneill6922]

First I felt like an idiot when I decided to jump ahead without seeing the tape warning. Projectiles flying EVERYWHERE and many expletives to go along. Then continued to watch the video and could not stop laughing. Bottom line, works, and I was entertained at the same time.

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

haha! Glad to hear you were able to get it fixed!

[@Kidd-nq4fg]

You also could tighten the screws around the down rod right at the top of the motor, that would’ve definitely helped with the issue

[@AlextheMLAATRfan]

That’s a Harbor Breeze Aristocrat. Which I had at my old house back in Baltimore before I moved to Florida in 2012.

[@theclearsounds3911]

Cleaning the blades might help, too. Here's my experience: clean blades 0% fixed, tighten screws 5% fixed, fix uneven blade spacing 90% fixed, add one penny, 99% fixed. Good enough! These are total percentages fixed, not cumulative. In other words, it's not 194% fixed, it's 99% fixed. Thanks for this video!

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

lol I love it!

[@racheldeborde8237]

OUTSTANDING! It's 3:30am &, thanQ, I've fixed my bedroom's ceiling fan; cost me 10 pennies & a little bit of WD40. Looking forward to a quite night's sleep!

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

HUZZAH!

[@Candy-wq7gu]

Subscribed solely for the intro song hahaha

[@OjanMusic]

Penny attack while I’m asleep😂😂

[@Votersright]

I used a flux capacitor instead of pennies. Worked great. Thanks.

[@robertsilvis815]

Just be careful when using a flux capacitor. If you use your fan on high, and it goes faster than 88 mph, your fan may just disappear. That sucks. I've had to replace 2 fans due to that problem. Now I only use my fan on low speed.

[@chrystalflippo8144]

totally love the intro....yeah man!

[@Mr.EeToMyself]

Ok..OK... the theme song got me! I subscribed just on that alone!

[@DarxusC]

The best I got with pennies on one blade was still a little more wobble than I liked. So I put another penny on one of the other blades, and that got the wobble down farther. I used gorilla tape. I expect it to hold. I used a square piece of tape for each penny. And I avoided putting them more than half way out on the blades. Because a penny on the tip should I kept thinking maybe it's worth the $3 to get one of the kits, for being easier to adjust. But really I don't think it's any easier than tape and a penny. And that $3 kit only has a single weight, which honestly I wouldn't bet on after my experience. get twice the force as a penny half way from the center of the fan to the tip. I encourage you to ask me how the tape worked out over time.

[@mariocooldude9092]

Use Goop Glue ya dummy 🤪

[@amirzainalrasid8437]

thanks for the idea

[@prestontowne7200]

The cause of the wobble is either the blades all bented, twisted or loose. I wouldn't sleep with it on though because it makes noise. And that noise can be the pull chains tapping to the lights, or the fan.

[@samdawg12]

I love the intro dude!!!

[@DystrophicEvolution]

Maybe attach the final coins with a dab of silicone? Definitely ups the budget quite a bit and takes a long curing process, but I don't trust the durability/longevity of many tapes other than hockey tape. I'd preferably use a dab of urethane (the magical goop in automotive/window shops) to ensure those coins will never fly off, but it's expensive.

[@Cman5136.]

You have a beautiful fan

[@jennmorris5979]

But I'm a handy lady I do it most 👍 thank you I'm going to fix my fan now

[@patrickshope6363]

Magnetic tape with adhesive on one side works really well and it's only 5$ for a roll and you can fix multiple fans lol

[@joevideotv]

You might want to think about covering your big screen tv with a blanket during the testing phase just in case one of your coins goes airborne.Guarantee it will cost more than three cents to fix a cracked LED/Plasma screen ;-)

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

LOL touche sir

[@Needle16]

I would do it this way because maybe your ceiling fan has a different type of fan blade arm and you can't get the fan blade in arm anymore

[@jennmorris5979]

You got my attention just with your handy man song lol

[@chelsea8863]

Wow!! I was looking all over for a weight. I used a chip clip and didn't even think of change. Haha love it! But is it best to test fan on high?

[@davidgangte9320]

Good work bro👍

[@kathycollier4940]

This is great.. Going to give it a try on my wobbly fan. :-)

[@_joshua_g59_90]

My fan was fine until I cleaned it. while I was cleaning it I realized the wood grain on the other side of the blades looked better, so I flipped the blades. It started making a horribly loud ticking noise, the reason it ticked was because I tightened the screws too much.

[@childrensentertainment7667]

A little baking soda powder will make superglue set up hard as a rock instantly.. You're welcome.

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

*MIND. BLOWN*

[@AlextheMLAATRfan]

My favorite fans are the Hampton Bay Littleton, the Hunter Original (4 Blades with Sphere Globe), The Hunter Stonington, the Hampton Bay Glendale, and the Harbor Breeze Moonglow. But, The Harbor Breeze Aristocrat needs a remake and they should include a remote to it!

[@Mike-uh2gw]

When you run your head into the fan blades and bend the brackets that hold them, ya gotta get them back to pre whack. Get above the blades and spin the fan by hand. You will see the blades are at different angles and heights. First, tweak the angles of the blades as close as you can get to factory. Spin the blades and look for the one which is most different from the others. Start with that one and work your way around until you can spin the fan and they all look very close to the same. Then try to get them all the same measurement from the ceiling. Measure each individual blade from the ceiling and bend the one that's most out first. Spin again, rinse and repeat until it runs more stable. The fan will make less noise and wobble less. Then use the pennies to fine tune if required. BTW, there are usually just a couple blades that are way out of tune with the others. Spend your time on them first.

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

YES! This is the best approach by far!

[@janebonanno5322]

That jingle is hysterical! Love it!!

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Thanks Jane!

[@jamesrobbins3285]

good, on my way to fix my fan!!

[@KENNETHEMorse]

Very very good

[@rcole6679]

Fan weights are 5 grams each. After checking the net, I found out pennies weigh 2.5 g each and nickels weigh 5 g each. Quarters weigh 5.67 g each, so it appears pennies or a nickel are the way to go...(4 pennies = 2 nickels in grams). Seems like using coins is not only cheaper, but gives you more flexibility, as I believe kits only come in 5 gram weights per weight. Also, I’ve read where the kit clips don’t always weigh the same as the weights.

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

That's super helpful!

[@SWEAR2CARE]

tape sticks better if you CLEAN THE DUST OFF THE BLADE ...cleaning istooomuchworkSOOOhard

[@AlextheMLAATRfan]

I think you should replace the Aristocrat with a Hunter Original fan.

[@marycallan1937]

Measure from ceiling to all blades, added weights did it. Thank you!! 🙌🏼

[@jeremyturner8893]

Thanks

[@kmfw1160]

This is awesome!

[@angiesoeu]

thank you my fan actually works now :,)

[@nickfelsted6750]

It took me four pennies. I put two on blade #5 and 2 on blade #1. It is quiet as a mouse. No squeeks and no noticeable movement!!!

[@maceva519]

Thanks exelente gracias

[@miketyson7235]

I punth my theling fan and ith thoped thqueaking and thanking. thank youths

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Well played Mike!

[@jesusvazquez8373]

Duck take ain’t 3 cents and super glue ain’t 3 cents 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 JK this actually worked to fix my ceiling fan

[@JesusMartinez-nx3nc]

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!

[@d.eileen1336]

Thank you for your video. Was the fan blade that ended up with the pennies the same one that you put the chip clip on? Does it do harm to the fan to wobble?😊

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Correct!

[@TheSkrauss]

Good tip.

[@DS-ch5yd]

I didn't trust the crazy glue idea so I drilled holes thru the end of the blade and used bolts. I painted them the same color (almost) as the blade and you can hardly tell they are there. (almost)

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Way to get inventive! My pennies have been super glued on there for almost two years now and are still going strong!

[@juliovazquez198]

So in your case, how many pennies you end up gluing to the blade?

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

3 pennies

[@smithfamilymi]

How’s the wobble now? I tried balancing old ones I reinstalled at our church...must not have had enough pennies...looked like a continual earthquake...

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

I posted this video almost exactly a year ago and today it has the same smooth circulation as it did at the end of the video. I wouldn't say it is 'perfectly' in balance, but it has a very minimal wobble. I would suggest that you either didn't use enough pennies, or maybe you need them on two fan blades. If you can't cure it with the additional weight, then try what this other KZbinr did and replace the brackets that hold the fan blades: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKKVqmOaaZWYpqM @BenHuttash

[@ShieyV2komputroniks]

You could CAREFULLY try to bend the blade arm back

[@michaeltemple5061]

Great tips giving them a try.

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Post how your adventure went so we can be encouraged by your progress!

[@AlextheMLAATRfan]

I wish fans today still sold the Aristocrat!

[@cindydupaul8670]

That's what I'm looking for!!! Thanks man! :)

[@AlextheMLAATRfan]

Where was that Aristocrat in?

[@rosebush1182]

Why not buy ceiling fan weights from a hardware store?

[@eddieprivett1627]

You do know if you would have bought the balance kit for $2 you would not have to go out and pay for gas and $10 for superglue

[@Howto-uo8uc]

“Why spend money when you don’t have it “🤣...followeddd..!!

[@richardryerson]

So basically you ended up choosing the fan blade to stick pennies to by trial and error. The measurements weren't needed?

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

Correct. When you are working on yours at home, you don't really need to take measurements. If you were to take measurements and you found that the distance differed from blade to blade however, that would tell you that you will eventually need to replace the brackets for the blades as they have become warped.

[@dsgaming9893]

What fan is this?

[@AlextheMLAATRfan]

Diego productions: Aristocrat.

[@gaddafi7775]

Thanks bud :)

[@stevetaylor1904]

Pennies from heaven

[@Newussd227]

Harbor Breeze Aristocrat

[@AlextheMLAATRfan]

My childhood fan.

[@JB-yq9bn]

Fan had more jiggle then a hip hop dancer

[@kernetbus]

You just didn't show us the most difficult thing, finding which blade to attach the coin.

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

It is actually a guessing game. You attach the weight to each fan blade sequentially until the wobble goes away. Then it is a question of figuring out how much weight to attach

[@hope_cheer]

I have fans look like the one you have - headache 🤕, wobbly and noisy ! I’m thinking to buy regular ceiling lights to replace them. Bad manufacturer.

[@TheTitanic448]

Spirt. Of the. Handy. Man. Funny

[@IxNxI]

i'm gonna share a shocking secret that they dont want you to know!! AN incredible short cut that will have you being a spirit of a handyman at the speed of light....Dont follow any safety precautions and disregard Electricity safety guidelines...Thats it!! youlll be blown away!!! guaranteed

[@Vote4Vonster]

Buy a Hampton bay Glendale ceiling fan

[@MattsFans]

Yea this one is better

[@victorlopez2279]

Wow

[@QuamellsFanChannel]

The set screw was loose

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

What is a set screw?

[@QuamellsFanChannel]

@@SpiritofaHandyman the screws on the coupler that supports the downrod and fan

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

@@QuamellsFanChannel #protip!

[@QuamellsFanChannel]

@@SpiritofaHandyman just a tip for next time if this happens to ur fan again. As u can tell from my channel i know alot about fans lol

[@mbem7637]

Worked pretty well until one of the coins was launched into my bedroom window. The window cracked and, now, I have a wobbly fan and a $300 bill from the window company. I just bought a new fan from Fanco and will have them install it. Enough of this DIY stuff.

[@kashkash6706]

Dangerous this method

[@temujinkhan6326]

Watch youtube videos to make another youtube video. By the way this cost more than $.003 all those tools are not free

[@robertmunden4687]

Anyone who does not already have these simple tools should not attempt to repair anything.

[@crazyjaybe]

I'm watching a video posted by a guy who doesn't know what he's doing lol

[@NastyCraigz]

But he figured it out, with the spirit of a handyman. ..

[@lg187788]

Just buy a new fan. Better looking one.

[@user-xxxxxn]

hahahah you are in the closet boy ;)

[@spankybottoms1347]

So the blade that got the most attention was the blade that was worst off as far as measurements go? Or was it a guess and check even after singling our the odd man?

[@SpiritofaHandyman]

John McCormick yes and no. Sometimes the weight needs to be added to the opposite side from the whacky blade, so it is safest to try all around until you find the best one, but I would start at the whacky blade

[@robopopmark1]

I've used the aftermarket kits before, and though I have 2 engineering degrees and work as electromechanical maintenance for the last 17 years....I would NOT have thought of the chip clip short cut....thank you for saving me time and temper

[@lawrencebaruzzini6149]

Looks like your not as smart as you think you are college boy