AC went from 70 to 75 degrees in an hour or so. Went outdoors to unit and wasn't running, yet indoor was mildly cool air coming thru vents. My AC guy told me to turn off the unit and on his way out.

It's a 2.0 ton. Last year he said I would need a 2.5 ton 16 seer.

House is small, 1050 sq ft.

Any ideas? He told me last summer it's on it's last leg. It's probably close to 20 years old.

Martin Q. Blank said:

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capacitor

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Agreed - sounds like exactly what happened to our old unit a couple of summers ago. Had the capacitor replaced and then had a new unit installed the following spring.

What the price on a new capacitor?

I paid $300 and something last summer for a new one.

Edit: not even $300 - it was $265

He's here now and first thing he checked was capacitor and it tested low.

So, mine actually wasn't completely dead. When the guy got to my house it was working, but he said it would eventually fail again, so I had him go ahead and change it out.

It was July 3, so I didn't want to press my luck and have it go out again. And it was $265 (not $300)

And he of course doesn't have the right size in his truck.

Put a capacitor in that is a '40'. Said it will do for now; coming back tomorrow to put in the '35' and do an overall AC check.

So do you expect me to be charged $20 or $300 for a capacitor replacement?

Where can you order them?

AtlAg05 said:

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Where can you order them?

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Just google the model number, or if you have supply house near by that accepts retail customers like me, go for it. Approximately $20-30 for a replacement, no questions asked. My go to place is the local Morrison Supply. No questions asked, just give them the model number and they'll take good care of you!.

AtlAg05 said:

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Where can you order them?

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Amazon or just about any supply warehouse. I have a place in town I can pick one up in a pinch at, but if I can order it I'll probably go through these guys forever:

https://arnoldservice.com/about-us/

They're out of Kentucky. I ordered a fan motor from them last year, and their service was excellent (sent a handwritten thank you note for doing bushes with them). Couldn't beat the price either. They also have some good DIY videos. Very customer oriented and interested in saving you money. If you have any questions, you can call or email and they'll help you out.

CAR96 said:

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What the price on a new capacitor?

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$20-25 from your friendly A/C supply company, $15-20 from Amazon. I keep a spare around because if one craps out it'll happen on a Sunday.

A capacitor costs $20, but maybe they markup to $40. It takes less than 30 minutes to replace which should be covered in the 1 hr visit.

$300 is high.

Capacitor went out on our 2 year old unit because a lizard climbed into it and fried the damn thing.

WhoopRAB said:

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Capacitor stores energy.

Educate yourself on "how to discharge air conditioning capacitor".

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I thought you were just supposed to say "Think Fast" and toss them to your buddy/lab partner?!

CAR96 said:

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Put a capacitor in that is a '40'. Said it will do for now; coming back tomorrow to put in the '35' and do an overall AC check.

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He's warned you about the system being near the end. I'd seriously consider replacing it soon. The SEER on a 20 yr old system is probably atrocious and costing you $. Upgrade to a 16 SEER two speed and thank me later.

Spar capacitors are a simple DIY if you can locate a replacement. Have found you can put a bigger cap on n your outside unit and they last far longer than OEM.

AC not cooling again. Been gone since 11 am and walked in the house to 81 degrees from a set thermostat of 71.

Capacitor was replaced about two weeks ago.

Is the fan running on the outside unit? Just had this scenario with my mother-in-law's AC. Replaced the capacitor for about $20 from Amazon and it ran fine for about a week before the fan shut down. Turned out that the condenser fan motor was the culprit. Had to replace the motor with a universal motor plus an additional capacitor for about $100 from a nearby supply house. It was a 1-2 hour job, not counting the trip to the supply house and to the hardware store for connectors. Good luck!

Fan was not running.

It was the contactor. It was old ( probably the original part of the 2004 unit). He said it was eroded some and when checked was sparking.

$145. I watched him do it, I guess I could have done it but would have had no idea that was the issue nor what size to buy. It probably would have taken me a few days to figure and research it and in this heat, no deal.

Just found the part on Amazon for $19.80 and free shipping.

So in the last 11 days a capacitor at $220 & a contactor at $145. It was getting hot and humid in here. 79 degrees inside overnight and up to 81 at 9:15 am. It's cooling down now.

Wish it was November and 40 degrees outside....I don't even run my heat much during the day at 45-55 outside. Maybe cycle it on one time , but we all now in this heat, expected high of 94 today, it gets unbearable.

I hear people talk about 'supply houses' on here all the time. I assume a quick internet search and anyone can go in and purchase what they need? Don't have to produce a license of any sort? Unless you're trying to buy...Freon or cooling agents or....?

You should be able to purchase most things. They might give you a little eye roll while you try to describe the "thingamabob" that you need. Freon requires a license. Some places strictly sell wholesale. Thats a different story.

Grainger has a lot of stuff and they don't care if you're a contractor or homeowner.

CAR96 said:

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I hear people talk about 'supply houses' on here all the time. I assume a quick internet search and anyone can go in and purchase what they need? Don't have to produce a license of any sort? Unless you're trying to buy...Freon or cooling agents or....?

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The place I mentioned above will not ask for a license for anything besides freon. Some places will ship you freon if you sign something saying you will only resell it to someone with a license or have someone with a license install it.

Mr. AGSPRT04 said:

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Grain her has a lot of stuff and they don't care if you're a contractor or homeowner.

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Grainger

Oops, that's a different store...