I am looking help with an electrical issue. I am constructin a gazebo that is being set on fiberglass columns. The customer wants to have a ceiling fan mounted and I would like to mount the switch on one of the columns. I looking to recess the box inside the column to make it as inconspicuous as possible. Has anyone heard or know of a cover plate that is made for this application?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Mike,BC Building Inc.
Whether it’s already in your house or picked up at a flea market, vintage hardware almost always needs help.
"I have learned so much thanks to the searchable articles on the FHB website. I can confidently say that I expect to be a life-long subscriber." - M.K.
Dig into cutting-edge approaches and decades of proven solutions with total access to our experts and tradespeople.
Start Free Trial NowGet instant access to the latest developments in green building, research, and reports from the field.
Start Free Trial Now
Replies
Waddya mean.........that the box and cover plate have to be curved to fit the column? Never seen one.
But once on a job I added switches to some Arroyo Craftsman exterior post lights that had posts about 3-1/2" diameter. We used weather-proof cast aluminum extension boxes (open in the back) and cut the backs (top and bottom) to fit the post. Caulked them, painted them to match and they looked good, were probably only about 3/4" proud at the corners.
If I can find a picture I'll post it. I know I took some but everytime I get a new laptop I lose some stuff.
Ed
Edited 10/4/2003 6:49:00 PM ET by Ed
Edited 10/4/2003 6:52:15 PM ET by Ed
An electrician friend suggested you take a plastic coverplate and strap it to the column with racheted straps and use a heat gun to form it. That idea assumes you'll be able to use a plastic plate. Are you trying to hide this switch and if so, it's in the weather isn't it? Have you explored the types of all weather switches available? There should be a button type that maybe you could slightly recess in the column. Might be self trimming. You'd change speeds on the fan.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
Quittin' Time
How 'bout bending sheet copper or sheet brass to the right curvature to be the cover plate on a standard electrical box? Get it thick enough to hold the curve, and use a file to bevel the edges.
Or a completely different idea is to use a remote control. There are outlets that are controlled with a remote control that is not physically connected to the power wiring, just like a garage door opener or a TV remote. You'd be able to put the remote someplace unobtrusive, or you could attach it to the column without needing to use a standard cover plate.
There has to be some toggle or push button swithches out there that would barely make a hole in the column. These fibreglas structural columns have limits to how much meat you can drill out of them before failure sets in, just like drilling plumbing holes in floor joists. You need to check with the manufacturer to be sure what the max size is.
Excellence is its own reward!
I have seen round metal cover plates curved to hug curve walls in a $100M museum. What's your budget?
If it's O.K. to put a box in, may be you can get a curve plate made from a pottery studio. They make flat ones anyway and it's easy enough for them to curve it before firing.
Remote control or pull chain are the other options.
You could install an Infrared sensor (about the diameter and length of the peepsights that go in doors) but then you'd have to keep track of the remote.
A better idea would be to put in a mini motion sensor with a range of only a few inches. Just a wave of the hand across the eye would activate the unit. Mount it head high to prevent accidental operation or to the side of the column that has less traffic. Next time you are in a public restroom and can't find the flush handle but the commode or urinal flushes when you step away you'll recognize the action.
Thanks for all the input. Guess i had vapor lock when it came to ideas. They are going to opt for the remote operation. Now if only I can find a way to gaurantee that it will not get lost.(you know how easy that is)
Spike
As I was readingthrought the post, I was thinking an automotive quality switch that would take up very little room. Maybe Piffin was thinking on the same line as that.
But now you need a way to make sure the remote doesn't get lost.
That should be easy. A little bailing wire, and tie it to the post. Or if this is a really nice job, probably should use duct tape.<BG>View Image
Don't most ceiling fans come with a pull chain switch already installed?
Edited 10/16/2003 5:33:41 PM ET by Martha Stewart