Harbor Breeze Blade Balancing
January 8, 2020
So, your fan has a wobbling problem. It squeaks, it wobbles, or maybe it does something different altogether. You’ve done some research online and come to the conclusion that your fan blades are warped, perhaps ever so slightly. Or you haven’t come to that conclusion at all – you know though that your fan has a problem, and you need to figure out how to fix it. Well, you’ve come to the right place. Blade balancing can be a little tricky – but it’s inexpensive, and it’s an excellent learning experience.
The concept behind blade balancing, is that your ceiling fan blades need to be in perfect alignment in order to work properly. A small variation in terms of one blade (or two) can lead to some of the above mentioned problems: wobbling fan, squeaky sounds, whirring sounds, fan blades seem to turn slowly, and perhaps other problems not mentioned. To correct this behavior, blade balancing is necessary. If you’re not sure if you have an uneven blade, a blade balancing kit will help. Basically how a blade balancing kit works, is you attach weights to the fan blades. You attach these weights to the fan blades one by one, in order to determine which fan blade may be out of alignment with the rest.
With all of that being said, you should try a blade balancing kit after you’ve checked to make sure that a loose screw isn’t causing the problem. Let’s take you through checking that first:
Tightening screws to stop wobbling ceiling fans
- Tighten the screws on the mounting brackets, and the outlet box. You may need to expose the canopy first
- Take a look at the downrod (if your fan has one, if not it’s a low profile fan). Make sure all the screws on the downrod are tight, and any other screws, rivets or pins are tightly secured also.
- Check the screws on the fan blades, that connect them to the blade holders. Make sure they are snug and tight. Follow the blade holders along and make sure they are plugged into the motor housing properly as well. If there are any bent blade holders, you can adjust them slightly by pressing up or down on the blade bracket.
- Using a measuring tape, measure distances along each blade to the ceiling. Start at the tip of the fan blade and measure to the ceiling. All of the fan blades should have the same height, or distance to the ceiling. If a fan blade is not the same height from the tip to the ceiling, then that is the blade that is causing the problem. Try adjusting blade holders as needed, in order to make the fan blades equal height or distance to the ceiling.
- When done, turn on the fan and see if the wobbling has dissipated at all. If not, keep measuring, keep checking screws and see if you can figure out which blade is the culprit.
Unimpressed with the 3 new fans all exhibiting the Sam problem. Out of balance from the factory. I shouldn’t have to fix your mistake.
Hi Jeff, thanks for your comment! Just so you know, we are not the fan manufacturer. We are a third party resource offering help to site visitors, with problems with their fan or seeking a replacement part, etc.
I have same issue with fans not balanced, purchased from Lowes. Multiple visits to home. Still have wobble on both harbor breeze and hunter fan. Hunter slightly improved, but both out of line with new purchase expectations. Had 20 plus year old fans, that had no wobble what so ever. I just wanted to update/modernize looks. Comments from installers, they make everything cheap. You will always have a wobble?
Hi Dawn, what ceiling fan did you purchase in particular? Just so we can get an understanding of what model this is. Thank you!
Hunter is not from the same manufacturer as Harbor Breeze and have been around much longer. We would like to hear which models so we can understand how to help. Thanks!