Many homeowners don’t take the time to understand what each component of their ceiling fan does. While this is entirely normal, it can help you learn a bit more about why the capacitor is an essential part of your fan. As without it, your ceiling fan wouldn’t be able to spin continuously.
A ceiling fan capacitor is an electrical component located in the housing unit of your ceiling fan. It creates a rotating magnetic field that helps move and rotate the blades of the fan. It propels the blades in one direction and will adjust to speed settings.
Understanding a capacitor can be beneficial, as you’ll tell if there is an issue with one of the components. Capacitors are prone to fail over time, which can be frustrating if you rely on a ceiling fan for airflow.
Luckily, we’ve provided you a guide on everything you’ll need to know about your ceiling fan.
Can Ceiling Fans Run Without a Capacitor?
The main housing of the ceiling fan includes the capacitor. Without a capacitor, your fan would not be able to function. This is due to the capacitor creating a magnetic flux which pushes the fan blades in a rotary movement.
The capacitor, also known as a condenser, is an electromagnetic component that helps conduct electricity. When an electric signal is sent through the conductors, the dielectric will store energy and create an electric field. This field is what pushes the fan’s blades and allows the fan blades to rotate.
However, you could manually spin the fan blades, which causes the fan to rotate. Although, this will die down over time, and you’ll need to spin the fan again.
So, the answer is both yes and no. A ceiling fan can run without a capacitor, but it won’t be effective.
Does a Ceiling Fan Need a Capacitor?
Every ceiling fan needs a capacitor to produce airflow and effectively cool a room. Without a capacitor installed, the fan won’t create magnetic flux for it to spin. In simple terms, yes, a ceiling fan needs a capacitor. Otherwise, it won’t keep spinning.
However, the main housing inside does have a rotary unit, which allows the fan to spin freely. If you were to give it a slight push, the fan would continue to rotate for a few minutes. After a time, the movement would die down due to not having any force propelling it forward.
What Causes a Ceiling Fan Capacitor to Fail?
Some indications of a bad ceiling fan capacitor are that the fan should power on and produce no noises. After the blades start to turn, you likely have a problem with your hands if there is noise. A loud humming noise often is a sign that there is an issue with the capacitor and is the most common.
Luckily, we’ll get more in-depth about what went wrong and how you can fix it:
1. Burned-Out Capacitor
Inside each ceiling fan are coils, which help conduct electricity. When these coils break down from consistent use, they become less effective and can stop working. However, some models tend to break down without any reason. The best you can do to prevent a capacitor from breaking down is yearly cleaning it by preventing debris from getting into the coils and capacitors.
2. Over Voltage
A low voltage rating capacitor may not be able to run if it’s dealing with high voltage. This overtime will cause the capacitor to break down and eventually not turn on. We highly recommend that you make sure that the voltage can support the capacitor before purchasing.
3. Overcurrent
Overcurrent happens when the unit is provided too low voltage at high powers. If there isn’t a voltage stabilizer installed, then a large heat dissipation can damage the capacitor. If this happens, the unit will need to be replaced.
4. Inter turn fault of the motor
With electricity, the electricity is conducted in a specific way to ensure that there are no risks. When either of these turn fault motors gets shorted, then the current can start burning the capacitor.
You may not notice this right away, but it will render your capacitor useless if this happens.
What Happens if Capacitor Fails In A Fan?
There are a few things that happen when the capacitor fails in your fan. If the capacitor is just damaged, your fan may still power on and move the fan blades. However, you may notice a slight delay in the speed at which it pushes them.
Another scenario is that the capacitor will fail, and it won’t work or turn on at all. In this case, you will need to contact a professional or replace the capacitor.
How Much Does a Ceiling Fan Capacitor Cost?
According to FIXR, the average cost of repairing a ceiling fan is between $90 to $200. However, these estimates are based on mid-ranged ceiling fans. If the interior is damaged, you could quickly look up at the higher end range of $450 for a complete replacement.
How to Tell if a Ceiling Fan Capacitor is Bad
There are a few signs of a lousy ceiling capacitor. Knowing how to listen and keep an eye out for these signs can help you prevent the capacitor from failing.
Here is a typical list of the first signs of a bad capacitor:
- Fan speeds either don’t work or are slow
- Fan won’t start unless manually spun
- Specific settings do not work
- A slight humming sound but not spinning
Conclusion
As you can see, a ceiling fan capacitor is essential to any ceiling fan. Without a capacitor, the ceiling fan wouldn’t be able to circulate air around your home adequately – necessary, rendering it useless. So, that’s why it’s essential to keep a close on the capacitor and keep it well maintained.
Replacing a capacitor isn’t expensive, but minor repairs can add up over time as a homeowner. Hence, we believe regular maintenance should be done to avoid giving it out. Hopefully, we’ve helped you understand a bit more about what a ceiling fan capacitor does.