HVAC question

[NoBanStan]

Lee company came out today to do routine maintenance on my AC unit. They told my wife that we needed a new capacitor because it's registering at 13.5 when it should be at 15.

 

While I understand what a capacitor does, I know nothing about how urgent it would be to replace this part. I just don't want to pay for something that's not needed right away.. like a mechanic telling you "you only have X cold cranks left on your battery", then it works for another year and a half.

 

Any advice would be appreciated!

 

*spelling edit*

Edited March 20, 2015 by NoBanStan

[jhc77]

I'm no hvac pro, but my neighbor replaced his on his own. Someone with more knowledge and sleep will be along shortly. There are a few people here that are good at this stuff.

[raildog]

They are not hard to replace. Were are you located i might be able to point you to a place to get the part

[NoBanStan]

They are not hard to replace. Were are you located i might be able to point you to a place to get the part

 

Mount Juliet area. Thanks

 

Though the bigger question is, do I need to do it now?

[charlessummers]

Simple answer is no. It is an easy part to replace and usually inexpensive. Lee Co. will charge you triple for the part, then tack on their labor and trip charges. Best thing to do if your worried about it is go to Johnstone Supply in Nashville and pick one up and install it yourself. Be sure to kill the power to the unit first, of course. I don't think I'd be worried...

 

I've also never known of a way to "test" the whatever rating that he reported. Usually, we'd just use an ohm meter to see if they were acting right and carry on.

[MacGyver]

Start capacitors will fail over time.

 

The bigger issue on fixing them is whether or not the user actually knows what they're doing.  Big capacitors have the capacity to kill you.

[raildog]

Mount Juliet area. Thanks

Though the bigger question is, do I need to do it now?

To answers you question it hard to say it is a electrical part it could last years or days who knows. We use Ed's suply here at work for HVAC parts they have several locations around Nashville. You will need make,model, and S/N or just take the old one off and take it with you and let them mach up the part. It will be held on by a couple of screws and a couple of wires.

[glock55]

Your question cannot be truly answered without having the capacitor specs. On the capacitor will be a spec for capacitance for example 15. You will use a multi meter set to capacitance and take a measurement across the terminals. On the capacitor will also be a spec usually 5or6% which is the good range. So if we take 6% of 15 we get .9. If our reading is 13.5 we see that the capacitor is out of range and should be replaced. Even if our capacitor is reading 13.5 does not mean it will not work but is subject to fail. This failure will most likely occurr on the hottest day of summer or the coldest day of winter. If your capacitor is out of range it's an easy job to replace and not too expensive. Just be sure to cross the terminals with a screw driver after removing wires to prevent shock.

[raildog]

Start capacitors will fail over time.

The bigger issue on fixing them is whether or not the user actually knows what they're doing. Big capacitors have the capacity to kill you.

You are right about that we change small ones up and set them on the table at work and wait till that one guy walks in and picks it up (don't try this at home we are what you call professionals) Edited March 20, 2015 by raildog

[tnguy]

The biggest PITA about capacitors is having to obtain them and the wait without AC while you do. If you think it's going to go out, you could always order one (fairly cheap on ebay or the usual places) and just keep it ready.

[K191145]

Lee company came out today to do routine maintenance on my AC unit. They told my wife that we needed a new capacitor because it's registering at 13.5 when it should be at 15.

 

While I understand what a capacitor does, I know nothing about how urgent it would be to replace this part. I just don't want to pay for something that's not needed right away.. like a mechanic telling you "you only have X cold cranks left on your battery", then it works for another year and a half.

 

Any advice would be appreciated!

 

*spelling edit*

 

PM sent.

 

It's 3rd. ave south, not 2nd. ave.

 

 

 

Allied Electric Motor Company

 

 

924 3rd Ave S, Nashville, TN 37210 (615) 259-3892 Website

• Directions
• Email
• More

 

[K191145]

Be sure to take the old capacitor with you but I would call them first, you need to match up UF(microfarads), and also VAC(volt amp capacity).

[NoBanStan]

You guys rock. I figured if I asked, TGO would know.

 

Also thanks for the death warning. I wouldn't even attempt replacing it myself without watching some walkthroughs online and then turning off the power.

 

Sadly, I wasn't there to have them point it out to me, but I'm almost positive this capacitor was replaced by them last year. So I'm going to call them myself and verify if there's any type of warranty.

[MacGyver]

You guys rock. I figured if I asked, TGO would know.

 

Also thanks for the death warning. I wouldn't even attempt replacing it myself without watching some walkthroughs online and then turning off the power.

 

Sadly, I wasn't there to have them point it out to me, but I'm almost positive this capacitor was replaced by them last year. So I'm going to call them myself and verify if there's any type of warranty.

We've got some guys who can definitely speak to this better than me, but as a rule if a capacitor was recently replaced and is already going bad, that's probably endemic of something else going south.

[K191145]

We've got some guys who can definitely speak to this better than me, but as a rule if a capacitor was recently replaced and is already going bad, that's probably endemic of something else going south.

it's registering at 13.5 when it should be at 15.

That's not all that much of a difference, it could have read that new out of the box. Also meters that read capacitance could be a little off. Most of the time they read slightly high when they are new.

[K191145]

You guys rock. I figured if I asked, TGO would know.
 
Also thanks for the death warning. I wouldn't even attempt replacing it myself without watching some walkthroughs online and then turning off the power.
 
Sadly, I wasn't there to have them point it out to me, but I'm almost positive this capacitor was replaced by them last year. So I'm going to call them myself and verify if there's any type of warranty.

It's unlikely touching a hot wire on a unit would be fatal, it all depends on how well you are grounded. If you have rubber sole shoes or boots and touching nothing else 120volts might give you a decent tingle, i've never tried 240volts, that's hard to do anyway. But,if you grab a hot terminal with your right fingers while resting your left arm on the grounded unit you will bite a chunk of your lip off and blow snot all over the electric compartment. :)

[JPR1959]

Usually starter capacitors are round or oval cylinders.  The the top is bulging, put a new one on it.  It's usually just two wires.  Mark the wires before removing them and take the capacitor with you.  Good luck.

[NoBanStan]

It's unlikely touching a hot wire on a unit would be fatal, it all depends on how well you are grounded. If you have rubber sole shoes or boots and touching nothing else 120volts might give you a decent tingle, i've never tried 240volts, that's hard to do anyway. But,if you grab a hot terminal with your right fingers while resting your left arm on the grounded unit you will bite a chunk of your lip off and blow snot all over the electric compartment. :)

 

I think i'll pass and just shut off the breaker :D

[TrickyNicky]

I think i'll pass and just shut off the breaker :D

 

 

Keep in mind your old capacitor will carry plenty of charge to do you harm well after being disconnected from a power source. I had to replace a fan and capacitor on a 2.5ton unit awhile back and none of it was hard if your fairly handy. I was lucky enough that one of my buddies was willing to help me out since two heads are better than one, but doing the cap swap is definitely doable on your own. 

 

Also if you are looking for a Lee type company that won't bend you both ways over the barrel for every little thing try calling Roscoe Brown. They do good work at a much better price than Lee or Hiller. Both of the big two wanted about $200 just to take a look at my roof top unit, Roscoe brown just wanted to know what size ladder to bring. Lee and Hiller wanted to charge me an additional $1xx.xx to hoist a water heater into a an attic, Roscoe Brown called in a helping hand for the hoisting and did the whole thing for about 2/3 the cost IIRC.

 

I'm in no way affiliated with them, but I had to do quote shopping for every little thing at my last job and they where usually just a tad more expensive than a craigslist handy man and they are a pro outfit.

[jhc77]

+1 on Tricky's post. I had a 12V capacitor discharge after a careless move on my part. I wouldn't want to see one spark off an HVAC unit by accident.

[Dad03]

Get the model number or specs of the capacitor and look it up on the Grainger website. If Lee tries to bend you over as I suspect they will on both the part and labor its easy enough to replace yourself. Edited March 20, 2015 by Dad03

[K191145]

+1 on Tricky's post. I had a 12V capacitor discharge after a careless move on my part. I wouldn't want to see one spark off an HVAC unit by accident.

Just take an old beat up screw driver and touch both posts on the capacitor and that will discharge any charge it may have. Some capacitors have a resistor between the posts to discharge it when there's no power to it but shorting it out with a screwdriver will do.

[RED333]

Most start caps have a bleed off resistor, but short them out to be safe.

Take a pic of where the wires hook up.

Take the old cap off and go to H &H

85 Athens Drive, Mount Juliet, TN 37122
(615) 758-9411

Good guys and local.

Edited March 20, 2015 by RED333

[Omega]

Well, seen this too late. I called in an HVAC company and $202 later I have a new $10-$20 capacitor in my unit.

[Troutburger]

Well, seen this too late. I called in an HVAC company and $202 later I have a new $10-$20 capacitor in my unit.

Story of my life!