I was always under the impression that flush mount ceiling fans, or huggers, were better because they don’t have the “wobble” problem that traditional ones with a downrod have. “They’re mounted flush with the ceiling, so how could they wobble?” I thought. This, however, is not the case.
The real issue here is the quality of the ceiling fan. Some are built with lower quality sheet materials. In addition, it is important that all the blade supports have the exact degree of pitch, that is, the same angle. Another important factor is that the sheets must be sold in carefully weighed and balanced sets. All of these issues, if not correct, can cause your ceiling fan to wobble.
The real advantage of the flush mount fan comes into play when you have ceilings that are 8 feet high or less, because it is the distance between the fan and the floor that is important. To maximize efficiency, you don’t want the fan to be less than 7 feet from the floor. So if your ceilings are 8 feet or less and you add a down bar, the fan would be too close to the floor to take full advantage of it. In this case, the built-in fan is perfect!
The downside of the flush mount fan comes into play when you have ceilings higher than 8 feet. In this case, it is best to purchase a downrod fan, depending on the height of the ceiling. The following chart, found on the Garbe Industries Inc website, shows the length of downrod you should use based on the height of your ceilings:
9′ – 6″ downpipe
10′ – 12″ downpipe
12′-24″ rod
14′-36″ rod
16′-48″ downrod
18′ – 60″ downpipe
20′ – 72″ downpipe
However, if your ceilings are 8 feet or less, feel free to enjoy the various flush mount or hugger fans available. You will find that they are quite effective if used in this way.