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Yearly Reminder - Get Your Spare A/C Capacitor

Posted on 3/7/23 at 8:57 am
Posted by WPBTiger
Parts Unknown
Member since Nov 2011
30821 posts
Posted on 3/7/23 at 8:57 am
Just a reminder, if you do not have a spare A/C capacitor, you may want to pick one up. CrawDude recommends AmRad capacitors as they are American made.

I would also suggest having a spare relay/contactor for your unit.



Posted by calcotron
Member since Nov 2007
8215 posts
Posted on 3/7/23 at 9:15 am to
Got mine back in October. Now, where I put them is another challenge.
Posted by indytiger
baton rouge/indy
Member since Oct 2004
9816 posts
Posted on 3/7/23 at 12:37 pm to
What are the symptoms when either of these go bad?
Posted by meeple
Carcassonne
Member since May 2011
9309 posts
Posted on 3/7/23 at 1:11 pm to
quote:

What are the symptoms when either of these go bad?

A record hot summer day at the most inconvenient time.
Posted by bapple
Capital City
Member since Oct 2010
11870 posts
Posted on 3/7/23 at 6:04 pm to
quote:

What are the symptoms when either of these go bad?


Either the fan won’t be turning or the compressor won’t be running. Without a functional capacitor, a single phase motor is not able to run (except with some specific electronics).
This post was edited on 3/7/23 at 6:05 pm
Posted by Spankum
Miss-sippi
Member since Jan 2007
55935 posts
Posted on 3/7/23 at 9:24 pm to
I need to go ahead and do that. Is there any way to get specs off the old capacitor without disassembling the unit? Would it be in the literature that came with the unit?
Posted by gerald65
Moss Bluff, LA
Member since Jul 2020
710 posts
Posted on 3/7/23 at 10:18 pm to
I zoomed in on my capacitor and took several pictures. This made it easy to see what size capacitor I needed. I ordered mind from Amazon.

I put the capacitor in the utility room where I keep other spare parts.
This post was edited on 3/7/23 at 10:19 pm
Posted by Cajun367
S. Louisiana
Member since Oct 2017
1927 posts
Posted on 3/8/23 at 7:45 pm to
And here's my yearly reminder:

CAPACITORS HOLD A CHARGE.



Learn how to discharge those suckers or potentially ride the lightning.
Posted by Boudreaux35
BR
Member since Sep 2007
21394 posts
Posted on 3/9/23 at 10:47 am to
quote:

I put the capacitor in the utility room where I keep other spare parts.


If you're like me, when you need it, you'll never be able to find it. :)
Posted by BilbeauTBaggins
probably stuck in traffic
Member since May 2021
4219 posts
Posted on 3/9/23 at 10:59 am to
Guide me on how I figure out where to buy and what type?

Wife's uncle is a commercial HVAC guy so we usually call him up, orders the parts directly from an store off Coursey that only deals with commercial purchases, and he replaces while I pay cost and offer a nice bottle of bourbon for doing the work.

Would be nice to know what to buy so I can do the job on my own, especially so I don't have to worry about waiting extra days for the part to come in and I can have one on hand.
Posted by lsuhunt555
Teakwood Village Breh
Member since Nov 2008
38404 posts
Posted on 3/9/23 at 11:03 am to
I would suggest it’s easier to be friends with a guy that owns an AC Business, but that’s just me.
Posted by Boudreaux35
BR
Member since Sep 2007
21394 posts
Posted on 3/9/23 at 11:16 am to
quote:

I would suggest it’s easier to be friends with a guy that owns an AC Business, but that’s just me.



This is EXTREMELY good advice! Same goes for an auto mechanic.
Posted by LittleJerrySeinfield
350,000 Post Karma
Member since Aug 2013
7630 posts
Posted on 3/9/23 at 12:10 pm to
quote:

I would suggest it’s easier to be friends with a guy that owns an AC Business, but that’s just me.


I go to church with one. He's helped me out several times. On the same day.
Posted by DVinBR
Member since Jan 2013
12925 posts
Posted on 3/10/23 at 1:10 am to
you'd be miserably hot in fricking february/march nowadays in louisiana if the capacitor failed on you
Posted by GeneralLeeAwesome
Chalmette
Member since Aug 2017
554 posts
Posted on 3/11/23 at 2:59 pm to
Ok let’s see if I can do the pictures right.
1. Have a multimeter with capacitance reading ability on it.
2. Discharge your capacitor. To do that turn the disconnect off on your condenser or air handler. Take a screwdriver and touch the prongs together.

3. Take a picture of how the wires are hooked up on it. Then take them off of the capacitor.
4. Touch the leads on your meter to the common prong and the fan prong then to common and herm prongs. Note the readings for each.

Notice the numbers on this capacitor is 45/5. The larger number is the microfarads for the compressor or HERM and the smaller number is the fan. It also has +5%. So take the numbers off of your reading from the meter and do the math and figure out if you’re outside that 5% tolerance. If so change the capacitor out.
This post was edited on 3/11/23 at 3:01 pm
Posted by GeneralLeeAwesome
Chalmette
Member since Aug 2017
554 posts
Posted on 3/11/23 at 3:06 pm to
You can use Titan HD, which are cheaper than Amrad and are also American made
Posted by WonderWartHawg
Member since Dec 2010
10396 posts
Posted on 3/11/23 at 4:16 pm to
quote:

Wife's uncle is a commercial HVAC guy so we usually call him up, orders the parts


Most experienced HVAC guys keep a few of those in their truck. Bad capacitors are that common of a problem.
Posted by GeneralLeeAwesome
Chalmette
Member since Aug 2017
554 posts
Posted on 3/11/23 at 4:39 pm to
I do commercial AC also. You don’t carry many parts at all and you run across very few capacitors because in commercial most units are 3 phase electrical
Posted by WonderWartHawg
Member since Dec 2010
10396 posts
Posted on 3/11/23 at 6:41 pm to
The company that I do business with always has a few in the truck.
ETA: They do a lot of residential in a rural area.
This post was edited on 3/11/23 at 6:43 pm
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