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Post by bhammer on Jun 3, 2018 20:14:37 GMT
Greetings.
Guess what I have ?:-)
Well it took some time to figure out what I have here. It is a DR-1 B in seemingly pretty good condition. Nothing happens when powered up to 110 VAC slowly on a variac however. I just got my hands on a manual and have been getting familiar with this refrigerating machine. I wish I could figure out how to post images on this forum! Worth a thousand words they say. I have the control off (it lays flat on the top rear left corner) but haven't determined which of the four wires are what. I hope the manual has a decent schematic.
I'm looking for any and all trouble shooting opinions here. I have removed all of the screws from inside the roof of the unit to remove the top but still waiting on a strong back for help with that.
In the mean time I will keep buggering on.
John |
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Post by Travis on Jun 3, 2018 20:55:36 GMT
Welcome.
The unit lifts off as one piece. Put all those screws back right now!
Is your control missing? You shouldn't be able to see exposed wires. Three go to the motor and two go to the heater.
Don't power up a motor on a variac. They don't like that. Turn the control to off. Plug in the power cord to a watt meter and see if you have any wattage draw. The heater should draw 12-16 watts. If you don't have a watt meter, use a voltmeter set to ohms and take a reading across the prongs where the cord attaches. I think you're looking for 1000 ohms. A dead heater reads as open.
I would suspect that you're unit not running at all means the main contacts aren't closing. Take a look at the DR manual, find the main contact and close them manually, with the power disconnected. Once you've done that, plug it in.
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Post by Travis on Jun 3, 2018 20:59:41 GMT
By the way, that's a DR1 form B under my name. The control is on the back left side.
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Post by cablehack on Jun 3, 2018 21:48:24 GMT
Operating a switch start induction motor at low voltage is extremely unkind to it. It's a good way to burn it out if operated like that for any length of time.
This is because the motor draws excessive current and the start winding remains in circuit - something it is not designed to do.
You want the motor to get up to speed as soon as possible.
In fact, so undesirable is it to operate a fridge at reduced voltage, so called "brown out protectors" have been available.
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Post by bhammer on Jun 3, 2018 23:33:20 GMT
Good stuff - thanks.
Yes, I had the control box off where the wires were exposed.
Looking at the manual it appears that I have the CR-1050-E-1 control.
With regards to the variac, I was trying to sound smart (I have restored a number of old radios). In fact, I did not use the variac - lucky me. Good to know about the current draw.
I will check the current and contact.
Thanks
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Post by Travis on Jun 3, 2018 23:51:43 GMT
You want to remove the control as seldom as possible. The bellows tube can only handle so much bending until it fails.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jun 4, 2018 0:34:51 GMT
Good stuff - thanks. Yes, I had the control box off where the wires were exposed. Looking at the manual it appears that I have the CR-1050-E-1 control. With regards to the variac, I was trying to sound smart (I have restored a number of old radios). In fact, I did not use the variac - lucky me. Good to know about the current draw. I will check the current and contact. Thanks
Welcome! Hopefully your DR has a good motor winding in it! Two of the most tragic ways that these have died unnecessarily are miswiring / running without the motor overload protector, and cold-starting the compressor without having a working heater that has preheated the oil overnight.
PM sent, as well. Not sure how the notifications work on this forum!
Do you have a Kill-A-Watt meter for your radio work? It's a valuable tool for these fridges as well.
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Post by ckfan on Jun 4, 2018 0:40:51 GMT
I just noticed that you created a new thread here. Glad you are starting to figure it out. Just go slow and read through the old posts here. They have a wealth of info. I also echo what the others have said. They are exactly right. I have one just like yours and it still doesn’t work perfect even after doing everything by the book. The DR line was the first popular hermetic compressor refrigerator. Because of that, it isn’t perfect. They are however very charming and interesting. Have faith, be willing to learn, and go slow and you might just be rewarded with a working fridge.
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Post by bhammer on Jun 4, 2018 23:25:48 GMT
Travis - I get 15 watts current when plugged in and off. I get 955 ohms across the terminals. That all seems good according to your info.
Should I leave it plugged in for a while, maybe overnight, before trying to start it? I think I read that somewhere - let the oil get warm?
When I do try and start it I will make sure the starter contact is closed being careful of it while plugged in.
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Post by ckfan on Jun 5, 2018 0:01:17 GMT
Yes, you should let the oil warm up for about a day before you start it. That’s good that you have a working heater. Very rare to have one work. You should see the main contacts and the start contacts close.
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Post by bhammer on Jun 5, 2018 3:19:42 GMT
Thanks for the encouragement ckfan. I have to say I'm a bit perplexed by all the moving parts in the control box but I do know which is the starter contact. The bellows and how it works makes sense. Keep your fingers crossed...
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Post by coldspaces on Jun 5, 2018 3:47:41 GMT
Welcome to the forum! Your control probably has a braided flexible wire to one side on the main contacts. It was broken on mine when I got it. Like ckfan said don't rush and we will be able to guide you along to hopefully a good end result. As for posting pics if you don't have a third party service to use there is a google drive ckfan set up you could use. One of us can find you the thread with the password.
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Post by ckfan on Jun 5, 2018 11:32:25 GMT
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Post by Travis on Jun 5, 2018 17:39:09 GMT
Kevin sent me your pictures. You most likely have a 31 or 32 DR1. I attempted to circle the main contacts. There is a flexible lead that goes from one side of that to the overload that may have broken.
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Post by Travis on Jun 6, 2018 0:39:05 GMT
In corresponding with this member, it seems the bellows has lost its charge. I am suggesting he manually close the main contacts to see if it runs and cools.
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