FanLinc Shim Project

[Wes Westhaver]

Hello,

I have a FanLinc installed in my house and I really like it. But it is a bear trying to get the FanLinc to fit within the fan base (shroud). And if I place the FanLinc in the fan shroud, I no longer have access to the programing buttons and the LED status lights.

So, I came up with a way to mount the FanLinc external to the fan shroud. Now I have access to the FanLinc. I've posted some pictures of my idea and will post more after I have it fully installed. Here's a link to the pictures:

Insteon FanLinc Shim

My FanLinc Shim is inserted between the fan base (shroud) and the ceiling and provides a path for the wiring between the FanLinc and the electrical box. The shim consists of 4 layers of laser cut MDF that is glued together and painted to match the ceiling color. The top and bottom layers are 1/8" MDF and the two middle layers are 1/4" MDF which makes the FanLinc Shim about 3/4" thick. Once the layers are glued together, I used a router bit to round the edge of the FanLinc Shim and give it a softer appearance. The fan mounting screws need to be 3/4" longer to accomodate the FanLinc Shim and can be purchased at a local hardware store. But beyond that there are no other modifications required.

The laser cutfiles are also available for anyone who wants to download them.

Edited January 1, 2021 by Wes Westhaver

[Goose66]

And that's going to pass the WFT (wife-factor test)?

[Brian H]

Thank you for sharing your project. I am sure it will be a help to others.

[Wes Westhaver]

10 hours ago, Goose66 said:

And that's going to pass the WFT (wife-factor test)?

Aren't you a little ray of sunshine... The world it seems is filled with naysayers who contribute nothing. And I just found another one.

[Wes Westhaver]

1 hour ago, Brian H said:

Thank you for sharing your project. I am sure it will be a help to others.

Thanks, it's a small thing but it might satisfy someone's need.

 

[MrBill]

Good Idea and I understand the need and desire.

It should be noted that it will not comply with the NEC as it introduces a flammable material between a junction box and fixture, it's also not a device listed for it's use.

That said, I've violated the NEC in my own home a few places (mostly using temporary cords permanently installed and/or enclosed) so I'm not trying to sit in judgement and say it's wrong to do it, but for those wishing to do it, or those installing professionally, it should be noted that's it's not code compliant.

Edited August 30, 2020 by MrBill

[Wes Westhaver]

4 hours ago, MrBill said:

Good Idea and I understand the need and desire.

It should be noted that it will not comply with the NEC as it introduces a flammable material between a junction box and fixture, it's also not a device listed for it's use.

That said, I've violated the NEC in my own home a few places (mostly using temporary cords permanently installed and/or enclosed) so I'm not trying to sit in judgement and say it's wrong to do it, but for those wishing to do it, or those installing professionally, it should be noted that's it's not code compliant.

Understood. This is clearly a non-NEC compliant accessory. It would be great if Insteon could redesign their FanLinc to work outside of the fan base (shroud) while still being NEC compliant. But that isn't an option right now and I wanted to create a way to achieve this while keeping the wiring tidy, hidden and allow access to the FanLinc buttons and status lights. So caveat emptor.

[Wes Westhaver]

OK. The FanLinc Shim project is finished and installed. I think it turned out really well. I've added the final pictures here:

Insteon FanLinc Shim

One side benefit is that the FanLinc is better ventilated since it is running outside of the fan shroud so it runs cooler.

-Wes
 

Edited September 18, 2020 by Wes Westhaver

[Brian H]

Looks nice.

Thank you for sharing the finished product and assembly information.