[OT]: How to tell if your house is in danger of burning down?

F

FUD

Moderator
This might be a little off-topic but I'm hoping that other board members might be able to offer some suggestions ...

I moved into a brand new house several months ago and a number of the rooms have ceiling fans with lights -- in southern Florida this is a nice feature to have. However, if I leave the lights on for half an hour / 45 minutes / an hour; a strong smell comes into the room as if something is burning.

I've tried this in every single room -- turn on the lights, shut the door and come back an hour later to this terrible burning smell. I've even tried this with other people without telling them about it first -- I left the lights on in one of the rooms with the door shut and then I asked my sister-in-law to come inside because I wanted to show her something. Once she entered, the first words out of her mouth were: "What is that smell? Is there something burning in here?". I've repeated this experiment with a few other people and got the same results so I know that it isn't me and the wife imagining something.

I've contacted the builder a number of times since the house is still under warranty but he refuses to do anything about it. He sends his site supervisor out but unfortunately this guy appears to be brain dead ...

"Ya, lights work, very good."

"Do you notice the burning smell?"

"No smell. Fan spin around. Basketball, you bet?"

... And the conversation goes down hill from there. When I speak to the builder, he tells me that he sent his best man out to check things out and he didn't notice anything.

The builder himself won't come out to the house because he handles the administration and does not get involved with the technical issues -- which is why he has his site formens around.

In the mean time, we're depending on lamps for light at night because we're afraid to leave the ceiling lights on for any length of time because of the burning smell & the fear of fire and the warranty on the house is getting closer & closer to expiring.

Suggestions?

FUD
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Share what you know & learn what you don't
 
First, check to make sure that the bulbs don't exceed the recommended wattage.

If they are at or below the listed wattage, get a qualified electrician in immediately. Home warranty or not, get it checked out. If the electrician finds something done wrong, or non-UL listed fixtures were installed, make the builder pay, even if you have to sue him.

I can assure you that standing outside in the middle of the night, watching your home go up in flames is very unpleasant. The cost of an electrician is a small price to pay for peace of mind.
 
You might consider calling your local fire department. Ask them to come out and see if they smell it. If so they will bring some serious presure to bear on the contractor. Future building permits? I don't think so.

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Gunslinger

I was promised a Shortycicle and I want a Shortycicle!
 
Do you have a rheostat, sometimes called a dimmer, on the fan? If so, get rid of it. Most are just this side of safe and use inductive reactance to control speed or the lights. Inductive reactance is fine if the components are top shelf. In most of the made in Wangs china garage, the components are junk.
 
Fud -
What everyone else said! Immediately! Most new home buliders won't honor their warranties unless you hold their feet to the fire. Their primary goal is to keep stalling you until the warranty's expired. Get the electrician out there now (yeah, you may have to pay for his visit intially, but it's worth it) - we have the ceiling fan/light combos in every room, and the only time I smelled something bad was when, well, something was bad...

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"...and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one."
Luke 22:36
"An armed society is a polite society."
Robert Heinlein
"Power corrupts. Absolute power - is kinda cool!"
Fred Reed
 
FUD,

Older ceiling fans will spin out and the motor will continue to try to work effectively burning out the motor resulting in a burning smell.

(I have an old ceiling fan like this, and I have to give it a good push before I turn it on :))

At any rate.. I doubt this is your problem.. but try to feel the fan motor (depending on your make/model of fan, I think you can figure it out). If it is hot, thats okay. If it is extremely hot, thats not.

Also, you might want to see -- if these are new fans, have they been used alot? It would seem to me that they could be greased up pretty good or something similar resulting in a burning smell.. Perhaps dust?

If its just the lights that contribute to this.. I have no idea. But I sure wouldn't hesitate to call the or an electrician to check it out. Don't trust anybody with any investment in the building to give you a fair recommendation.

Boy, I thought I was paranoid. :D

(Still haven't found you a smiley yet.)

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God, Guns and Guts made this country a great country!

oberkommando sez:
"We lost the first and third and now they are after the Second!(no pun intended)"

As seen in Atlanta's AJC, The Vent: "In response to Cynthia Tucker's column on executing the mentally ill, I pose this question. Why is it that "this country" is only interested in taking care of the mentally ill AFTER they kill an innocent person?"
 
FUD,

I hate to add to your concerns, but I know of a family that recently built a home only to have it burn down within a couple of months.

The cause? A ceiling fan shorted out. The family was not home, but both of their dogs died in the fire.

I really hope that you get the answers you need. Good luck.

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NRA/GOA/SAF/USMC

Oregon residents please support the Oregon Firearms Federation, our only "No compromise" gun lobby. http://www.oregonfirearms.org
 
Oh, dearlordFUD!! Does any day go smoothly in your life? Seriously, follow the electrician/fire department advice.
I hear you need a smiley with a black cloud. I haven't seen one (and if it's not on the Crack Smileys site....) but I know you could make your own. Look at what you've done so far.
 
If they are hampton bay fans. Dump them and get better fans. Most builders in FLA put the crappiest cheapest fan in if they can. I am in the process of replacing all the original fans in my parents house. If you lived closer to Orlando I could help you out. But alas you live far south. So GET AN ELECTRICIAN and buy a home warranty like American Home Shield. It pays for itself if you have a pool or AC.

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Shop Smart! Shop S-Mart
 
FUD,

I sure hope you have a concrete & steel home!! Wear a second chance vest (Someone else used that and I like it) like you KNOW you are going to get shot at. Drive a tank, and when flying wear a chute!

Guess you are one of the luckiest unlucky guys around!

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Dead [Black Ops]
 
I'll second the idea of leaving the lights on and then calling the fire department. At the department I used to work for we went on "smoke runs" just about every day, and we were able to help renters and owners pressure there landlords and builders. It usually only took one call from our fire inspector to get things done. Also some of the more well equiped departments have equipment to help locate problems. Mine purchased some thermal imageing units that could pickup hot wires & fixtures easily. Some people get nervious about calling the fire department, but thats what you pay your taxes for. (JUST DONT CALL IF THERE'S A GAME ON T.V. OR AT DINNER TIME :)
 
Couple additional thoughts -

1. The contractor may have tried to save money by putting oversize fan blades on a smaller fan (e.g., 52" baldes on a 36" motor) - that will overload the motor. (And yes, I know this from experience - ooops - lesson learned.)

2. Someone mentioned Hampton Bay fans. IIRC, that's Home Depot's house brand. It's what I have throughout the house, and I've no complaints. I had the one in the bedroom crap out after a couple years and exchanged it with no problem whatsoever. The rest of them have been trouble-free.

3. The phrase "Contractor Grade" is somewhat misleading. If it's used to describe:
a) materials, it means they're the cheapest you can get, and barely meet spec's;
b) tools, usually means they're pretty good and will give you years of service.
If your house was manufactured by anything other than a custom builder, be assured that most of the materials are "Contractor Grade" assembled by dayworkers trucked in from the local job bank.

And, like I said before, they want to stall you until the warranty is expired. Put all your complaints in writing, and send them via certified mail.

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"...and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one."
Luke 22:36
"An armed society is a polite society."
Robert Heinlein
"Power corrupts. Absolute power - is kinda cool!"
Fred Reed
 
I'd also keep a log of date/time you got the site supervisor out there and what his name
is. Might come in handy in a lawsuit. Hopefully, a phone call from your friendly fire department will be the end of it.

When my brother and his wife were visiting us, we put him in a rarely-used bedroom.

Earlier, I had checked it out and noticed that "burning" smell too, but it "went away". Checked around, including the fan, and found nothing.

Later on in the evening, my brother nonchalantly walks into my computer room and matter-of-factly says, "Hey Bro, you got a fire extinguisher?".

I was in a sitting position, and so help me I levitated straight up. We go to his room and there is smoke POURING out of the fan, and he had left it on! I turned the switch off and got ready to cut loose with the extinguisher, but nothing else happened.

So, I'd say the builder put some crappy fans in your rooms and if you continue to leave them on, even for a test, you will wind up with the same results.

Get thee to the fire department.
 
Fud,

What everyone else said, plus, if you need to install new fans, I strongly recommend either Casablanca or Hunter. My wife loves ceiling fans (six in our house) and we use them constantly, summer and winter. I have found Casablanca and Hunter fans -- they're expensive, but their quality is really excellent -- to be quite, effective, utterly reliable, and well worth the extra cost.

Regards.
 
Damn...

I'm going home at lunch and turning the ceiling fan off!!!

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Beware the man with the S&W .357 Mag.
Chances are he knows how to use it.
 
A. Talk to Fire Department.
B. All of the above
C. In writing, inform your insurance carrier and your mortgage holder.
D. If you trade your Jeep for a tank, equip it with scuba gear and parachutes.

Sam....I know I put it somewhere
 
i doubt there is a problem in the room/ceiling wiring. Switch off the breaker to the room and un hook the fan from its mount. The 3 wires leading to it are wire nutted to the house wiring. Disconnect the Fan and take it to the garage. Strip the wire ends from a 3 wire extension cord and make a pig tail for the fan and plug it in, in the garage, hanging from the ceiling.

Now you have an isolated test room.

It could be that paint overspray has been sucked into the motor.

Cheap chinese fans are still UL rated for the internal wires and functionality.

If the internal wires are heating up there should be evidence. Enclosed glass globes do heat up, especially if you have exceeded the wattage recommendation of the fixture.

dZ
 
I recommend any written correspondence be sent "certified mail, return receipt requested".

That's how we got our warranty work done (finally).
-----

I've been told by an attorney that if the recipient refuses certified mail, that mail is considered delivered to the recipient and he is responsible for it.

Any comment on that?
 
The most likely cause for the symptom you describe is too much wattage in your bulbs. They get too hot for the design specs of the fixture. The fixture likely has a foil shielded piece of glasas fiber insulation and this is charring from the heat.
As others have noted, check the wattage. The fixture should have a label designating the recommended maximum bulb wattage.

It could be the fan, but that is not as likely.

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You have to be there when it's all over. Otherwise you can't say "I told you so."

Better days to be,

Ed
 
I second Dennis's recommendation of certified mail. When he gets this, he should know that you're gathering evidence should something happen.

In the mean time, I'd take one of the lights out of the ceiling and sniff it (once you got the smell happening). You should be able to determine where the problem is. If it's in the wiring, you've got problems: either a short or wiring that has too much resistance to handle the load.
 
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