Condenser Motor Or Capacitor?

Posted by on September 1, 2008, 6:36 pm

On Sep 1, 5:32=A0pm, "Stormin Mormon"

> Hmm. 45/5? I just bought a couple of those last week. I was cleaning the
> condensor (sorry boys) on a Trane unit, and that's the size it took. Figu=

red

> I ought to have one available for the next customer who needed one. How d=

> things work out, now that you have the new cap installed?

I didn't get the new one installed yet. I'd mentioned a different cap
I had but it only served to reassure me that my multimeter's
capacitance test function still worked, that other cap was too low a
value to use.

Since it's Labor day today, I'm waiting till tomorrow to get the cap
locally.

Posted by KJPRO on September 1, 2008, 9:26 pm

> About two years ago the capacitor on our external AC condenser failed
> and was replaced. The unit has ran fine since then. Last night the
> fan stopped and the unit began making more noise.
> Poking the fan blades showed they spin quite freely. Am I right in
> assuming that since the unit was still making noise that it can't be a
> relay (was dark, but if there were any it looked like only one in the
> unit), that the only thing remaining is either this 2 year old
> capacitor or the motor itself?
> Motor is about 15 years old, looks like a typical GE 220V 1.4A 1/4
> HP. Opening it up it looks fine inside, though a problem in the
> windings might not be something I could see. I have basic electronics
> skills, is there a way to test the integrity of the motor or
> reasonably run it outside the condenser?
> The run capacitor on these is about 5uF, or at least that's the motor
> spec'd value. Will this type of capacitor read normally out of
> circuit with a capacitance meter, and if it's value was within
> tolerance can the capacitor then be assumed in good operable
> condition?
> Am I correct in assuming that if I momentarily turn the AC on without
> the fan hooked up at all (being sure to turn it off again before the
> compressor overheats due to no airflow) that if I measure the expected
> 220V at the motor hookup points, this is another indication it has to
> be either the capacitor or motor itself? With the motor open, with
> the armature removed from the stator, between three wires I'm getting
> resistance readings of 28 Ohm, 56Ohm, 84 Ohm. These look right for a
> typical 1 phase condenser motor, being all three multiples of 28 Ohm,
> correct?
> The last capacitor was obviously, visually bad as indicated by it
> bulging. The new (2 year old) one looks mint still. Does anyone have
> further ideas for troubleshooting this besides swapping in a new motor
> and/or capacitor, and which do you think is the cause?

I highly suggest that you make a call to your favorite HVAC company, as it
is painfully obvious that you *don't* have basic electrical skills!

Posted by on September 2, 2008, 6:00 am

> > About two years ago the capacitor on our external AC condenser failed
> > and was replaced. =A0The unit has ran fine since then. =A0Last night th=

> > fan stopped and the unit began making more noise.
> > Poking the fan blades showed they spin quite freely. =A0Am I right in
> > assuming that since the unit was still making noise that it can't be a
> > relay (was dark, but if there were any it looked like only one in the
> > unit), that the only thing remaining is either this 2 year old
> > capacitor or the motor itself?
> > Motor is about 15 years old, looks like a typical GE 220V 1.4A 1/4
> > HP. =A0Opening it up it looks fine inside, though a problem in the
> > windings might not be something I could see. =A0I have basic electronic=

> > skills, is there a way to test the integrity of the motor or
> > reasonably run it outside the condenser?
> > The run capacitor on these is about 5uF, or at least that's the motor
> > spec'd value. =A0Will this type of capacitor read normally out of
> > circuit with a capacitance meter, and if it's value was within
> > tolerance can the capacitor then be assumed in good operable
> > condition?
> > Am I correct in assuming that if I momentarily turn the AC on without
> > the fan hooked up at all (being sure to turn it off again before the
> > compressor overheats due to no airflow) that if I measure the expected
> > 220V at the motor hookup points, this is another indication it has to
> > be either the capacitor or motor itself? =A0With the motor open, with
> > the armature removed from the stator, between three wires I'm getting
> > resistance readings of 28 Ohm, 56Ohm, 84 Ohm. =A0These look right for a
> > typical 1 phase condenser motor, being all three multiples of 28 Ohm,
> > correct?
> > The last capacitor was obviously, visually bad as indicated by it
> > bulging. =A0The new (2 year old) one looks mint still. =A0Does anyone h=

ave

> > further ideas for troubleshooting this besides swapping in a new motor
> > and/or capacitor, and which do you think is the cause?

> I highly suggest that you make a call to your favorite HVAC company, as i=

> is painfully obvious that you *don't* have basic electrical skills!- Hide=

quoted text -

> - Show quoted text -

Thanks for trolling by. My favored HVAC company stuck me with a bill
in excess of $200 for a $17 capacitor that takes 5-10 minutes to
install and then failed 2 years later. If you'd call them again, go
right ahead.

Posted by on September 2, 2008, 11:01 am

On Tue, 2 Sep 2008 03:00:41 -0700 (PDT), emailaddress@insightbb.com
wrote:

>Thanks for trolling by. My favored HVAC company stuck me with a bill
>in excess of $200 for a $17 capacitor that takes 5-10 minutes to
>install and then failed 2 years later. If you'd call them again, go
>right ahead.

Do you have any clue why a capacitor and service call cost "in excess
of 200.00"? I am sure you don't or you would not keep making assinine
statements. We are running a business, not a charity asshole. Now go
the fuck away.

Posted by Zyp on September 2, 2008, 11:20 am

What a maroon wrote:

> On Tue, 2 Sep 2008 03:00:41 -0700 (PDT), emailaddress@insightbb.com
> wrote:

>> Thanks for trolling by. My favored HVAC company stuck me with a bill
>> in excess of $200 for a $17 capacitor that takes 5-10 minutes to
>> install and then failed 2 years later. If you'd call them again, go
>> right ahead.

> Do you have any clue why a capacitor and service call cost "in excess
> of 200.00"? I am sure you don't or you would not keep making assinine
> statements. We are running a business, not a charity asshole. Now go
> the fuck away.

What a maroon;

Don't you know any other adverbs or nouns besides four letters? You're such
a jerk you're pathetic.

--
Zyp

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Condenser Motor Or Capacitor? - Page 2