A.C. help, contactor?, capacitor?, both?, other?

[BrokenPaw]

No different than the constant (and always useless to the OP) "use detcord" posts, which you've participated in.

Let's just get all the memes out of the way at once:  It's Fistful's fault that Mabs was so gay that he threw a shoe wrapped in detcord at Ned's poop.

Did I miss any?

[280plus]

Hmmmm, let me think... 

[280plus]

Let's just get all the memes out of the way at once:  It's Fistful's fault that Mabs was so gay that he threw a shoe wrapped in detcord at Ned's poop.

Did I miss any?

While nuking it from orbit...

[Jim147]

While nuking it from orbit...

It's the only way to be sure.

jim

[Ron]

Nothing about this problem as described screamed out to me "bad capacitor".

With the intermittent operation of the condensing unit as described it appeared to me to be a bad connection in the wiring, bad t-stat or (now off the table) bad contactor. 

Of course for all we know his unit has a HPS that is tripping due to a bad condenser fan motor.

Just not enough info was given to recommend changing parts IMHO.

[280plus]

Generally a HPS is usually manual reset. But you're right, the best we would be doing is giving it a "tuneup" by changing the contactor and hoping that solved the problem in the process. Given it has two caps I think we can rule them out so it probably is the contactor. In a case like this however we won't know until we change it. Could just be burnt contacts. Sometimes they make sometimes they don't. The whole thing about him pushing it it I believe was done while it should have been calling and I have seen where a contactor that has pulled in on its own was not making and then when you pushed it in harder it makes. And I mean "makes a connection" not "makes a poop". 

[Thor]

Some ACs have a circuit board inside with a trouble code LED. Look inside the unit and see is there is a blinking red LED. If so, find the owner's manual and find the trouble code for it. The other possibility is that it is low on freon. Some units have a pressure switch that won't allow the compressor to kick in if the unit is low on freon.