How to safely discharge a HVAC start/run capacitor?

k0ua · Mar 20, 2015

Be sure to run your tongue across the terminals of the old one to make sure it is safe.

oldballs · Mar 20, 2015

It's fun to read about you young fellas raising families. Been there and done all that toilet, capacitor, etc., stuff. I still have a melted wrench head and gnarled snake to remind of those days.
Cheers,
Mike

k0ua · Mar 20, 2015

oldballs said:
It's fun to read about you young fellas raising families. Been there and done all that toilet, capacitor, etc., stuff. I still have a melted wrench head and gnarled snake to remind of those days.
Cheers,
Mike

I was working on a construction job building a telephone main distribution frame right next to an open electrical panel when I heard a fish tape comming down a conduit headed into the box.
I knew the box was hot, but I didn't think much about it as I figured The Electrician was using a fiberglass tape. It turns out that he was not using a fiberglass tape. There was a huge flash and ball of fire and a very loud noise. Little steel balls flew across the room and I needed a new pair of underwear.I don't know who was more shook up me or the electrician on the other end of the fish tape.

speedbump · Mar 20, 2015

Heat pumps by themselves are very poor home heating units without the heat strip. Ours won't keep up here in Florida during cold winter nights. If it dips into the 30's, it's going to be cold in the house. We don't have the heat strip, so it does get chilly sometimes.

We test hundreds of capacitors a year and the screw driver is the method we use. Our capacitance meter just died, so we ordered another one. If you don't discharge the cap first, the meter will not be happy.

oldballs · Mar 20, 2015

We test hundreds of capacitors a year and the screw driver is the method we use. Our capacitance meter just died, so we ordered another one. If you don't discharge the cap first, the meter will not be happy.[/QUOTE]

T'was wondering about that myself. Thanks for the warning.