Pool Pump Capacitor?

[BigTallGuy]

Electric pumps and motors are not my area of expertise, but If I understand capacitors correctly, they are used to jump start the motor from a stop, because it take a bigger jolt of electricity to start a motor, especially with a load on it. Once the motor is running, it settles down and runs on a lower amperage. Sooooo, If your motor starts, I'm not sure you have a bad capacitor. My very limited experience says capacitors either work or they don't. I have seen (heard) motor capacitors hum very loud, but they won't start the motor.

Does your motor "Drag" and take a few extra seconds to finally come up to speed, or does it start right up?

Hope this helps. BTG

[mas985]

The capacitor in an induction motor is used to shift the starter winding current by 90 degrees so the motor will spin up from a dead stop. Without a capacitor or if it is bad, the motor will just sit there and hum. To replace it, you can remove the back cover but I wouldn't suggest doing this unless you are familiar with working on motors and electricity.