On Jun 26, 7:30*am, " wrote:
On Jun 26, 7:03*am, Mike wrote:



Last evening, my A/C unit stopped working. I'd like to try to figure
out what died, how much it will cost to fix, and if I can do the
repairs myself.

We heard a sort of buzzing sound a few times, and when I looked out
the window, I noticed that the fan blades seemed to be turning slower
than usual. I went to the thermostat and turned off the A/C for a few
minutes. When I turned it back on, I could hear a short buzz sound at
the A/C unit, but the fan blades didn't move. The buzz sound would
repeat every 10 seconds or so, but the fan never moved.

I then turned off the A/C and flipped the breaker. I tried to spin the
fan blades with a screwdriver, and they turn freely. I checked the
service disconnect box outside the house, and all looks fine.

I'm thinking that either the fan motor died, or the compressor is
dead, or both. Any thoughts?

The most likely cause is : a defective combo Run Capacitor based on
what youve described. *You wont be able to buy this part yourself ; it
is only available thru the Trade and you need to initiate a Service
Call.

Exactly correct up till the last part, I used to buy nad replace my
own caps all the time. I upgraded all my units, so haven't had a break
down for a while,
My advise is to install two separate capacitors, anyhow. That way you
only have to replace the bad one, + the separate ones are easier to
find.
@ $10- $20 they are worth a try, that's less than 15 minutes worth of
service call.