Air Conditioning - Carrier package unit condensor fan intermitent problem

I have a carrier older model 50ss--036--301 with a G E fan motor # 5kcp39fg R560s 1/4 hp. Every 2-3 weeks the air kicks on as normal, but the fan wont start. The first time it happened, I just shut everything off, went outside and spun the fan. Then I turned everything back on and it ran just fine.

It runs quiet, no bangs when it starts or any other issues. It did it about a year ago for the first time, and then again about 6 months ago, and it ran with no problems ever since.

Now it still does it, but now it happens every 2-3 weeks. All I do is go outside and spin the fan, wait a few minutes, and it runs fine.

I know something is going on but I just don't know what to look for. I've been reading some other posts on this forum but I haven't really seen any other posts dealing with close to the same issues.

Could it be the capacitor to the fan? That's the closest answer I could find here. If that's the case, are they very expensive? Being out of work for some time, money right now is an issue.

The fan seems to be OK, so maybe its something I can't do myself.

Sorry for taking so much time. Thanks for any help.

Yes, looks like a capacitor problem. They are not expensive, generally, $30-$40 , some even cheaper, depends on the model. Good luck to you..

Thank you for your reply. Today I'll check it out to get the info from the old one and determine if I can do it. If I can get it done, I'll repost in a couple of weeks with the results. It takes 2-3 weeks before it acts up, so I need to wait and see.
Thanks again
Don (Poppss)

Yes, looks like a capacitor problem. They are not expensive, generally, $30-$40 , some even cheaper, depends on the model. Good luck to you..


Good guess prob is prob....