GE Motor Capacitor Replacement

[RHJO51]

Good morning, I have what appears to be a nice GE 1/2 HP, 1725 RPM motor, but it only buzzes when plugged in. No mechanical issues I can see so I believe the starter capacitor is shot. The capacitor has - best I can read - 582871OAB1 - marked on it. No luck looking up this number. So how can I determine what replacement capaitor to order? Thanks

 

[mike93lx]

Nothing when searching the motor part number?

 

[RHJO51]

No. Perhaps I'm not reading the number correctly but hard to read.

 

[mike93lx]

No. Perhaps I'm not reading the number correctly but hard to read.

The on that starts with 5KC? That looks clear to me

 

[Bert_]

No "mfd" or "uf" marking on the capacitor?

Does it test bad?

 

[RHJO51]

I don't know how to test the capacitor but I guess there's some YOUTUBE vids on that. No other marking on the capacitor. There is a hard cardboard covering on it, should I cut that off to see if there are markings underneath. Here's a pic

 

[The Cobbler]

cutting the cover off won't help finding the specs.
try powering it up & spin the shaft .

 

[micromind]

A motor like that one failing to start is usually one of two things.....either the start capacitor is bad or the centrifugal start switch is not working properly.

The cap is easy to test, if it's good then the start switch is usually the problem.

 

[Bert_]

A crude pass/fail test can be done with an ohmmeter.

You have to disconnect at least one wire from the capacitor. Then with a meter set to ohms you touch one lead to each terminal. The reading should start near zero and climb to Infinity. If it doesn't try reversing the test leads. If you still get no result then your capacitor is probably bad.

I'm going to guess it's a 50 or 60 mfd capacitor, but that's a wild guess.

 

[FrankLee]

cutting the cover off won't help finding the specs.

It might. Some of the older Craftsman grinders have caps with cardboard tubes. The specs are printed on or stamped into the body.

You may be able to open the fold-over on the terminal end of the cap and push the cap up from the bottom to slide the tube off. It looks like the cap has an aluminum body.

 

[RHJO51]

So I plugged it in, iot starts buzzing, then I gave it a few spins and it starts running but slowly, then after a bit it takes off and is running normal. tried this a few times to the same results. if I spun it in the opposite direction, same results in that direction. Thooughts? Thanks for your help.

 

[FrankLee]

I'm in the bad-cap camp.

 

[Snip's]

If you are unable to identify the MFD on the capacitor after you remove the paper cover, this link might help you...
It's the same 7.5 A and HP for a 5KC motor...
SMOKSTAK

 

[RHJO51]

So I removed the cardboard cover from the capacitor and fortuantely, it was marked as follows:

SPRAGUE
K582695AA17
158-191 MFD
110V 60 CY
A3753

The capacitor is approx 3" Long, 1 5/16 diameter. Can anyone recommend a replacement and where? Many thanks for all the help, I appreciate it.

 

[The Cobbler]

you want the MFD number to be within that range ,
. the voltage can be higher but not lower

 

[WillyBoy]

Try this one.

https://www.zoro.com/dayton-motor-start-capacitor-161-193-mfd-round-2mdr4/i/G1744373/

 

[FrankLee]

Or this USA one with free shipping.

Airstar Supply | Solutions for Today's HVAC Problems

www.airstarsupply.com

 

[micromind]

Grainger has them, part number 2MDR4. It's 161 - 193 mFD, 110 - 125 volts and 1 7/16" X 2 3/4".

Around here, the Big R farm store stocks them or you could get it at any motor shop.

 

[RHJO51]

Very helpful Gentlemen, thank you!

 

[RHJO51]

I ordered a capacitor via Amazon and installed it. The motor started up and ran fine. Thanks everyone for your help. I appreciate it/ - Jim

 

[The Cobbler]

great!