does the fan rattle when oscillating? that may indicate wear in the gears. probably best to replace with a new fan, however if you can put up with the noise it may last a good while yet.

Great responses thank you all very much.

A silly question really. It`s like asking, I have a rattling sound somewhere in my car, does anyone know what it can be? You also failed to mentioned how old the fan is.

It`s a case of elimination. May be the wire guard has come loose or not clipped on properly. The fan blade could have worked loose and needs tightening. The screws that hold the unit onto the wall may have come loose and require tightening. If it`s none of those then the fan could have internal worn parts. How many more guesses do I get?

All you can do is check the wire guard and the other items I mentioned, clean and spray with a contact cleaner and if that doesn`t work, it`s time for a new fan.

with fans and tvs i usually donate to a less well off family and buy a new one. everyone wins.

might be a geko stuck on back of fan blade

when you start fan its screaming to get off

On Wednesday, March 23, 2016 at 1:28 PM, Gecko123 said:

Often because the large plastic bolt which holds the fan blades in place on has loosened.

Take protective barrier off and tighten the plastic bolt.

If this does not eliminate the problem, remove the fan blades, and check to see that the bracket behind the blade hasn't loosened.

 

At first i thought this would do the trick, off the wall the sounds disappeared, back on the wall, the sounds came back, great easy and simple idea, thanks.

 

If this is any indication of the problem: the slower speeds make more rattling type sounds than the larger one, anyone please comment.

My fan vibrated when at a certain angle. Couldn't change the angle and still get the air flow, so I took the wall mounting off the wall and inserted a rubber backed floor tile under it. Solved the problem.

 

PS nothing loose, just old.

engineer fan here . vibration comes from the rotating shaft that is not correctly adjusted in the electric motor.

when you buy a fan, remove the frame and hold the fan and shake it longitudinally (when it s not powered off course)only by doing this, you can see if it s correctly fixed to the rotor. Stay away from hatary brand.

The angle does seem to help a bit as well, thanks!