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Post by coldspaces on Mar 11, 2016 0:00:13 GMT
I have always wanted one of theses water bath coolers even way before I thought about the Monitor Tops. But I never saw one when I had the money to buy it. A couple weeks ago I bit the bullet and bought this one even though its paint job is well worn from age and use. It still has the what appears to be the original Westinghouse refrigeration system that all works except for the water circulator motor. After a bit of a struggle to get the motor mounting screws loose I carefully opened the end of the condenser fan motor and re oiled it. It is a 2 phase motor similar to the ones GE used. Looks like the compressor start winding powers one phase just like GE did. I have most of it rewired already and have a temporary water circulator motor in it. It works great and is still full of Freon. I had it down to 33 f and check the evap, no ice was forming on the evap coils, I assume because of the moving water it has to get colder before ice forms. I got it cycling off at 32 f. The temporary motor I am using is not really for shaft down applications. It is also to tall and shaded pole, the original was a PSC motor. There is a replacement motor sold that runs the other way and comes with a new blade to make up for the rotation change. I can't tell if it is shaded pole or not. I am going to try to adapt an energy efficient ECM motor that is almost water proof and short like the original. Well see how that goes after I get the motor. I am planing to put much larger wheels under it some way to make to more mobile. Hope to sell old fashioned soda out of it at the spring Chillicothe Historical Society yard sale.     |
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Post by ckfan on Mar 11, 2016 1:34:18 GMT
Wow, that looks to be in good shape for its age. The Westinghouse compressor looks similar to the one that is in my 57. Mine is a little smaller and has cooling fins surrounding it. I'm glad that you got it running without a lot of headache. I think the paint gives it a nice patina but I bet that it would really pop with a fresh coat of "coke red". I'm surprised that with the amount of water it has to cool that the condenser coil isn't larger.
I was also wondering where the evap coil that you mentioned was. I thought it would have surrounded the inside of the cabinet like a chest freezer. I bet the off times are good since it has so much thermal mass!
People will really like using it at the function that you mentioned!
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Post by coldspaces on Mar 11, 2016 4:52:16 GMT
The condenser never did get all that hot even though it does run for a fairly long time to first pull it down. I did start with about 55 f water from my well and it wasn't in a hot ambient by any means. Or full of hot soda either. Keep in mind that it only takes the removal of one BTU per pound of water to drop that pound of water one degree Fahrenheit. Try to turn 32 degree water to 32 degree ice and its a hole other story. 144 BTU must be removed from the same pound of water for that to happen. Not sure just how many pounds of water are in this Coke machine. Anyway here are some pics of the evap. Here it is with the cover on it.  Normally the water circulator motor would be on top.  It draws water from the far side and through the channel under the floor. Then up through the evap coil and out the holes near the top.  Here's a shot with the cover off and no water circulator.  |
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Post by ckfan on Mar 11, 2016 14:34:35 GMT
Thank you for the explanation of BTU removal. I had no idea that to make ice you had to remove that much energy. That makes sense though. Phase changes are always hard to come by!
Now that I've seen the evap it looks like I thought it would. I didn't realize that it draws water from underneath the bottle tray though. Very cool!
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Post by ChrisJ on Mar 11, 2016 19:41:08 GMT
Thank you for the explanation of BTU removal. I had no idea that to make ice you had to remove that much energy. That makes sense though. Phase changes are always hard to come by! Now that I've seen the evap it looks like I thought it would. I didn't realize that it draws water from underneath the bottle tray though. Very cool! Similar with turning water into steam, except steam stores a whole lot more energy than ice. This is from a book. "You have all heard of the BTU of heat energy (British Thermal Unit), it takes one BTU to raise one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit. So if the water in the pan on the stove is put in at 32°F, it will then require 180 BTU's to bring the water to boiling temperature, or 212°F. Now, no matter how hot the stove burner is, the water will get no hotter than 212 0F. As this pound of water boils at 212°F, heat energy is being added to change it to steam. When the last of the pound of water has been vaporized to steam, the stove will have added 970 BTU's to that pound of water to furnish the energy to make what we call a pound of steam." |
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Post by coldspaces on Mar 12, 2016 3:56:13 GMT
I didn't remember just how much heat steam has in it. 970 btu is a lot of latent heat. No wonder they came out with condensing gas furnaces.
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Post by ChrisJ on Mar 12, 2016 3:58:23 GMT
I didn't remember just how much heat steam has in it. 970 btu is a lot of latent heat. No wonder they came out with condensing gas furnaces. Yep, They get a ton of heat out of that moisture in the flue gas. |
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Post by davido on Jun 4, 2016 3:56:30 GMT
Looks like a 1949 Westinghouse. I have one.....along with several other vintage soda machines. I've been refurbishing old machines for 21 yrs...it was a hobby that turned into a business....Vintage Vending-Soda Machine Sales.
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Post by coldspaces on Jun 4, 2016 4:28:22 GMT
The control is dated Sep 2 1947 is why I thought it was a 47. Could easily be a 48 depending on lead times. The old vending machines are fun also and potentially a lot more profitable than the refrigerators.
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Post by davido on Jun 4, 2016 22:50:22 GMT
Yes, I believe there is a larger fan base out there for vintage soda machines...It has been very lucrative for my business....course it helps that I advertise and deliver all over Texas...lol. I've met lots of good folk over the last 21 yrs.
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Post by Stevie15 on Jul 20, 2022 0:44:04 GMT
I just acquired a 1940 water bath coke spin top vending machine. How cold should I expect the water to get during operation? The cooling coil without water in the tub gets to 17° f. Cooling system and recirculation pump all work. Tub is stainless steel. Fun unit and I plan on keeping the paint and patina as is.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 20, 2022 1:33:28 GMT
I just acquired a 1940 water bath coke spin top vending machine. How cold should I expect the water to get during operation? The cooling coil without water in the tub gets to 17° f. Cooling system and recirculation pump all work. Tub is stainless steel. Fun unit and I plan on keeping the paint and patina as is. Hi Steve. The water-bath cooler should cool the water to the freezing point. The thermostat should be set to shut the compressor off as soon as some ice builds up in the agitator area. The compressor should stay off until the ice is all gone. The water should be as close to 32°F as possible. If you want to get things colder, you can put some propylene glycol in the water. That is a food-grade antifreeze; and will allow you to cool the water down to the high 20 degrees range. |
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