HVAC question

[DWARREN123]

May be a double cap. Used for both fans.

Turn off power, short across (both) set of connectors with insulated screw driver.

Remove and take with you to get replacement. Make sure to mark which wires go where.

If a double cap it will have 4 connectors and be marked with the dual range, single connectors  (2) for single range.

Lots of things can make one go bad or could have been not up to standards when first put on.

Really not hard to do if mechanically inclined.

Lot cheaper to do yourself.

[K191145]

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

 

Wow, I hope they did more than replace a capacitor for that price. At least a full maintenance on the system and that's still pricey. I've been out of the business for many years but a simple service call with a capacitor change shouldn't cost that. That's about what a motor replacement used to cost, maybe around $250.oo depending on the motor and that always included a new capacitor for it.

[K191145]

Found a good video.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcEQg6b9Wz4

[NoBanStan]

Story of my life!

 

 

I think Lee quoted us $160 for the job, but that's only because I pay them to do maintenance.

[mikegideon]

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*

 

My guess is that they are checking them for a trend. Those capacitors are cheap if a service guy is standing there with one on the truck. If that capacitor fails, the whole unit will fail, and you will be paying for another service call. Any time I have replaced them, they have already failed. 

 

So, when it comes to stuff like this, you have to know the cost to replace then, and the cost if he has to come back. In your case, it sounds like you sent the guy on, so the advantage of replacing a part because of it showing failure signs is almost gone. If your luck is like mine, it will fail so you wind up paying double overtime after a 12 hour wait on a 90 degree day. So, are you sure you know what a capacitor does? :) I think I paid maybe 8 bucks for the last one that went into my unit, but I replaced it myself. The HVAC guys will mark it up some

Edited March 21, 2015 by mikegideon

[Omega]

Wow, I hope they did more than replace a capacitor for that price. At least a full maintenance on the system and that's still pricey. I've been out of the business for many years but a simple service call with a capacitor change shouldn't cost that. That's about what a motor replacement used to cost, maybe around $250.oo depending on the motor and that always included a new capacitor for it.

Nope, just that. A $49 diagnostic fee, and the rest parts and service. All of 10 minutes to complete, used an ohm meter to get a reading across the three sets of prongs, got a low reading and replaced it. I had a local guy install both of my outside units, and he did some work before that. Very reasonable and a good guy, but he passed and the company is no longer in business? So had to roll the dice.

[mikegideon]

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.

 

I spend a lot of money at Grainger, and it's never because of price. They are high on everything. They just have stuff I can't find anywhere else. I get HVAC stuff here. 

 

http://edssupply.com/nashville/

[JPR1959]

I was out of town one day, and a company charged my wife $75 to flip a freaking breaker. :rant:

[mikegideon]

I was out of town one day, and a company charged my wife $75 to flip a freaking breaker. :rant:

 

At least the parts bill was low :)

[JWC]

I replaced a capacitor on my unit last Spring. I picked the cap up at Eds Supply I think it was $3.

[JWC]

Double tap Edited March 22, 2015 by JWC