Once you decide you needย a ceiling fan, the next step involves selecting aย fan that fits your room and your needs. If you havenโt researched ceiling fans in a while, you might go into shock at theย enormous selections available. Do it correctly, and it could still be aย fun opportunity to influence the look of your room with a fan that reflectsย your style and taste. Knowing how to choose a ceiling fan means sizing the fan properly to your space.
Of course, it also requires understandingย which ceiling fan moves the most air and how the various styles move air differently. After you choose, moving onto installing a ceiling fan and finallyย wiring and connecting a ceiling fanย follow quickly as the next steps.
Before you select aย ceiling fan, youโll want to ask yourself several questions, which weโve arranged below.
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How to Choose a Ceiling Fan Based on Room Size
This seems like anย obvious thing to some, but the reason ceiling fans are available in sizesย ranging from 30 to 56-inches or more is because each size is capable of movingย differing amounts of air. Determining which ceiling fan moves the most air may or may not be your goal, but you still want to match the fan size to the room size.
What you want to do is take some measurements of yourย room and see which fan would be the best fit. Start with size first, then move to select your preferred style. Below we placed some very basicย recommendations when considering which size fan to place in a particular room. For a more thorough breakdown, see our table lower down the page.
- Small bedrooms orย kitchens (8โฒ x 10โฒ) โ 30โณ ceiling fan
- Medium bedrooms, kitchens, smallerย living rooms (12โฒ x 12โฒ) โ 42โณ-44โณ ceiling fan
- Larger rooms (18โฒ xย 20โฒ) โ 52โณ+ ceiling fan
Ceiling fans have aย few typical sizes, but they are, in reality, available in a huge range ofย diameters. This means that you can really get a small or even a really largeย fan to fill just about any room. You can also add more than one fan to fill aย truly large area.
A general rule is to keep the blades of the ceiling fan atย least 24 inches away from any wall or obstruction. Your next priority is to match the fan to the airflow needs of the room. Remember, a fanย doesnโt technically cool the room, itย simply circulates air in a way that distributes cool or hot air as needed.
Check Your Ceiling Height
The ceiling heightย will help determine how you mount the fan. For example, for ceilings that are 8ย feet tall (the minimum recommended height for any ceiling fan) you will need toย mount the fan flush to the ceiling. If you have 9 or 10-foot ceilings you canย use a standard short or regular downrod. If you have even taller ceilings youย can use an extended downrod (over 12 inches).
With some fans, downrods areย included, with others this will be a separate purchase. For tall or vaultedย ceilings all bets are off. Itโs up to your preference as to how low youโdย like to hang the fan.
What Style is My Room?
Matching the style of your room is aย fun part of purchasing a ceiling fan. Kidโs rooms are truly fun, with lots ofย creative and colorful designs available on the market today. Weโve seen ceilingย fans whose light kits look like little submarines. One of our favorites is aย catchersโ mitt with a baseball as the globe light.
Ceiling fans can beย modern, traditional, classic, or playful. One of my favorite styles is aย tropical wide fan blade that looks great in beach homes. Many will be familiar with theย traditional white 5-blade system that can be found in almost any manufacturedย or site-built home. Youโll be surprised at how many choices there are out thereย โ donโt worry. Many manufacturers will have sorting systems on their websites for theย different styles. This will make picking a fan a lot easier.
Choosing a Ceiling Fan Blade Style
You may have noticed that various ceiling fans look very different in terms of the blade styles. Some offer wide, almost tropical-looking blades while others use traditional blades. Industrial fans often use steeply-pitched thinner blades to move air at higher volumes but at lower speeds.
The blade design has a lot to do with both how loud the fan tends to get as well as how much air you can expect it to move. Steeper blades drive more air downward (or upward). They require plenty of power in the motor to handle the increased pressure. They also tend to run more slowly (high volume, low speed).
Traditional ceiling fans feature 5 blades set at a relatively gentle pitch. They rely on increased speed to drive more air down into a room. Compare that to fans using fewer blades with either steeper pitches or wider paddle areas.
Choosing the Right Ceiling Fan Size
OK, letโs say you decided upon a design and now itโs time to pick the right size. For traditional fans, you can use the following guide to make your choice:
| Fan Diameter Size | Room Size | Application(s) |
|---|---|---|
| < 30 in. | Small (50 sq. ft.) | hallways, laundry rooms |
| 30โ41 in. | Small (80-100 sq. ft.) | eating areas, bathrooms |
| 42โ48 in. | Medium (150 sq. ft.) | bedrooms, offices, kitchens |
| 52โ54 in. | Medium/Large (200-300 sq. ft.) | large bedrooms, patios |
| 56+ in. | Large (400-650 sq. ft.) | living areas, large outdoor spaces |
| 65+ in. | Large (800+ sq. ft.) | shops, pavillions |
Final Thoughts
Taking all ofย these things into account will ensure you have much success in choosing aย ceiling fan to complement any room. Pick the fan that fits well with the dรฉcorย of the room. And donโt forget the most important part: Have fun!
