Now that is what I call help. Thanks Turtle. Some guys advise that I
should just buy a new 5 ton A/C and air handler because it's 30 yrs
old. (This is a split sytem.) That would cost over $7000. Your fix
costs nothing now and maybe $60 later. I suspected that using "both"
fuse and breaker protection was overkill. I thought about this a lot,
and I read all the responses I get. I like yours best. But I don't know
the applicable codes for res, electric and I don't want to risk voiding
my fire insurance. So I'll play it safe and wait till I can get the
right parts. Actually, it has warmed up here in the dessert - it's not
too cold now.

Thanks, and have some well deserved happy holidays for helping an old
man out. The more you give - the more you get, and this holds for both
good and bad.