How Much Does It Cost to Replace a Central AC Motor in Tampa, FL?

First of all, your AC has 2 types of motors: 

1. A blower motor, which is located inside in the air handler. 
2. A fan motor, which is located in the outdoor unit. 

The cost to replace these motors largely depends on factors like… 

• The Type of Motor You Need 
• Your AC Warranty 
• The Contractor You Hire 

We’ll go into more detail about those factors later in the article. But first, to give you some more context, let’s go into more detail about what each of these motors do... 

Need help immediately? Schedule an inspection or give us a call and we’ll quickly send over one of our AC techs to fix the issue. 

What Do AC Motors Do?

Like we mentioned in the beginning, your AC system has 2 types of motors that help cool your home. We’ll explain the purpose of each one here:

The Blower Motor

Your AC blower motor is responsible for powering—you guessed it—the blower. The blower is actually responsible for 3 different actions: 

• Step 1: Sucking in warm air from inside your home. 
• Step 2: Pushing that warm air over the evaporator coil (the part that cools the air). 
• Step 3: Blowing the cold, conditioned air back into your home.

Blower sucks in warm air, where it’s cooled at the evaporator coil and then pushed back into your home as cool air. 

Now, if your blower motor is broken or faulty, you’ll get... 

• Longer Than Normal Cooling Cycles 
• Higher Energy Bills 
• Very Little or No Air Coming Out of Your Vents 
• Ice on Evaporator Coil (Due to Lowered Airflow Over the Coils) 

The Condenser Fan Motor

Located outside, your AC condenser fan motor has one job: to cool down superheated refrigerant.

You see, refrigerant, the special substance that absorbs heat from your home’s air, travels throughout your AC system in a continuous loop: it absorbs heat from inside your home then travels outside to dump all that heat into the outside air and then travels back indoors to repeat the process.

So, when the refrigerant travels to the outside unit, it’s carrying a lot of heat. And that’s where your condenser fan comes into play. The fan blows air over the refrigerant lines to help push that heat into the outdoor air. 

But, if your fan motor gives out, you’ll get… 

• A Buzzing Noise Outside (if the Problem Is Electrical) 
• Longer Cooling Cycles 
• Higher Energy Bills 
• Air That’s Warmer Than Usual Indoors 
• A Bad/Broken Compressor—The (Very Expensive) Part That Pumps Refrigerant Around the System

Factors That Determine How Much You’ll Pay to Replace Your AC Motor

#1: The Type of Motor You Need

Here’s how both types of motors break down in price (not including labor): 

• Blower motors are usually more expensive. 
• Fan motors are usually less expensive.

Your service tech will help you find a model that matches your HVAC system. 

#2: Your AC Warranty

Most new air conditioners come with a limited parts warranty that will cover failed AC parts (like the blower motor and fan motor) for 5-10 years (warranty length depends on the manufacturer). 

Note: Most AC warranties only cover the defective part, not the labor to replace it.

However, for your AC warranty to be valid you need to have done the following: 

1. Registered your air conditioner with the manufacturer when you first installed the AC. 
2. Hired a certified technician to maintain your air conditioner annually. 

If you didn’t do those 2 things, your warranty may not be valid. Visit your AC manufacturer's website or contact the contractor who installed your AC to find out the specifics of your warranty. 

#3: The Contractor You Hire

In addition to the motor itself, you’ll also need to pay for the labor to install it. Contractors can charge for their labor in 2 ways: 

1. Hourly: A contractor who charges by the hour will bill you a fee for every hour it takes to do the job.
2. A fixed rate: Some contractors charge a flat rate for their services—regardless of how long it takes to do the job.

When you’re looking for an AC contractor, we recommend finding one who… 

• Has Good Online Customer Reviews (on Sites Like Yelp, Better Business Bureau, Google). 
• Is Licensed and Insured 
• Offers written estimates for their work, so you know what to expect from the beginning. 

Need a New Central AC Motor? Are You in the Tampa Area?

Just give us a call and we can help. We’ll send over one of our trusted techs to replace your blower or fan motor. To learn more about our services, visit our AC repair page.