rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Dear UDI users today as I was adding a USB charger outlet to my house I turned the breakers off and boom, yet another FanLinc damaged. I have damaged a total of 8 (yes eight) FanLinc so far. I just hear a WWWRRRRRMHMMMMMMM like the FanLinc it's outputting dimming voltage to the fan (which can damage the motor) Instead of pulse on-off-on-off-on-off. From what I understand the FanLinc, all it does is regulate voltage. I have 46 Insteon Devices, I installed ALL of them myself. My question is, FanLinc are fragile? Maybe they damage if there is interference?I am going to get a new one tomorrow but my main concern is, can adding an Insteon dimmer to a circuit damage the whole circuit? I am pretty sure the FanLinc damaged upon turning breakers back on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G W Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 With all the problems you are having, the only ONE item related to ALL your problems is your AC electric feed. I suggest you contact an expert technician and him/her test and monitor you electric panel. I think you have bigger problems than you understand. Short and to the point. Best regards, Gary Funk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian H Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 From what I have seen in the FCC Database Photos of the Fanlinc. Schematics are not public access in the FCC Database. The Fanlinc connects different sized capacitors in series to the fan motor for medium and low. It does not chop the AC to the load like a dimmer. If this is happening on the same brand fan. I suspect the fan itself may not be compatible with the Fanlinc. Some of the new fans now have DC controlled motors. Removing the original DC fan controls to add the Fanlinc would result in AC being applied to a DC motor. Through the Fanlinc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 The Fanlinc connects different sized capacitors in series to the fan motor for medium and low. It does not chop the AC to the load like a dimmer. If this is happening on the same brand fan. I suspect the fan itself may not be compatible with the Fanlinc. Some of the new fans now have DC controlled motors. Removing the original fan controls to add the Fanlinc would result in AC being applied to a DC motor. Through the Fanlinc. Well I have 5 fans In the Master Room, the FanLinc has worked flawlessly since April In the Office, 6 FanLincs have damaged In the 2nd Room, today 1 FanLinc damaged in the Living Room, FanLinc running great for 1 month in Dinning Room, 1 FanLinc running great after 2 months. One time out of curiosity I connected the FanLinc light to the Motor and WHRMMMMM I heard the horrible noise. Then I learned that dimming is NOT for fans. So I called Insteon and they told me FanLinc is a device that regulates voltage, that's it. Even Smarthome are surprised why so many FanLinc have damaged in my house. Anyway no FanLinc failures for almost 2 months now and now another one. So my question is, anybody has damaged FanLincs (Slow stops working, or humming noise) In this case the FanLinc that damaged was not working on High, only Medium and Slow. I turned off the breakers and turn on again, and then it doesn't work, not even in high, medium or slow. Horrendous humming in every speed now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian H Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Thanks for the added information. In the Reviews section of the Fanlinc sales page. There are a few reports of sudden horrible huming noise starting after a few months. One reported medium and low OK High NG. I suspect in the Low and Medium OK finding. The capacitors and triacs used to switch them are OK. The high speed tirac that connects AC to the motor has failed. Maybe intermittently pulsing on one half of the AC cycle and you get pulsing DC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larryllix Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Dear UDI users today as I was adding a USB charger outlet to my house I turned the breakers off and boom, yet another FanLinc damaged. I have damaged a total of 8 (yes eight) FanLinc so far. I just hear a WWWRRRRRMHMMMMMMM like the FanLinc it's outputting dimming voltage to the fan (which can damage the motor) Instead of pulse on-off-on-off-on-off. From what I understand the FanLinc, all it does is regulate voltage. I have 46 Insteon Devices, I installed ALL of them myself. My question is, FanLinc are fragile? Maybe they damage if there is interference? I am going to get a new one tomorrow but my main concern is, can adding an Insteon dimmer to a circuit damage the whole circuit? I am pretty sure the FanLinc damaged upon turning breakers back on. Was the damaged FanLinc n the same circuit breaker that you turned off and on to install the USB charger outlet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Was the damaged FanLinc n the same circuit breaker that you turned off and on to install the USB charger outlet? Yes it was, I am 100% sure. However another fanlinc didn't damaged. Also, let me tell you guys, ALL my house has the EXACT SAME fan, same brand, same model. All of them bought from Home Depot. For some reason the one in the office would break ALL the time. Then, I went up to the attic and moved the electricity that powers the fan from a 2 way circuit (in the stairs), and added electricity from another electrical outlet inside the office. That fixed the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larryllix Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I would agree that you should get an electrician or professional to inspect your wiring. A common problem, I have seen, is a loose connection on the neutral, giving high voltage on one phase/leg when loads on the other phase/leg turn on. This is usually indicated with lights appearing to "surge" in brightness, occasionally. This has been a big cost to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 I would agree that you should get an electrician or professional to inspect your wiring. A common problem, I have seen, is a loose connection on the neutral, giving high voltage on one phase/leg when loads on the other phase/leg turn on. This is usually indicated with lights appearing to "surge" in brightness, occasionally. This has been a big cost to you. What do you mean 'surge' in brightness? like flicker? Well in the office I changed at least 6 fanlinc I doubt every single time I installed it the ground was not properly connected. Now today when I turned the breaker on yeah maybe the cable that goes from my office outlet to the second room was not properly surged, that would be a possibility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian H Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 You are confusing Safety Ground and Neutral. Two separate connections. They only connect together at the Neutral Buss in the breaker panel. A missing Safety Ground will not effect the power to the Fanlinc. Neutral is the return path for the power. On both incoming power lines. If it is loose. The voltage on the Fanlinc maybe high or low. Depending on how the total load between both incoming lines tried to balance itself with no common reference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G W Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 You may have the exact same model of the fan but that does not mean they have the same components. They could have different motors, different capacitors, and be made in different factories at different times. No one in the history of UDI has ever had the problems you have. You need to find the cause of all your problems before something catastrophic happens, like your house catching fire while you sleep. Short and to the point. Best regards, Gary Funk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 You are confusing Safety Ground and Neutral. Two separate connections. A missing Safety Ground will not effect the power to the Fanlinc. Neutral is the return path for the power. On both incoming power lines. If it is loose. The voltage on the Fanlinc maybe high or low. Depending on how the total load between both incoming lines tried to balance itself with no common reference. Well in the office there was a dimmer downstairs that went to a dimmer upstairs that went to a dimmer in the hall and from the hall I sent to the Office Fan. So ONE of those dimmers had a bad neutral on intermittent and yeah I could see why the office was a recipe for disaster. Since then I changed office so electric cable is directly wired from electrical socket. However in the second room I can almost swear today it damaged because I turned the breaker on. I was thinking it would be a good idea to turn OFF the ceiling fan with the chain (so both light power and fan speed are off even if they receive electricity from the FanLinc) But anyway, my mystery remains. I have been that by re-wiring and double and triple checking connections problem seems to improve, at least for a few months. My main question is if I have 46 devices then why ONY the FanLinc fails. On the second room the FanLinc It's even wired to the same circuit as the Toggle Linc. On the office it's wired to the same circuit of the Keypad Linc. Something seems strange, are FanLincs SUPER sensitive and prone to error? From the 46 devices I have, only FanLinc have been returned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G W Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Ask your FanLinc question on the SmartHome forum. Short and to the point. Best regards, Gary Funk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian H Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I know I have seen others reporting Fanlinc issues. May have been here, Smarthome Forum or the Insteon Forum. You may want to ask. In those forums also for added information. http://forum.insteon.com/ http://forum.smarthome.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larryllix Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Get a professional electrician to help with this. What you are doing may be dangerous to you, your family(s), and the whole neighbourhood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Get a professional electrician to help with this. What you are doing may be dangerous to you, your family(s), and the whole neighbourhood. I honestly believe the FanLinc is a cheap device because all my house works great. The fan works GREAT if I remove the FanLinc. The FanLinc is the problem, lights don't flicker (well they did flicker and it was the bulbs which I changed) I actually went to SmartHome store (when they were open) and they recommended me to write the fan directly to the nearest outlet, not to one dimmer that goes to another dimmer and then to another and then to the FanLinc. They said if I do that then eventually there might be noise or static since dimmers create static in the line so I did that and then that solved the problem. But today when I turned the switchers off to install a USB outlet, then I turned it on and the second room FanLinc damaged. It's been almost 2 months without a FanLinc being damaged, so I was asking if anybody has a clue of why. I guess the best and more scientific answer would be an electrician that can go to the attic and check the connections and re-do the connections again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G W Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Maybe he's using fans not compatible with the FanLinc. Short and to the point. Best regards, Gary Funk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Maybe he's using fans not compatible with the FanLinc. Short and to the point. Best regards, Gary Funk Well the fan in the Master Room has NEVER damaged a FanLinc and the Fan in the Living Room hasn't damaged a FanLinc yet. My question was regarding voltage noise or static inside the line or how to make sure a line is always sending stable current as I believe if the energy is unstable it damaged the FanLinc. Even if I turn a breaker off, then on it damages the FanLinc. When FanLinc damages it works on medium and high but not on low, or works on medium and low but not on high. I believe it's cheap capacitors. Anybody here has ever damaged a FanLinc? Also, is there any way I can stabilize current before it gets to the FanLinc? Like at the circuit breaker can one stabilize the current of the house? I believe maybe dimmers generate noise in the lines but my knowledge about electricity is very basic. I remember when I installed a Keypad next to the amplifier I immediately started hearing a HISSS in my rear speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G W Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 You need to get an electrician to check out your house. You need to pull the fan that is destroying the FanLinc. I'll place my money on a bad fan. Best regards, Gary Funk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Also I have 46 Insteon devices 2 routers 3 monitors 2 4K Tvs 1 1080p TV Nvidia Shield TV, Apple TV, Amplifier, Subwoofer, 2nd Amplifier. 4 LIFX bulbs, 5 MagicLight bulbs. I have Insteon Keypads, Outlets, On/Off (even in the bathrooms), Garage Opener, and I have at least 30 bulbs all over the house. I also have Insteon Cameras and I also changed the ceiling fluorescent light in the kitchen for LEDs and removed the ballast so I can dim them. Am I an electrician?NO, absolutely not BUT why ONLY the FanLinc damages constantly? This house was built in the 80s, maybe the house has static somewhere? Voltage is not stable? Or maybe by adding so many Insteon dimmers I made the house full of static. Anybody has a possible reason? From the 8 FanLinc that damaged some of them (around 5) were not actually damaged damaged. They were working on SLOW when I first bought them from the store. Then they stopped working on SLOW because the voltage was so low that the fan won't even move, but the WRMMHHMMM noise told me the fan was trying to somehow move but the voltage was too low. So, a FanLinc, would send a low voltage that would make the fan move in low speed. After a few weeks, it would output a lower voltage making the fan unable to move. So I see it is a fragile device. SmartHome told me to try different revision numbers, sometime to make FanLinc 'safer' the new revisions output less voltage. In all my last year of doing home automation, this question is still a mystery for me. All I know is 1) Connect to the closest lighting outlet to avoid interference/noise in the line. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian H Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 If you search other forums you will find failure reports. Here is one. Took me one minute to find. http://forum.smarthome.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=18038&SearchTerms=Fanlinc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFallenAngel Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Did those fans came wirh their own remote controls that you replaced with FanLincs? If NOT did it explicitly say on the box of the fan or in it's manual that is CAN be controlled by a dimmer? Cheers, Alex Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 If you search other forums you will find failure reports. Here is one. Took me one minute to find. http://forum.smarthome.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=18038&SearchTerms=Fanlinc Good!!! I am not killing FanLinc then it has happened to other people!! I'll read all that post to check ideas. My gut tells me old FanLinc (revision 1.4), seemed to be less fragile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rafarataneneces Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Did those fans came wirh their own remote controls that you replaced with FanLincs? If NOT did it explicitly say on the box of the fan or in it's manual that is CAN be controlled by a dimmer? Cheers, Alex the amperage is good. I honestly think 1.9 FanLinc are a piece of crap I will go to Fry's today hopefully 1.8 or 1.4 I will just try to avoid 1.9 at all costs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G W Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 I've used FanLincs since the week they came out. I've not had problems. I've never had the many many problems, you have on a daily basis. In fact, you have more problems in a week than the rest of us have in a year. If you truly think the FanLinc is a cheap device then stop using it. You are just going to have more problems. Also, most of your issues and questions are not ISY related and are beyond the scope of this forum. Best regards, Gary Funk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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