It's AC week in the family, daughters isn't cooling, ours has been cooling however I noticed that it wasn't keeping up. Air handler is working fine, the compressor is coming on but the fan isn't starting immediately.

It waits a minute or two, maybe more then the fan kicks on. Bryant 5 ton unit, thinking the capacitor is the issue, its an 80+7.5MFD 370/440

AC services in FL in June/July are overworked, it can take a day to get a call back. Nonetheless, If the AC gurus agree, then a Capacitor replacement it shall be.

I've found several on Amazon, and we should be good for a day or two,

Tradepro - 80/7.5
BMI USA Made 80/7.5
Titan TRCFD8075
AMRAD USA 80/75

Ordered the Tradepro because it will be here Friday, the rest will take a week or more. OK if the current capacitor holds on, if not, well it's in the high 90's here...

Hopefully its a quality piece...

Pull the breaker at the outdoor unit.

Remove the screws and access panel.

Take pictures of the original installation.

Then, pull one wire at a time from the existing capacitor and place on the new capacitor at the same position.

Do not short-circuit the existing capacitor with your pliers, screwdrivers, etc.

Mount the new cap with the old strap and screw.

I keep a spare cap or 2 on hand just for that reason. Have you tested the old one with a multimeter? There are tons of youtube videos on troubleshooting bad caps, testing them, and replacing. A truck roll just for that is over $100 easy. A very simple swap too. The ones I got on amazon are made in the USA, which I thought was fantastic. Most of them are chinese or south of the border.

Sounds like you haven’t tested the capacitor, but if the fan isn’t coming on at once but a little later and the compressor is it’s probably the capacitor. I like the US made Amrad the best. I’d install the Tradepro when it comes in, order the Amrad and install it in place of the Tradepro and then keep the Tradepro as a spare.

After you get it fixed, trade that POS in on a Toyota.

quote:

Originally posted by wxdave:
I keep a spare cap or 2 on hand ..

Think I"ll do that, the AMRAD is the preferred unit but I'd rather have the Tradepro here in a few days, might not even install unless we see the same problem again.

Will check the testing videos, have a multimeter to test with.

As to the Toyota... Welcome to Derby City!

Local supply houses will typically sell a capacitor to a walk in customer on a cash account.
I wouldn't pay shipping and wait.
See if there is a Carrier Enterprise/Johnstone/United Refr nearby

Capacitors are easy to replace just make sure you know enough not to hurt yourself.

I had the fan motor on the outside unit go a few weeks ago. Guy quoted $600 and change for the part and another $500 and change to change it. The total was over a grand and he had to wait for his parts department to order and ship the part.

Found it online for under $250 shipped. Took less then 20 minutes to install.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:

quote:

Originally posted by wxdave:
I keep a spare cap or 2 on hand ..

Think I"ll do that, the AMRAD is the preferred unit but I'd rather have the Tradepro here in a few days, might not even install unless we see the same problem again.

Will check the testing videos, have a multimeter to test with.

As to the Toyota... Welcome to Derby City!

Check Grainger here locally and see if they have one. I bought one there a couple years ago and swapped a bad cap myself. Nice savings over the AC guy and no waiting.

I'm only slightly familiar with this type of stuff... but I don't think the fan / air handler is supposed to come on immediately when the compressor kicks on there is supposed to be a delay while the coils cool down.... same when the compressor cuts off the fan still runs for a while to remove the rest of the cool.... same with heat... delays on both ends for better efficiency....

quote:

Originally posted by Blume9mm:
I'm only slightly familiar with this type of stuff... but I don't think the fan / air handler is supposed to come on immediately when the compressor kicks on there is supposed to be a delay while the coils cool down.... same when the compressor cuts off the fan still runs for a while to remove the rest of the cool.... same with heat... delays on both ends for better efficiency....

His problem isn’t with the air handler. Its the fan on the condenser unit.

quote:

Originally posted by PowerSurge:
His problem isn’t with the air handler. Its the fan on the condenser unit.

Correct, it's been super hot here for the past week so everything is running full time, changed filter, cleaned drain, ordered capacitor, can't hurt to have it on hand, will replace it, and probably order a back up to have on hand.

THe new one will be here Friday.

Always keep a spare cap and a contactor . It'll get you out of a bind on a weekend .

Watch yourself with the old capacitor. They hold a charge that will give you quite a jolt if you touch the terminals.

Do not test the capacitor with your tongue.

What's the procedure for removing the old capacitor and assuming it's fully charged? I think I'm about due....18 years....

Had an AC company stop by today, they don't think it's the capacitor, the fan is starting slow and it's pulling 1.22-1.23. Normal is .7 to .9 so it may be on it's way out.

Thinking of looking for a fan as well so that's the next question I believe he said 875 rpm motor, so have to find one of those to do myself...

Why didnt he think it’s the capacitor? He should’ve tested the capacitor to see if it’s in range (+ or - 5%) or not. If the capacitor is good then it’s the fan motor. If you have the specs for the motor you can find one locally or on amazon.

He did, said the capacitor was good, I should have pointed that out...

I"m still going to replace it with the new one when it comes in tomorrow, see if that helps, however the meter on the fan is reading at just over the max 1.2 at 1.21-1.22, I was there when he hooked up and watched the display on the meter.

Here are the motor specs and the model number
...

HC39GE242 Carrier OEM Condenser Fan Motor 1/4 HP 825RPM

This message has been edited. Last edited by: HRK,

Ok. Since cap is good find out what type motor you need from the label. You’ll save a lot of cash if you can do it yourself. There are good videos on YouTube. You’ll probably need to take the top off where the fan is to take a look. Make damn sure the power is off.

quote:

Originally posted by konata88:
What's the procedure for removing the old capacitor and assuming it's fully charged? I think I'm about due....18 years....

99 percent of the time the cap discharges through the windings. But to make sure, I use a screwdriver and lay it across the contacts of the cap, making sure the power is off first of course. You can test it with a multimeter once it’s disconnected if the meter has the ability. Some don’t. Here’s a decent YouTube video I just found that should help:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZGfvC-PMWU