I can’t really explain why I was so excited to finally get a smart ceiling fan, but it’s something I’ve wanted for a long time. While there are many fans and fan controllers on the market, the options for Apple’s HomeKit are fairly limited. A major player for HomeKit ceiling fans is Hunter, who are notorious for high quality, reasonably priced ceiling fans. When I found that my local Home Depot had stock of the Hunter Moxie fan, I made a trip and picked up two.
What’s the big deal? Why do you really need a smart ceiling fan?
My goal is to automate as much of my home as possible, within reason, and with budget in mind. When you stop and think about every action you take throughout the day, you can start to make decisions on what needs to be automated, or what you should make “smart”. For me, every night, we would turn on the lights when going to bed, turn on the fan, do what we needed to do, then turn off the ceiling light. Using a smart fan and light allows me to create Shortcuts or Scenes to handle this action for me, without even thinking about it.
Why not Lutron’s Caseta Fan Control?
Lutron’s Caseta line of products is great and reliable, and I am actually using 20+ dimmer switches at this time in my home, but the fan control kit requires a couple of things that I do not have: wiring that includes a neutral wire, and a separate switch for both the fan and the light. If you meet those prerequisites, the Lutron option is great since you can use any fan you’d like, assuming it supports splitting the fan and light between two switches. In my case, I needed something that could be controlled without a neutral wire, so the Hunter Moxie fit the bill.
Okay, so how’s the fan?
Great. If you’ve ever installed a ceiling fan, this one is no different. Connect the mount to your ceiling box, wire in the main unit, attach the blades, light, and test. Everything on this fan had a good fit; no struggling with misaligned parts. The bearing in the fan unit had no resistance, and compared to other non-smart Hunter fans I’ve purchased in the past, seems to actually spin more freely.
The blades on this particular model are made of plastic, which was a bit of a surprise, but this is the first “modern” looking fan that I’ve purchased, so this may be normal for non-wood looking fans. And speaking of blades, this thing moves some air! The bedrooms in our house are not very large, but with the fan on 66% speed (I’ll explain this number later), there is definitely some air moving through the room.
One thing that may be slightly disappointing is the light. Instead of using a regular bulb, the light is a flat panel, that has integrated LEDs. Chances are, the LEDs won’t burn out any time soon, but if something goes wrong, you can’t just simply swap out the bulb and move on. Hunter are known for great support, so I would think parts would be available if needed in the future.
HomeKit Integration
Okay, now the fun stuff. Hunter uses what they call “Simple Connect” for their smart fan models. While you can buy some fans with the remote control function, the Smart Connect fans also connect to wifi, which of course can integrate with various smart home platforms. The Moxie works with Apple HomeKit, Amazon Alexa and Google Home, but I do not know if all simple connect fans support all three platforms.
One thing to note, the HomeKit code is printed on the top of the fan base, as well as the manual. In case you need to re-add the fan in the future, it would be a good idea to keep the manual, or at least cut that section off of the front of the book and label it for safe keeping.
Adding the fan to HomeKit is as easy as any other accessory; Choose Add Accessory in the Home App, scan the code, choose a room and off you go. By default, the fan and light are shown as one tile, but I decided the split them out for my use.
The light level can be changed just like any other dimmable light, and the fan can be set in a similar fashion. Remember that 66% number I threw out earlier? In HomeKit, the fan supports speed settings of 0%, 33%, 66% and 99%. So really, there are 3 fan speeds to choose from. Seems a little goofy when you want the fan on “full blast” but can’t get that 100% you’re looking for, but it’s not really an issue.
A question that I had before buying was, “is the fan smart enough to know the state of the blades and light if controlled by the included remote?” and the answer is yes. This is especially important for me as I try to keep all smart items “dumb compatible”, meaning you should still be able to control the device the old way, or without learning how to operate the smart home. Something that helped with this is the Hunter Wall Control unit. I’ve used these in the past with their non-smart fans, but in my mind, it’s critical for HomeKit operation, as pressing the power button only turns off the light, or pressing the fan button turns off only the fan- with a regular wall switch, turning the switch off would result in the dreaded not responding message in the Home App, which we all hate. I would highly recommend this add-on to allow guests or non tech savvy housemates to control the fan without breaking your automations.
Conclusion
This isn’t my first Hunter fan, but it is my first smart fan, and I’m very happy with my purchase. The fan feels high quality, it moves a lot of air, the light is bright and dimmable, and of course it works with Apple HomeKit. Overall I think it’s a great option if your looking to add to your smart home. My local Home Depot had the fan for $179.99, but your mileage may vary. Make sure to pick up the Hunter Wall Control unit as well, as it will keep you from pulling your hair out when someone flips the switch.
If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below! I am slowly working on building a smart home with Apple’s HomeKit, and any feedback or suggestions you may have would be incredibly helpful.
Interested in what products I am using in my Home Assistant and HomeKit setup? Check out recommended products here: https://technogecko.net/products/
