Replaced the capacitor and all has been running cool again for about a week. Replaced my neighbor's too. Theirs stopped working again after 48 hrs. One more replacement on theirs and we're at 72 hrs of runtime since replacement.
A/C went out
Replaced the capacitor and all has been running cool again for about a week. Replaced my neighbor's too. Theirs stopped working again after 48 hrs. One more replacement on theirs and we're at 72 hrs of runtime since replacement.
32 Comments
bbue@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 46 pts · 2d
Not pictured was the 3hrs of rechecking the process via YouTube to make sure I wasn't going to electrocute myself. Next I have to clean the coils.
grillgamesh@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 20 pts · 2d
measure
twice40x, touch once!after all, one can never be too safe when working with the danger pixies.
altphoto@lemmy.today · 4 pts · 2d
I work with things that you can only touch once. After that you literally won't want to touch them again. You also won't want to touch anything else 😜. Come to think of it, you won't want or desire anything, think about anything. More love or singing or running or moving much more than a passing twitch every few milliseconds.
Bluewing@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2d
Always wash the coils twice a year! Spring and Fall!
Godnroc@lemmy.world · 19 pts · 2d
This is one if my favorite fixes. Capacitors are significantly cheaper than a new air conditioner, easy to test with the right multimeter, and so easy to replace that most people could do it with minimum research.
Hikermick@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 2d
A lot of broken appliances are due to bad capacitors. Sometimes they are easy to spot because they bulge. I was given a large broken television, found a bulged one and had it replaced. Worked for the past 8 years
PlantJam@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 2d
The last time I had someone look at the AC they suggested a "capacitor saver" for something absurd like $300. Seems like maybe not a great deal after all. Glad I told them no.
turtlesareneat@piefed.ca · 14 pts · 2d
This one makes me a GOD to my friends. One 4th of July ours blew, and we paid a guy like $550 to come put in a new capacitor. And then I googled the cost and, when I woke up from the seizure it gave me, I ordered a few to match my condensers. Now I try to make sure my friends don't have to pay that particular emergency-rate cost.
bbue@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 9 pts · 2d
Bonus pic of the neighbor's
dohpaz42@lemmy.world · 7 pts · 2d
Are these things universal? Or are they specific to each unit?
Bluefruit@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 2d
I imagine that some are interchangable but it would depend on the unit. Some might have different capacitors based on how big the unit is, how old, etc.
Thats just from my limited knowledge of electrical and YouTube watching skills. Your mileage may vary.
bbue@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 8 pts · 2d
You look up the model and it will tell you the size of capacitor to get. They are like $15 if you order them online
Mine actually had the part listed in a paper inside the unit. Turns out the last AC guy put the wrong size in mine
Bluefruit@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 2d
Lol thats always fun. Nice when the unit actually has useful info to say what's required.
Bluewing@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2d
It was probably just the size he had on the truck. And he wasn't about to go back to the shop to get the right one. He's ain't got time for that shit.
Bluegrass_Addict@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 1d
You know the capacitor is matched to the motor and not the condenser. sometimes when the motor is changed with aftermarket one, it could require different capacitor.
litchralee@sh.itjust.works · 0 pts · 2d
canthangmightstain@lemmy.today · 2 pts · 1d
Depends on the size outdoor unit you have, and whether the capacitor runs your fan and condenser or one for each. They will look something like 370/75uf which stands for 370 volts and 45 millifarad and is the rating.
Your outdoor unit should have a wiring diagram in it if you go outside and take off the panel to look, or you can google the model. They’re about $30 apiece and I’d make sure you know how to wire them before your current one bites the dust because when they blow they get messy because they have oil inside. Then buy a couple to have on hand because you don’t want to wait days to have AC while it ships.
Watch a couple videos though, these are capacitors and high voltages. It’s really easy to do (it’s literally like 4 bolts and maybe 3 wires) but there’s just a couple things you want to be sure and do to be safe.
dohpaz42@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 1d
Thank you for the advice.
expatriado@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 2d
i keep a new capacitor stored in my garage so i don't have to go 2 days without AC each time it goes out (I'm on hot and humid climate) , which is every 24 months on average
Crozekiel@lemmy.zip · 8 pts · 2d
Just FYI, these should not be failing every 2 years - there is something else wrong causing them to fail.
bbue@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 2d
Yeah, I ended up talking to a tech at a company that makes capacitors and he said that if that happens it might be the coiling and/or compressor involved. These are supposed to last 5 years before failing. I didn't really understand what he was saying, so I guess I'm off to YouTube to look at other repairs
PriorityMotif@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 2d
You might look into a hard start kit. It's a secondary capacitor and a relay which helps with the extra load at startup. Get the kind with separate capacitor and relay, not the all in one kind.
human@slrpnk.net · 4 pts · 2d
For a second I thought I was looking at one of these.
MeatPilot@sh.itjust.works · 6 pts · 2d
Every time my A/C goes out it's those damn graboids!
DarrinBrunner@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 2d
What is the symptom that says it's the capacitor? I'm guessing it starts the compressor, so the fan runs but no cold?
TVA@thebrainbin.org · 5 pts · 2d
Usually they bulge and if you know what it's supposed to look like, it's quite apparent that it's dead.
The cap is what's used to provide the power necessary for the initial start, so, it that doesn't happen, it's the quick and easy thing to check (I keep a set of the ones mine takes on a shelf ... 30 for a set of 2 and 10 minutes of time to replace or a small fortune for an HVAC guy to replace)
Your inside furnace fan might still run, but, on mine at least, the outside unit fan doesn't run if the cap is dead
bbue@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 2d
Pretty much anything - outside fan isn't running? Outside fan is running but air not cool? Obv it can be more, but it's a very cheap first attempt. And cheap enough to keep on hand like you do
Bluegrass_Addict@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 1d
the symptom is either the fan won't run, or the compressor won't run.
these are typically dual eated capacitors. eg 25/5. the 25 powers the compressor, and the 5 would power the fan. both, or one of those can fail resulting in nothing running, or the system straining to turn over
Bluewing@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2d
If you have multimeter, even a cheap one will do, you can test them. there are you tube videos that can show you how to test them even with a cheap meter that doesn't have a capacitance test setting, just ohms.
Freeposity@lemmy.world · 3 pts · 2d
Starting or running capacitor?
bbue@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 1 pts · 2d
Running I believe
Bluewing@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 2d
Those caps are easy and cheap to replace. Just be careful about shorting them to drain them.
My heat pump went out this spring. It was blowing 3 amp fuses and I couldn't figure out where. So I had to call the local HVAC repair to come out. It took him 2 hours to trace the short because it was intermittent. I hate intermittent faults.
InvalidName2@lemmy.zip · 2 pts · 2d
Did you try turning it off and then turning it back on again?