Question about ceiling fans (Dallas: transplants, house, living)

[chenven]

Midwest transplants here. Gasping at the heat already and its not even peak summer.

We were wondering if its unusual for people here to install ceiling fans in formal living and dining areas.

While we were house hunting we did not spot ceiling fans in any formal areas in any of the homes we looked at. Its so hot that we feel we need we need a fan in every room. But we're hesitating a bit because we don't want to do something really odd that no one else in Dallas does, in case it hurts our resale (if that ever happens).

Any thoughts ? Do any of you have a ceiling fans in any formal areas ?
If you were looking for a home and spotted a ceiling fans instead of the traditional chandelier in a dining room, would that cause you to reconsider the home ?

[BigDGeek]

Originally Posted by chenven

Midwest transplants here. Gasping at the heat already and its not even peak summer.

We were wondering if its unusual for people here to install ceiling fans in formal living and dining areas.

While we were house hunting we did not spot ceiling fans in any formal areas in any of the homes we looked at. Its so hot that we feel we need we need a fan in every room. But we're hesitating a bit because we don't want to do something really odd that no one else in Dallas does, in case it hurts our resale (if that ever happens).

Any thoughts ? Do any of you have a ceiling fans in any formal areas ?
If you were looking for a home and spotted a ceiling fans instead of the traditional chandelier in a dining room, would that cause you to reconsider the home ?

I personally have never seen a ceiling fan in a formal living or dining room.

A ceiling fan would definitely put me off in a formal dining room. Formal living room....maybe, if it wasn't tacky. It would depend.

The signal it would send to me is "this house's AC is not adequate and needs to be replaced." Meaning: $$$$.

Then again you can always swap out the ceiling fans for proper light fixtures if you ever decide to put your house on the market. It's YOUR house, you have to live in it.

[lifofifo]

Ceiling fans don't send "AC is not adequate" signal. If it did, why have them in master and other bedrooms? All the new builds these days have ceiling fans in the family room (most no longer have a formal living room) and game room.

Ceiling fans cost around $100-$200. Add $50-70 electrician charges. I really doubt that'd make anyone reconsider the house.

[lifofifo]

Oh and you can also consider something like vornado 660. It works just as well (if not better) as a ceiling fan and it's easy to move around.

[the_nemi]

We have a ceiling fan in the formal living room but not in the formal dining room and we have installed a brand new HVAC 2 years ago
Personally i prefer fans to AC.

Its your house make it comfortable for you and the family.

When you plan on selling the house a couple of ceiling fans can be removed to make it look like fans were never installed if you are worried about that.

[MckinneyOwnr]

Never seen a ceiling fan in a formal dining room. That is where you should have some sort of chandelier.

Formal living room, sure. I wouldn't say it's the norm, but it's definitely not uncommon.

[Gilah G.]

Moved from Dallas to Atl. I miss the fans .
We had one in the 2 of the living rooms but not dining.
Fans aren't prevelant here in Atl as in Dallas.
Of course it's not as brutally hot here.
And our ac was not as powerful as it should have been. fans helped tremendously.

[hooky hornstein]

Wow! I've been in my house twenty years and I've never noticed it before but I don't have a ceiling fan in my formal dining room or my formal living room either.

In the dining room, I can understand it because we've got that big chandelier thing instead. You can't have ceiling fans and chandeliers in the same room. They don't get along. You have to choose. Ceiling fans get like seven other rooms of the house. Chandeliers get entry halls and formal dining rooms. It's all they get.

And you're going to begrudge them that? You selfish, heartless midwest transplant.

But the formal living room... why? There's not even a junction box on the ceiling... why? I don't know. It's mystery. I don't get it. I don't understand. I'm as mystified as you are.

And when you think about it, what are formal dining rooms and living rooms for any way? It's not like we entertain delegates and dignitaries year round.

About once every three to five years we draw the short straw and have to have the extended family over for Thanksgiving, at which time we we're besieged by so many relatives that the dining experience spills out of the formal dining room and onto makeshift table arrangements throughout the house. The formal dining room does look good though. Best china. Cornucopia. You should see it.

The other 1500 days between family Thanksgivings, the formal dining room is just a place with a nice flat surface that attracts things my wife doesn't want there. Like backpacks. Hoodies. Motorcycle carburetors.

And the formal living room is even more nonfunctional. We turned ours into a library. Ceiling to floor bookcases. Hundreds of books. Classics by Steinbeck, Hemmingway, London, Twain, Wodehouse, Waugh, Maugham, Wilde...

Books had been fashionable for 3500 years. Who knew they would be rendered superfluous by electronic downloads in the twenty years we had a library? I haven't opened a real book in ten years.

Now what can we do with the room?

It doesn't even have a ceiling fan?

[MurphyPl1]

I think one of the drawbacks of having a ceiling fan in dining room would be cooling of the food along with the diners. That said there are some that actually look more like what you'd have found in homes back before they had AC.

Shop Harbor Breeze Twin Breeze II 74-in Oil Rubbed Bronze Outdoor Downrod Mount Ceiling Fan with Light Kit (6-Blade) at Lowes.com

I'd put on low just to keep air moving.

[CSD610]

Originally Posted by chenven

Midwest transplants here. Gasping at the heat already and its not even peak summer.

We were wondering if its unusual for people here to install ceiling fans in formal living and dining areas.

While we were house hunting we did not spot ceiling fans in any formal areas in any of the homes we looked at. Its so hot that we feel we need we need a fan in every room. But we're hesitating a bit because we don't want to do something really odd that no one else in Dallas does, in case it hurts our resale (if that ever happens).

Any thoughts ? Do any of you have a ceiling fans in any formal areas ?
If you were looking for a home and spotted a ceiling fans instead of the traditional chandelier in a dining room, would that cause you to reconsider the home ?

Personally I would reconsider the house if those rooms or any other rooms did not have ceiling fans.
If you get the fancier light/fan fixtures they are not tacky in my opinion but the other reason is that I would not use a formal dining room as a formal dining room. It would more than likely become the living room or the sewing/crafting room.

If you want the ceiling fans then have them installed, they can be removed by the next owner of the home when/if you decide to sell.