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Moved into a new place and my master bedroom has a fairly nice Hampton Bay fan. However, the previous tenants "lost" the remote for it. The walls are plaster so the landlord opted against running a switch on the wall, so for the time being I am without a ceiling fan.

I'd like to replace the remote assembly with a pull chain, as I've heard no good things about ceiling fan remotes.

Is this feasible or do I need to go buy a replacement remote?

Edit: this fan is a real POS. No chains, no reverse switch, no remote receiver in any serviceable area. I found a replacement remote at Home Depot and attempted to replace it. First I tried using the factory defaults and hurray the fan turned on...just in reverse...and slow. I'm not sure what exactly to do with this fan besides ask my landlord to throw it out. Ideas?

Edit 2: updated my answer, the light housing had fubar'd electronics. Replaced those and it is golden.

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I've never actually seen a ceiling fan that was built without a chain. I have, however, seen plenty of ceiling fans whose users removed the chain or cut it off short to avoid the "tick, tick, tick" sound as the fan spins.

If you haven't already, I'd get up on a ladder and take a close look at the fan body - I suspect that the stub of the chain is still there. You should just need a replacement chain and a new extender link.

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  • No stub, no chains, removed the light body only to find a molex style connector provides power down to the light body. It also lacks a reverse switch/button... – user7116 May 15 '11 at 21:39
  • That's a new one on me, then. Looks like you'll need to get the remote. Looking on the bright side, though, it shouldn't be hellishly expensive - looks like anywhere from $15-$30 should do you. – MT_Head May 15 '11 at 21:48
  • Yeah did a quick trip to the Home Despot, updated my question body. – user7116 May 15 '11 at 22:02
  • Hah! You call it the "Home Despot" too! Thought that was my own private joke. Sorry I couldn't help. – MT_Head May 15 '11 at 22:07
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As far as I can find, having taken the fan down, there is no way to add a pull chain to this fan. There is also no remote receiver in any user serviceable area of the fan. The light housing connects to the fan body via a six pin Molex connector and contains a wattage limiter of some kind (per the Hampton Bay specs for similar fans).

I am unable to buy a replacement remote with a reverse button, nor have I been able to get the fan to reverse or speed up. The Home Depot staff were also unsure how to fix the problem, and the service personnel at the 1-800 number included with the fan remote were also unsure how to fix the problem.

The fan appears to be worth at most $70, so I am just going to replace it in its entirety. Lesson learned: avoid Hampton Bay remote controlled fans.

Edit: A look inside showed that the light housing was fubar (partially melted, probably killed the receiver). I replaced it with an aftermarket kit and voila: hallelujah the fan works

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