Pro Tips On How To Clean Your Outdoor Ceiling Fan The Right Way

Installing an outdoor ceiling fan will provide breezy summer nights, make your outdoor space more comfortable, and help keep mosquitoes away. Ceiling fans with lights can also help illuminate your patio and enhance the overall look of your outdoor space. While an outdoor ceiling fan may have a lot of benefits, they will start to be outweighed by negatives if you go too long without cleaning it. Left unchecked, dirt and allergens can pile up on both indoor and outdoor ceiling fans, which can not only become a health hazard, but also decrease their energy efficiency, cause a fire risk, and shorten their overall lifespan. While there are many similarities, cleaning an outdoor ceiling fan is a little different from cleaning an indoor one for one primary reason. You most likely shouldn't use anything wet to clean an indoor fan, but you are fine to get an outdoor ceiling fan wet to clean it. This is because most outdoor fans are rated to safely be used in damp or wet conditions.

Aside from the fact that it's not safe to use water to clean your indoor ceiling fans and that you should probably wipe down outdoor fans more regularly, there isn't a colossal difference between the way you clean the two. With that in mind, there are a few different tips that can make your experience a little easier and more efficient. Cleaning your outdoor ceiling fan the correct way will speed up the process and help to avoid any potential damage to the appliance.

The first step in washing your outdoor ceiling fan is to gather your necessary cleaning tools, which will include a ladder to reach the fan, your cleaning product of choice, a cleaning rag, and a dry microfiber towel. Slide your step ladder below the fan so you can reach it for cleaning. When you start to clean your outdoor ceiling fan, be sure to wear a mask and goggles to avoid breathing in any of the dust or getting it in your eyes. It's also important that the fan is turned off and has come to a complete stop.

Start by lightly dusting the fan blades with a dry microfiber towel. Alternatively, you can try using a pillow case hack to keep your ceiling fan dust free, which utilizes the interior of a pillowcase to capture the dust from each fan blade. You'll also want to gently dust off the motor piece and any light fixtures the fan may have. After removing any dust you see, go ahead and spray either your multipurpose cleaner or a homemade mixture of water and dish soap onto a rag to wipe the blades down. Use the damp cloth to wash the blades and the motor housing, taking care not to completely soak it. If the fan has a removable light fixture, fully take down the glass piece, dispose of any bugs that have crawled into the fixture, and carefully wash it by hand in the sink. If it isn't removable, gently polish the fixture with some glass cleaner to get it sparkling clean.