Boy oh boy, this a touchy subject. I just had to talk about it.
There are a few things that consistently fail on an air conditioner ion the Arizona heat.
- Contacter sensor
- Clean outs
- Capacitors
I’ll get to the others ones at another time. Today, I want to talk about capacitors.
What is a capacitor?
A capacitor is a power regulation device. It is essentially an insulated can with a filter and fluid, called dialectic fluid. You run power through it to your equipment to deliver energy evenly in an attempt to improve the durability and longevity of your equipment.
I say attempt, because the capacitors manufacturers put into your equipment today are quite literally the weakest link in your entire system.
Then, the cheap capacitors that too many HVAC Contractors replace them with, are equally bad.
You may know that I take real exception to treating my community as a profit center. It’s a despicable act. Do I have to charge a fair amount for what I do sell, absolutely. I don’t begrudge anyone that.
Do I over charge for poor quality goods knowingly? Not a chance.
Yet that is not only what every manufacturer is up to in HVAC, but many many contractors do too.
What makes a good capacitor?
A good capacitor is going to be filled with a high quality micro mesh filter and thick dialectic fluid to better dissipate the heat that is created from sending energy through it. It will have insulated walls to assist with the steady, balanced flow of energy.
The higher the quality, the more balanced the energy, reducing risk to your entire system. The higher the quality, the longer it will last.
The older your AC system, the better the capacitor you should invest in. This is particularly important if you need to invest in a hard start kit. As systems age, some of them need a little help to get up and going. This is where hard start kits come in.
The challenge is, if a hard start is hooked up to a cheap capacitor, you have a pretty high risk of catastrophic failure of your entire system. The hard start is going to push a lot of power through the capacitor and cheap capacitors simply cannot handle the strain.
What makes a bad capacitor?
There are 3.5 things that make a capacitor bad.
- Thin dialectic fluid
- Low quality filtration
- No hard start connectivity
In a study of over 100 most commonly purchased capacitors brought in from the Asian Pacific Rim, none of them showed the qualities of good capacitor. The very best were sufficient, with the insufficient ones out selling the sufficient ones 14 to 1. A classic example of corporate greed in all its glory.
The worst capacitors were shown to have no hard start connectivity, containing vegetable oil as the dialectic fluid, and paper filtration.
But I said 3.5 things. Given the already sad state of these cheap capacitors, you’ll find that none of them have double insulated walls to help dissipate the heat, causing greater fluctuations in energy flow.
What capacitor should I buy?
Due to the range of air conditioners over an extended period of time, there are now many hundreds of different capacitor shapes and sizes, of varying quality and voltage. You can imagine what a challenge this has become to not only ensure you have the right capacitor installed on your equipment, but one that won’t just put your system in mortal peril.
For the few of you who are electrical engineers, electricians, an HVAC technician, you will likely just replace your own capacitors.
For the rest of humanity who has no clue how to replace a capacitor without killing themselves or their system, you need to hire someone who know how not to die on this quest.
Therefore, it’s not the capacitor you pay for. It’s the ability to remain alive long enough to enjoy cold air in your home.
You should buy the capacitor that puts the least amount of stress on your equipment for the longest period of time. There is value to your time, and waiting for a technician to come repair your system every few years should not rank high on your list of fun things to do in Arizona.
You should buy the capacitor that is dynamic in nature, capable of regulating the flow of electricity smoothly, even if you have a hard-start** or soft-start** added to your equipment.
And you should buy the capacitor with the best parts and labour warranty so that you don’t have to spend money unnecessarily or prematurely.
How much should an AC capacitor cost in 2024?
You can purchase capacitors for whole home Air Conditioning systems for as little as $12 upon our last inspection. The most expensive AC capacitor I have ever seen was $999, though atrociously overpriced.
To get a cheap capacitor installed, honest companies will charge $119 to $199. Unscrupulous companies will charge you upwards of $700! And that’s for the cheap garbage. A typical cheap capacitor sold by a greedy or inefficient company will charge between $320 and $450.
I sell the highest quality capacitor in America today. In fact, I’ll only sell this capacitor because it has everything that a capacitor should have to protect your system and your wallet.
In fact, I believe in this capacitor so much, we replace the cheap capacitors installed from factory on DAY ONE. I am so confident in these capacitors, I’m willing to not only put my name on them, but I’m willing to put 5 and 10 year parts and labor warranties on them.
I’ve calculated over and over again that it is actually the least expensive capacitor in the market when you factor in how rarely you have to replace it.
In fact, this capacitor is so good, it boasts a 0.5% failure rate within the warranty period, which is 500% to 1000% longer than its cheaper cousins.
This capacitor has exclusive hard start connectivity, double-insulated side walls, the thickest dialectic fluid in the industry, and a premium micro mesh filter. It is American made and always in stock.
I call them Frankie’s Fix It 5 and Fix it 10 Caps. Pretty snazzy, huh?!
On sale exclusively at Fix it Frankie. After our 10% Family Member discount, you pay $599 with a 5 year warranty, $699 with 10 year warranty, installed.
When you eventually need to buy a new AC system from me, they’ll be included in your purchase from day one, and match your new system’s warranty in full.
I think you should be able to keep your wallet in your pants when I come visit.
So that’s how I’ve decided to run my AC repair company.
My name if Frankie Fernandez, and I’d love to be your HVAC Repair Guy.
*** hard start and soft starts are pieces of equipment that help systems start gently in varying applications.*
