[codeblue]

Hello - I have a Bryant Mid Range Efficiency Furnace (395cav036055). The blower motor seems to be putting out too little air volume in heating mode. While the limit switch has not turned off the burners yet, it may just be a matter of time. (I do not smell any type of electrical type of burning either)

The filters have been changed recently and when I open the blower motor access door and lock the door switch to "on" (fooling the switch) I notice a greatly increased air flow volume across my registers. I do not believe there is a clogged cold air return and the blower cage spins freely when not running. I'm wondering what the odds are that the (run?) capacitor is bad versus the motor itself being bad. Its my understanding (from an electrical motor seller that I trust) that a motor doesn't just "get tired" but I'm not smart enough to know for certain.

The furnace was installed in 1994 and I believe it to be the original blower motor assembly for this unit. Can someone help me out?

[Bill L]

I have a 2001 Byrant Furnace and have replaced a blower in 2006. My new blower has stopped. The dealer says it is my fault because I don't change the filters often enough and wants to charge me $ 450 for another blower. I change the filter quaterly (seasonal) Does this make sense? (replacing a blower so soon and for $450 bucks)

[hvac1000]

Usually replacement blower motors are only guaranteed for one year so you would have to pay for a replacement since the one year time has passed.

It all depends upon how much dirt gets on your filters in a given amount of time. My filters here are changed every 90 days but some filters need to be changed every month especially if you have a dusty home or have pets.

One thing that could have happened is that they sold you a cheap motor as a replacement the time before but without all the numbers and brand of motor there is no way to know if this statement could be true.

Hopefully they also changed the motor capacitor when they changed the motor the last time or that could also have caused the new motor to go bad so soon.

As you can see there are many possibilitys.

[codeblue]

Usually replacement blower motors are only guaranteed for one year so you would have to pay for a replacement since the one year time has passed.

It all depends upon how much dirt gets on your filters in a given amount of time. My filters here are changed every 90 days but some filters need to be changed every month especially if you have a dusty home or have pets.

One thing that could have happened is that they sold you a cheap motor as a replacement the time before but without all the numbers and brand of motor there is no way to know if this statement could be true.

Hopefully they also changed the motor capacitor when they changed the motor the last time or that could also have caused the new motor to go bad so soon.

As you can see there are many possibilitys.

HVAC1000 - Thanks for your insight. While my filters are only changed semi-regularly, I do try to keep tabs on the status of them. The other thing that I should point out is that the furnace originally came with the 20x25x5 furnace filters that run like $25.00 at HD. There was no way I was going to change those every 90 days or so, so I made modifications to allow for two standard 1 inch filters of the same size placed one in front of the other.

Turns out the motor capacitor was bad and only cost $15.00 to replace. The motor runs better but still doesn't give the same airflow as when you take off the access cover to the squirrel cage/motor assembly to begin with.

Do you think that the dual filter thing is choking off too much air to the inlet side of the squirrel cage?

P.S. - I have another question on another much older Bryant Furnace regarding the overall operation - can I ask it when you have a chance to answer?

[hvac1000]

We have two different posters with questions on the same thread. I answered BillL question not yours. LOL

If you replaced the motor capacitor with the same specifications as the old one then at this point that is all the motor will do. If there is a large difference in air flow with the service door off then it is possible that your return air is restricted somewhere. I never recommend that a person runs two filters at the same time. I know the original filter assembly was bigger but it probably had a better flow through design for all I know. Look for any other restrictions around any of the returns in the home and remember use one filter. Please start a new thread for your next question. It gets real confusing when the same thread is used for additional questions or when someone else posts a different question on the same thread.