The capacitor resides inside the large motor housing.
Capacitors increase the overall starting and running torque for electric motors. The capacitor is electrically connected to the motor windings through two separate wires. When electrical power is applied, the capacitor acts like a battery to give an electrical boost to the ceiling fan motor. Most ceiling fan capacitors are 1/2- to 3/4-inch in diameter and 1 1/2 to 2 inches in length. Ceiling fan capacitors reside under the main cover of the ceiling fan housing.
Instructions
1. Shut off the electricity that feeds the ceiling fan circuit. Perform this by turning off the circuit breaker or pulling the fuse that sends power to the ceiling fan.
2. Remove the light fixture, if applicable, that is attached to the ceiling fan unit. Follow the manufacturers instructions for removal, as different types of ceiling fans have various mechanical and electrical connections for the light fixture.
3. Pull the ceiling fan blades from the lower motor mounts on the unit. Typically there are two screws for each single blade assembly. All of the ceiling fan blades must be removed in order to remove the main outer housing.
4. Locate the main housing screws for the ceiling fan unit. Generally there are three to four screws near the ceiling that hold the exterior housing over the motor. Pull the housing from the motor to expose the wire connections to the capacitor. The capacitor is typically blue in color and a single wire runs from each end of the small-cylindrical device. Two wires make up the capacitor electrical connection to the motor.
5. Pull the capacitor gently downward to gain access to the wire nuts on each end of the two wires. Unscrew the in a counter-clockwise direction. Pull the from the wires and remove the old capacitor.
6. Install the new replacement capacitor to each individual motor wire. It does not matter which wire from the capacitor is connected to which motor wire. Twist the bare copper ends of the wires together with the wire pliers in a clockwise direction. Cover the bare copper wires with the wire nut you removed in Step 5.
7. Install all removed parts in the reverse order from above.
Tags: wire nuts, bare copper, ceiling blades, ceiling unit, light fixture