FAQs

Choosing the right size of fan does not depend only on the size of the room. It is also important to consider the layout of the room, where in the room people to tend to congregate, where the airflow is most required and how high the ceiling is.

Our smaller diameter fans (1.2m, 1.3m and 1.4m) produce mainly downdraft within a radius extending up to a metre beyond the blade tips. Our larger fans (1.5m, 1.6m and 1.8m), produce greater side-draft and less direct down-draft. Therefore, when selecting a fan, it is important to decide whether a direct cooling draft is required or whether  gentle air circulation is the more important factor.

Given below is a sizing chart that can be used as a rough guide to selecting the size fan.  Please feel free however to contact us if you would like to discuss your specific situation or room layout.

Generally speaking, a ceiling fan should be positioned between 2400mm – 2800mm from the floor. Occasionally there may be good reasons why this cannot be done (eg; when the ceiling itself is unusually low, or where roof beam trusses prevent the fan being mounted at this height.

A quick rule of thumb is to measure the height from floor ceiling and then deduct 2700mm. The resulting figure should be the length of the down rod you will need.

The Sirocco, Monaco, Solano and Fern ranges come standard with a 150mm down rod making the overall length of the unit from mounting point to base of fan approximately 300mm – 320mm. The Classic and the Piccolo fans are provided standard with a 230mm down rod and an overall height of 410mm.

For online purchase we are offering three length options: 1) Standard length 2) 600mm and 3) 1200mm. The longer lengths are supplied pre-wired. We advise strongly against cutting of lengths provided as this may affect the performance of the fan and will invalidate the suppliers warranty.

Should you require a different length of down rod, please contact Timber Fans directly to discuss before proceeding with your online purchase.

For safety reasons fan blades should never be positioned lower than 2300mm from floor level.

We are able to supply longer down rods up to a maximum of 2.5 meters in length (Classic and Piccolo – up to 4m). Please advise us your “floor to ceiling” heights and we will calculate the appropriate length down rods that you need.

Longer down rods should not affect fan performance at all. However, abnormal length down rods for the Sirocco and Solano Ranges may necessitate some on-site balancing using the balance kit provided with these fans.

For our Classic and Piccolo ranges we include a 4 speed wall-mounted controller with each fan ordered.  The controller faceplate fits a standard “2 x 4 electrical box” that most houses are built with. If in any doubt, consult your electrician.

Our standard faceplates are Clipsal/Schneider in White, but other makes and colours are available on request. Additional charges may apply.

As an optional extra (for which additional charges apply) we offer a 4 speed Remote Control. This obviates the need for a wall-mounted fitting and operates on remote frequency (RF) .

For our new range of energy-efficient BLDC fans (Sirocco, Fern and Solano) the standard controller supplied is a 5 or 6 speed RF remote control. This is in line with the international trend towards remote controls rather than fixed wall-mount controls. For the Sirocco and the Solano we do offer a wall-mount option at additional cost. Consult your Timber Fans consultant if in any doubt.

A ceiling fan does not change the actual ambient temperature of a room. What it does do, is move or distribute air. This has several interesting implications;

From a cooling perspective in Summer, by directing a downdraft onto a person, a fan creates a breeze which has a cooling effect by evaporating body moisture to make one feel cooler and more comfortable.

From a warming perspective in Winter, a fan circulates the air in a room to distribute the warm air that has risen and may be trapped in the ceiling area. By doing this, it raises the temperature of the air at the lower levels and makes one feel warmer.

Definitely.

All too often, we have energy-guzzling heaters or gas burners creating heat in a room only to find that the hot air they generate, rises and becomes trapped up at the ceiling!

By running your Fan at slow speed (no need to reverse rotation) the downdraft re-circulates the hot air trapped at the ceiling, to provide even, comfortable heat throughout the room.

A ceiling fan consumes roughly 5% of the energy of an average 1500Watt electrical heater used in the home, but can achieve heating savings of up to 30% by dispersing the hot air normally trapped in the roof space.

You could probably run about 20 – 30 ceiling fans for the same amount of energy that would be needed to run one domestic air conditioning unit. That’s a huge difference in energy consumption!

In hot or humid environments where an air conditioner is considered essential, it makes a lot of sense to operate a ceiling fan in tandem with the air conditioner. By doing so, one can limit the operating time of the air conditioner and obtain the same cooling effect with the fan circulating the already chilled air.

Installing a fan is not difficult but it is a precision job requiring strict compliance with our written installation instructions that come with each order.

A badly installed fan can result in fan noise or wobble and can be an electrical hazard. For this reason we strongly recommend that the installation be carried out by a qualified electrician. Failure to observe our installation instructions may result in the fan Warranty being voided.

Yes, they certainly can, but you will need to get your builder or carpenter to install a wooden “boss” or wedge in the ceiling to provide a firm horizontal surface for attaching the down rod.

Note that the down rod must be long enough to ensure that the fan blades do not touch against the slanted ceiling.

A long down rod does not make it more likely to wobble. In fact the increased weight of the longer rod, adds to the stability of the fan.

We can supply down rods up to 4 meters in length.

Please contact Timber Fans on the specifics of your planned system. Our speed regulators are designed to be compatible with our fan motors and we cannot guarantee compatibility when other systems are interposed or are used instead of our regulators.

Yes definitely.

By using a fan in conjunction with an air conditioner, one can reduce the workload and energy usage of the air conditioner by as much as 20% – 30%. This is a huge savings considering that a fan uses less than 5% of the energy of an air conditioner.

Yes. Mosquitoes and flying insects don’t like the draft.  But that is not to say that some determined mosquitoes will not manage to get through and attack you!

Warranty/Guarantee applicable to purchasers in South Africa.

Check that the bolt securing the down rod to the motor shaft is securely tightened (Classic and/or Piccolo ranges).

Check the same for the bolt at the ceiling side for the down rod to the shackle assembly or hanger bracket.

Check that the fans blades are securely tightened to the motor.

Check that the cup over the motor is not touching the motor and causing a vibration. Lift it slightly away from the motor.

Check that there is a gap of at least 5mm between the top cup and the ceiling. Ensure the grub screw of the cup is securely tightened (Classic and Piccolo ranges).

Do not attempt to disassemble the fan or the motor unless you are a qualified installer. To do so, may invalidate the warranty.

Classic or Piccolo Ranges:

It may be that the Capacitor unit is faulty or that it may have blown. In this case it is a simple and cheap matter to fix by replacing the capacitor. Speak to your electrician and ask him/her to inspect and test the capacitor before carrying out other expensive work.

Fern, Sirocco or Solano ranges:

It may be that the receiver unit is faulty or may have blown. If you have a spare receiver unit you could try installing it to test if the fault is due to the receiver. Alternatively you could return the receiver to Timber Fans for testing.

In the unlikely event that your fan is wobbling after installation, or after a period of time, there is a way to attempt to re-balance the unit. This procedure applies only to the Classic/Fern/Piccolo ranges.

• Switch off fan
• Use a measuring tape or a carpenter’s square to measure the distance between ceiling and the tip of fan blade as shown below.
• Mark on tape or square and repeat with other two blades.
• Carefully bend blade(s) at bracket in the required direction until all three blades measure precisely the same distance to ceiling.
• Switch on the fan and check to see if it is now running smoothly and without any wobble.

If your fan is one of our new BLDC motor fans (Sirocco, Fern or Solano) then perhaps the problem may be that the fan has been set on Winter reverse mode instead of standard mode.

Reverse mode will tend to force the air up to the ceiling rather than down to the floor.

Checking on this is easy:

• Look up at the fan and check whether the blades are moving in a clockwise or anti-clockwise direction as you look “up” at them.
• If they are moving anti-clockwise then you fan is running in the normal default Summer mode.
• If they are rotating clockwise then your fan is in Winter reverse mode.

Change the rotational direction of your fan by pressing the “Rotate”  button on your remote while the fan is running – Your fan will slow down and eventually stop. Then after a moment’s pause, it will start up again rotating in the opposite direction to what it was before.

Switch off your remote when it is running in your desired direction. The next time you switch it on, it should run in the last memorised direction that you had set it.

We believe our fans are amongst the quietest available anywhere.

Every fan we make is tested electronically for noise levels according to very strict tolerances.

Some level of noise is inevitable with any fan at higher speeds, but at the lower speed positions 1 and 2, our fans should be whisper quiet. Exactly what you would expect from a fan of this quality!

Most fans available from the discount store are mass-produced items, generally with aluminium fan blades, metal finishes and cheap motor components. Predictably, many of these are prone to wobble and noise.

Our fans are individually handcrafted, tested and balanced before being passed as ready for delivery to our customers. We use only the best materials available locally or imported where necessary. For our imported induction motors, we go the extra step of replacing the standard bearings with aircraft-quality Swedish bearings thereby ensuring longer service life and extra quiet performance.

Timber Fans prides itself on its personalised after sales service and support whether you have purchased one fan or 100. We are available for telephone support when problems occur or with any installation queries. Our no-nonsense warranty ensures that you get what you pay for without any compromise.

When it comes to classical style and timeless elegance, our fans lead the way and are certain to enhance the decor and beauty of your home and living spaces.

A number of lighting and home decor stores around the country do sell our fans and display a limited number of our models. However, because of the wide range of finishes and styles that we offer, it is generally not practical for dealers to display very many models or to carry stocks.

Should you be looking for an agent in your area, please call us and we will gladly give you a referral to your closest dealers.

Customers are free to deal with any of our dealers or to buy directly from us.

Our fans are not intended for outdoor use.

They may be installed under covered patio areas provided they are fully protected against wind or water damage.

It is not necessary to have a reverse function on a fan as some fan suppliers might claim. By creating a down-draft or side-draft a fan is forcing the circulation of all the air in the room and this includes the warm air that would otherwise tend to be trapped in the upper reaches of the room. This results in the warm air being distributed more evenly throughout the room thereby raising the temperature of the air closer to ground level. A reverse function will provide a more direct up-draft and this may be desirable in certain situations where a down-draft needs to be minimised.

Timber Fans Fern/Sirocco/Solano ranges offer reverse mode, while the Classic and Piccolo ranges are uni-direction only.

• Our Classic/Fern/ Piccolo range paddle-shaped blades are made from superior quality 5 ply marine ply veneered with two layers of selected timber veneer to give a 4mm -6 mm thick finished blade.
• Our Sirocco range blades are made from a 5ply laminate of Paulownia hardwood timber which is similar to Balsa and has one of the highest strength to weight ratios of any wood in the world.
• The economically priced Solano range comes with 6 ply melamine-faced plywood giving an approximate 6mm finished thickness. The melamine comes in monochrome colours (black, white etc) or with wood grain effect.

The technique of laminating timber lengths in wooden products is universally adopted to strengthen and stabilise the finished product. Solid timber blades can be prone to warping, shrinkage or splitting and would not be suitable for many areas particularly extreme weather and dry environments.

Our wooden hubs (Classic/Fern/Piccolo) on the other hand are cut and machined from solid hardwood timber which has been carefully selected and seasoned before being fashioned into a fan hub.

You can buy the electrical accessories from the agent through whom you bought the fan in the first instance, or if they are not able to assist, you can contact Timber Fans directly through the Contact page on our website or by telephoning us.

Depending on the type timber selected and the finishing options chosen, we can normally ship from between 14- 21 days from order placement. However, our door is always open to discuss urgent requirements that you may have. It needs to be remembered that all orders are made to individual customer specification and are not drawn from stock.

We ship throughout Southern Africa and worldwide. Our appointed freight couriers can deliver to most local destinations within 24 – 48 hours, and for export orders we provide delivery schedules and price quotes for customer approval.

RETURNS AND REPLACEMENT POLICY

UNWANTED PRODUCT

Timber Fans will take back and replace or refund any unwanted product supplied, provided the following is observed:

• You have communicated to us your wish to return an item within 21 days of initial delivery.
• The product you are returning is in resalable condition; free of scratches, blemishes or modifications of any kind
• All components, manuals and parts are returned
• The product is returned in its original packaging.
• The product is inspected/tested by us on return and found to be fault-free.

Freight and Insurance costs for a return and a replacement will be for your account.

Custom-designed fans are not accepted for return unless they can be converted back to a standard product with the cost of conversion borne by you.

FAULTY PRODUCT OR INCORRECT SUPPLY

Occasionally a new product has a fault on arrival or is felt to be the wrong product specification. If this happens, then our policy is to replace the faulty part(s) only. In this case, the faulty part must be returned to us for testing. Provided our tests confirm the fault, we will supply the replacement part(s) at no cost and will bear the freight cost for both shipments.

However, if you do not want the product in its entirety, then you are free to return it as detailed in the “UNWANTED PRODUCT” section above.

Under no circumstances should any product be returned to us without prior communication with us to discuss and confirm the reason for the return