I've got one from a few years ago.
Pros:
- Responsive
- Good Air Flow
- Light is bright
Cons:
- No dimming support
- Every 6 months or so it stops responding and I need to power off the fan for a minute before turning it back on.
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Hunter Fan Company Expanding Lineup of HomeKit-Enabled Ceiling Fans
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I've got one from a few years ago.
Pros:
- Responsive
- Good Air Flow
- Light is bright
Cons:
- No dimming support
- Every 6 months or so it stops responding and I need to power off the fan for a minute before turning it back on.
I created an account just to warn people. Do NOT buy the Hunter Romulus if your goal is HomeKit support. Bought it for my parents for Christmas and the original and replacement both wouldn’t connect to HomeKit because the code given with the fan was incorrect. Their only solution is to keep sending you fans which means you have to reinstall it to even try the HomeKit code. It wasn’t a huge deal to my parents but it was the main reason I bought the fan for them so every time I see it in their living room, it ticks me off.
I have 2 homekit enabled hunter fans. The app is a joke and their support is even funnier. I'd have to wait for reviews on these new ones before I consider
Why the heck hasn't Hunter released a HomeKit control module that goes into existing fans? (Many Hunter fans have a remote-control module that sits in the light wiring box under the fan / above the fan light. Lose the remote, make that HomeKit.)
There's a plugin on Homebridge for this. Would be nice if they officially supported HomeKit however.
Which is a plus for me. Caseta's bridge uses their own licensed spectrum that is much more reliable with lower latency than most Wi-Fi devices.
For any types of device that tend to be installed in multiple quantities (e.g., light switch), I generally prefer bridge-based solution for easier setup. I only have to pair the bridge with HomeKit Home hub. Most bridges auto discover and setup new devices with greater ease than HomeKit pairing.
I've had a HomeKit enabled Hunter fan for about a year and half. It's been both great and absolutely garbage at the same time. The fan itself works fine. I like being able to tell Siri when to turn it on/off and switch speeds. I like that I can set it up to automatically turn on/off based on whether I'm home or not. But the app Hunter uses is the ********* app I've ever used. There have been at least two different apps that they've used for their fans and neither has EVER worked, from day 1, since I installed the fan. I've had a notification in the Home app telling me there is an update for the fan for over a year. Admittedly, this has had essentially zero impact on the usage of the fan. So if I was looking to replace another fan, I'd probably get the same fan again, or another Hunter HomeKit enabled fan. But it frustrates me to no end that they have had this piece of **** app that doesn't work for at least a year and a half.
I’m not sure what brand of fans I have, but they are still going strong since 1989 when the house was built so I don’t see a valid reason to replace them.
The wall switch works great. 😂 Probably easier to get a smart switch to control the fan or what ever circuit the smart switch is wired into.
The wall switch works great. 😂 Probably easier to get a smart switch to control the fan or what ever circuit the smart switch is wired into.
We've been having one since October and we like it, but granted we're not doing anything fancy with it (like automations, except auto-off at night). Voice Control both with Siri and Alexa works. Dimming works.
As others have said, the app is garbage, but it works well with HomeKit for our needs. The initial setup is a little bit of a pain and our first one was either broken (or they printed the wrong code - as someone else mentioned had happened to them), but Hunter was actually ok to work with and sent a replacement fan.
I think within the half+ year so far we only experienced one random disconnection *knock on wood*.
Ours was rather pricy - but for us it's been worth it.
Not sure which model you have, but ours is very quiet. Remote didn't fail.
He is correct. The Caseta is a great solution and they even have a "ceiling fan" compatible switch that I haven't used yet. So many people over look these, don't, quality product with better thought out tech. I'm constantly snatching them up on clearance or the used items because someone isn't reading the instructions I guess... Pick them up at Home Depot usually with a lot of dust on the box.
We love our Big Ass fans. All Alexa controlled! No noise even when spinning fast, move a lot of air even at low speeds, and reversible.
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No need for a switch. Just use your voice. These days, they are installing fans in homes without physical switches.
We had them install switches for our fans and wish we had not done that. Then someone turns off the switch and the fan loses connectivity. More trouble than it is worth.
I looked up the Lutron Caseta PD-FSQN fan control. Per the docs, it does not work with fans that have integrated speed controls or remotes. I would assume one could make it work by unwiring the remote module in the fan, or removing the speed control, or possibly setting the hard-wired speed control to high. It's starting to sound easier (and cheaper) to buy a new fan, although that seems like a waste.
Assuming it can be made to work, can one set the speed directly with Siri via HomeKit via the hub? Or is it just on/off?
Assuming it can be made to work, can one set the speed directly with Siri via HomeKit via the hub? Or is it just on/off?
Yes, but how would you do a smart switch for a ceiling fan? You'd have to sell a specially designed one that let you control the motor and the light from the wall switch, as opposed to the standard design with pull strings for both features. So at that point, why not just make the intelligence for smart-home control built into the fan itself?
I have traditional ceiling fans in every bedroom and in my living room and would love to have smart control for them. I find it frustrating when you flip the wall switch on, intending to turn on the ceiling fan's light, but instead the fan comes on and you're still in the dark because that's the way you left the pull chain when it was last used. I'm ok with leaving the wall switches on all the time when I know they'll be controlled some other way, just like I learned to leave my front porch light switch on all the time because it has a smart bulb in it that turns on at dusk and off at dawn.
And Lutron does have a bridge type adapter that can be used with HomeKit, correct? Our lights in the bedroom are Lutron and I was able to add them.
I've got a Hunter Cavera II that works with HomeKit. It's a great fan compared to the one it replaced. It looks nice, was cheap at Home Depot, it blows strong, and is completely silent. The HomeKit stuff is flaky. You can't really adjust the dimming of the light. It worked for about a day, then it stopped, so now it's either on or off. Siri stops responding every few days. Yeah you can reset the fan to get it working again, but honestly it's not worth it. It's easier to just use the regular remote (I keep it mounted on the wall) and be done with it, instead of trying to repeat yourself to Siri over and over only to realize it's not even working. I haven't used Siri or the homekit features for months.
TLDR good overall fan, ignore the Homekit features
TLDR good overall fan, ignore the Homekit features
Nice... I wish this happened last year when installed 6 Hunter Symphony (homekit) fans. Though this more than likely means, they'll add some stability to the Hunter iOS app. Though, I should really make some shortcuts and just use commands through homekit.
I do love not having any annoying chains hanging from the fans.
I do love not having any annoying chains hanging from the fans.
Yes, you will need to purchase Lutron Caseta bridge (that connects to your router via Ethernet) to enable HomeKit.
I've had 2 of the simple connect fans for over 2 years and have been very happy with them, probably the most reliable and most used homekit accessories in the house. I've been planning on getting two more for my boys bedrooms, but all the home kit models have been too large for the rooms. Glad to see them expand the line, hopefully they have some smaller ones.
The hunter app sucks, but who is using that?
The hunter app sucks, but who is using that?
I owned one of their HomeKit enabled ceiling fans. While the fan control itself is nice to have in HomeKit, the lighting they offer is terrible. I ended up buying a ceiling fan with better lighting and added a Lutron smart fan switch with the same HomeKit control.