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I just got this minka aire wave ceiling fan an completed the installation but it will not turn on (neither with remote nor switch) UNLESS i take the receiver out altogether and just operate it with the wall switch. I wouldn't mind doing this except there is no drop string to change the fan speed. There are two possibilities here: 1. The receiver is dead 2. The fan does not support wall switch and remote at the same time

I don't care to control the speed or dimmer from the wall just simply need a on/off option. I did not find any information in the manual but I just want to verify that a ceiling fan with a remote kit installed should not lose operation from the wall switch?

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If your wall switch is a simple mechanical switch I don't see how it could possibly have anything to do with the problem.

You can easily rig up a test apparatus to determine if the receiver/transmitter is working properly. (This worked for my Hunter fan with light fixture, but of course I can't say whether a pure resistive load would test the receiver for a Minka Wave fan.

In summary, cut the cord of a working lamp with say a 40-W incandescent bulb and insert the receiver into the cut as if it were the fan. I used this to determine that my receiver was working and the failure must have been due to a poor connection. I had noticed on removing the receiver that at least one of the stranded wires was poorly stripped (most of the strands cut away). I have now replaced the receiver, re-stripped and tinned the wires (on the receiver not on the fan, those were OK) and the fan/light are now working.

See Why doesn't my ceiling fan's light kit work?

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I know I am a bit late here but the answer is to NEVER trust the seller! The fan was never programmed to begin with; it was suppose to be plug and play type so I disregarded the programming instructions assuming this was not applicable.

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  • Glad you got it figured out in the end! – ThreePhaseEel Jul 14 '17 at 21:57
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It sounds like the receiver is quite dead, yes. (While a fan receiver may not support having a wall switch yanking its proverbial powercord out from under it well, it ought to function still when the switch is on!)

I would take the switch out and wirenut the hot and switched wires connected to it together, and then try the fan again -- if it still doesn't work, then ask your fan manufacturer for a replacement receiver.

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  • Today we had a fairly new Hunter fan with light fixture wired through a receiver switch stop working (neither fan nor light worked). I removed the receiver and both fan and light are now working (no switch but with the two pull chains). I thought maybe the connections were bad, but wanted to see if the fan was working. Now that it works I don't feel like trying the receiver again. I messed around with a non-contact detector before disconnecting the receiver, and got a positive on the output side of the switch but fan wouldn't run. Could it be the neutrals didn't work to complete the circuit? – Jim Stewart Dec 12 '16 at 4:52
  • @JimStewart -- a fried receiver would be more likely – ThreePhaseEel Dec 12 '16 at 12:45
  • I tested the receiver with a light and found both light and fan worked so I put it back into the fan and it worked. Problem solved; I figured it must have been bad connections. Then I go in today and it doesn't work! All the other fans on the same circuit work. I turn the breaker off, let it sit off for 20 min and then back on. The problem fan now works. I guess there is an intermittent fault in the receiver. I am leaving it on for an extended period to see if the receiver "burns in", but I expect this will recur. – Jim Stewart Dec 31 '16 at 19:15
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When using a remote system, the power to the receiver should always be on. Only use the on/off button on the remote to turn the fan off and on. If you want a wall control in addition to a hand held one, you should buy a wall remote, which has all the functions as the hand held including on/off. It will also have a small switch that sends power to the receiver, which should always be powered on except in the case of an emergency. There's a lot of electronics involved here which I will not bother to explain, but doing this will prevent any of the above problems from occurring.

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