After the hot Summer that we had last year, I had planned on buying a cover for my HVAC condenser.
The unit is in my backyard and although it is surrounded by a large shrub, I believe it gets too much direct sunlight.
In fact, last Summer, the capacitor malfunctioned, and I believe it was because it burned out due to too much direct sun. The capacitor is one of the parts in a HVAC unit that fails the most. The main causes that a capacitor fails include improper voltage, wear and tear of the part, and overheating. It could have been caused by the wear and tear because I did use my A/C a lot that year. But something is telling me that the sun caused it to overheat as well since that was one of the hottest Summers we have on record. The HVAC condenser is built to withstand extreme weather that include heavy rains and winds, ice storms as well as high heat. However, when the temperature was hitting over 95 degrees every day and the sun was beating down on the condenser unit, I assume that the capacitor was also feeling the pressure. I asked my HVAC technician if a cover would help to block some of the direct sun. He said it would, but covers are not recommended for HVAC condensers and I am better off placing some kind of shaded barrier around the unit. I have a few months before the weather gets really hot, so I will do some research to see the best solution to provide shade for my HVAC condenser.