We have a fan in our bedroom that runs on low all night. I am a light sleeper and very bothered by noise. I have no issue with the fan. It's a Hunter and we just replaced the first one with a new one after 20 years. For the few extra dollars it's absolutely worth it in my opinion.

I've found that using a wall-mounted "rheostat" variable speed control often will make ceiling fan motors hum noticeably, whereas using the typical hi-med-low speed choices built in to the unit does not.

Hunter it is. We decided to go with a 48" as this is the next size that has the light housing we want, otherwise we'd have to go with no light or downlighting. Pricing not bad, I must say.

Thanks

We installed Hunter fans when we purchased our home over 20 years ago. We have not replaced any fans and have had no problems. The fans run constantly, and I mean constantly! We have one that has been running on low non stop for 20 years and another that runs on medium non stop all summer long and on low all winter long. I don't know of any thing else that will give that level of sustained mechanical performance without some attention.

Bottom line, I'd go with Hunter.

We have a Hunter in the spare Bedroom and an Emerson in the master. I can tell you that the Emerson model hugs the ceiling better than the Hunter. As far as Emerson goes, they make many levels of quality. I would only consider the best of their line. I found a site for fans on the net when I was shopping that rated all brands of fans. You con find it too even if you choose to buy locally. Both fans are quiet on slow and noisy/windy on high. Our Emerson has a balance problem related to how the blade bracket is screwed on. I am 80 years old and dont have the strength/patience to get it right. So it vibrates a bit more on high.

Those Hunter oil filled 50 lb cast iron fans from 20 years ago are great. Unfortunately, they moved the production from TN to China and I don't think the quality and features are equivalent now. I've bought these fans since the early 80s and I wish I still had the ones I bought back then. The newer ones have quality issues and I actually had one go bad. They also make much simpler fans now. At one time I would have recommended Hunter as the best, but I can no longer do so. It's not possible, IMO to give a blanket statement on the manufacturer like you once could.

Have you considered Casablanca? I've had many of their fans, they are completely silent except for air whooshing sounds on high, and mine have been trouble-free. They have lots of design options.

I normally hate bringing old threads back, but I wanted to share my experience.

I wanted to replace the 20 year old store brand fans in my home. I decided to go with Hunter, mainly based on name recognition. I was not happy. One made a hum noise, the other made a slight knocking sound, like the carrier in the ball bearing was missing. Hunter was no help at all. Spent over $600 on two fans and they would not replace the motors or fans unless they failed completely. Hunter customer support was non-existent. After much fighting with the store where I bought them, they refunded my money.

I then went and got two Emerson fans from a local lighting store. Yes they were more expensive (about $100 more each) but the Emerson fans move much more air at all speeds and are very quiet(I have Lutron speed controls in the wall box). I got the cheapest models with the K55XL motor, well worth the upgrade!

I also just recently bought a Fanimation for my bedroom. I also love this fan. Even though this is a lower model, it has far superior fit and finish of materials over the mid line Hunter's I purchased.

I also had two hunter desk fans that failed within 3 years of purchase. Hunter said they had a 10 year warranty. Well, with no parts available, and production stopped, they can't do anything. There were the top of the line Air Max desk fans, at $200 each, I expected them to last. Hunter refuses to do anything, credit, partial reimbursement, fix the fans.

Hunter used to be a good name. But recently, their quality seems spotty at best and their customer service is rather poor.

Just wanted to share my experience.

We've had Emerson fans for over 16 years. Can't live without ceiling fans anymore, especially in the bedroom! I can't speak for Hunter, but I'd think Emerson would best a Hunter any day, since you can get a Hunter for a handful of dollars at any big box store, like Home Depot.

BUT, I will say, we've replaced the receivers in our Emersons SEVERAL times over the years and a receiver has cost us about $120 a throw! I believe our 52" fans ran about $600 per fan, so we've spent plenty, as we have four of the large fans and one 42" fan. The small fan is wobbly and loud, but we've not had receiver problems on it. My kid has basically messed it up, since he has a bunk...

As for the four 52" fans, each one has had at least one receiver placement and some will be in their third. The wall switches, remotes and receivers have aLo been replaced by Emerson, probably because of all the problems they've had. But, the new receivers are hooked up differently and are a pain to rewire. Also, the wall switches are not hardwired to the fans, so they act like a wireless remote and are no better than a hand held remote. Their only advantage is that if you lose the remote, you can operate the fan from the wall switch. I'll never buy a wall switch again, which isn't hard wired directly to the fan. The fen in our bedroom works with the remote, but only by first turning in the fan in the winter setting, then reversing it to the summer or blow down position. It's really messed up. But, as long as it works, we won't buy a another receiver.

The large fans are quiet and have super great motors. We have two of the fans on most of the time, year round. Except for the inferior receivers, we love the Emersons. I can't speak about other brands, but I'm sure they have their own issues and most likely junky motors...

Old thread, but wanted to add very positive note on Emerson. We installed three Carrera Grande fans in our Hawaii house. Two replaced older Monte Carlo and Hunter fans. The third was a new installation. They all ran super quiet, and are incredibly efficient. Wall controls and remotes both work equally well. While these were used in my own home, I am a retired builder/developer, and have installed Hunter and Casablanca predominately in the past. The Emerson units are superior to both for reliable, commonly sized ceiling fans. Yes, they cost more, but there may be a rebate in your area since these are Energy Star fans.

The thread started several years ago, but I will add my two cents, anyway. I have been searching for fans to replace the ones the builder put in our home. As I searched for Casablanca, I realized it is not the company it used to be. Our first home had Casablanca fans in nearly every room except bathrooms and closets. We lived in the desert. As with another respondent, some time back, they ran for months without stop. By the way, Hunter is Casablanca. When you look for Casablanca you are sent to the Hunter website. It has Casablanca on the page when you open it, but Hunter is on the address. After some study I have determined that our old Casablanca fans are no longer. I am just not willing to take the time and money, so will go elsewhere.