Can only one wall switch control a ceiling fan/light with remote?

Question

I'm in a new home that bedroom has two wall switches for ceiling fan w/light. The fan I installed has a remote. I capped the red wire coming in from the ceiling. One wall switch gives power to the fan/light and I can control them with the remote. The other wall switch does nothing. I was hoping I could power the fan with one switch and the light with the other and still adjust fan speed and light intensity with the remote. Is this the way it should be left? If so, I guess I'll remove the non-functioning switch and put a plate over it.

Answer 1

If the remote has only one black and white input, then the answer is No. Both answers give you lots of good information. This old stack exchange is answering your question indirectly if the receiver has only a black and white input, meaning a single switch adds power and the receiver will control the output to the fan, so the answer is No.

Adding remote wall controller may get you the desired effect. Now some wall controllers do sync with remotes that attach to the gang receptacles, then the answer is yes, but not by conventional controls (basically two remotes, one in wall and one in hand).

My fan came with a remote, but I modified it to be wall controlled I made a video how to do this. I liked the style of this fan, but it came with a remote and controller. Its the worst kind of controller because it contained everything except the fan windings and the lights. I ended up reverting to wall controls (Single gang lutrons with 3 fan settings and variable light), so I don't lose the remotes.

Assumption The old fan was a pull chain type or one without a remote and the red wire and black were both connected separately to different wires in the fan. These wires are two separately switched AC hot inputs.

Answer 2

Most fan/light combinations nowadays come in one of two, very different, designs:

Traditional/Wired

Fan and light each have a separate power wire. Assuming each is wired to a separate switch, they can be turned on/off separately. In addition, the fan switch can be replaced with a fan speed controller and/or the light switch can be replaced with a dimmer, timer, smart switch, etc.

A traditional wired fan often has pull strings for the light and the fan, which function as on/off if you only had a single wall switch and can also provide fan speed and/or dimming, depending on design. Pull strings work great if the fan is not too high up and in an easily reachable location. Practically speaking, they don't work as well if the fan is high up or in a large room. But if you already have two separate switched hot wires - or are installing in a new location where you can easily run the extra wire - then you get to ignore the pull strings and use wall switches instead.

Installing appropriate smart switches for fan and light control also lets you integrate into the system of your choice for a "smart house", if you are interested in that sort of thing.

Remote

A remote control receiver is either built into or attached to the fan/light before it is installed in the ceiling. A single power wire/switch is connected. The remote lets you turn the fan and light on/off and, typically, also change the fan speed and dim the light.

This has become more and more popular lately. Why? Because even though it costs the manufacturer a little bit more than connecting to simple switches, the remote control transmitter and receiver are now extremely cheap to produce and it allows fan installation where there was never a fan before, without calling an electrician. That is the key. If you have a typical home with a room that had a ceiling light but never had a fan/light combination then it will only have one switch with one switched hot and a remote is the easiest way to add separate control for fan and light without either calling an electrician (which will often cost more than the fan/light itself) or using pull strings (which are less than ideal for a bunch of reasons).

Some fans with remotes are able to be connected into various "smart home" systems, but you are limited to whatever the fan/light provides. A new system might mean a firmware upgrade for your ceiling fan...

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So what that means is you decide how you want to control your fan and light in order to determine which type of fan/light to buy. There are plenty of brands with plenty of different models of both types. In theory, any fan with a replaceable remote receiver could be wired up without the remote in order to use two wall switches. In reality, many fans/lights seem to be designed now to only work with a remote, even if it is a replaceable module - so if you want double-wall-switch control, skip the remote. You can always add remote control to a double-wall-switch fan/light with smart switches.

As noted in a comment, any fan installation replacing a simple light fixture needs to consider support. Due to weight and vibration, the requirements for a fan are significantly higher than for a light. However, if you are OK with remote control then the work to install a fan-rated support, if needed, is a lot less than running a new cable in a typical home.

Answer 3

You can't have it both ways.

You have 2 switches one for fan one for light. However You have a remote that will accept only one input for power. The remote then operates the fan and its speeds as well as turning the light on and off and dimming. (As you well know)

Unless you find a remote that will separated the power inputs and allow you to use switches as well as being rated for your fan, (A Unicorn) You are forced to either use the remote or not use it and rely on just the switches.

Since you capped the red wire there is no need to remove the switch on the wall. It simply will not operate anything.