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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 16:51:47 GMT
Hopeful for a cycling test today. I put tape over the seams where the top sits on the cabinet, as well as installed a temporary door gasket. She fired right up and is pulling about 2.4 amps.
The only thing that concerns me is the condition of the control bellows. Yesterday there was a good coating of frost on the evaporator, but the control linkage didn't seem to be moving towards the tripping position. In other words, the arm controlled by the bellows was not moving as I have seen happening on others' videos.
Time will tell!
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 16:54:48 GMT
So glad it works David, from your original description I was sure it would have no gas left in. Great news, thanks for sharing!
Same here! I felt bad that I talked so sad about it earlier! Should not have doubted, as they say. I really enjoy sharing these sort of projects and plan to continue. That's what makes this hobby worth doing. There are plenty of people who enjoy these, but they are spread across the country. Without the Internet it would be very hard to get the same level of interaction.
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Post by Travis on Jul 3, 2018 17:02:30 GMT
Is the bellows tube solidly against the evaporator.
It will take quite some time to cool the cabinet and allow the control to cycle. Plan on 2-3 hrs depending on ambient temperature.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 17:08:37 GMT
Is the bellows tube solidly against the evaporator. It will take quite so time to cool the cabinet and allow the control to cycle. Plan on 2-3 hrs depending on ambient temperature. Hi Travis. It seems to be. The clamp is in place, can't move the sensing tube by hand.
I started it about 30 minutes ago with gaskets and tape. Will check it after coming home from Lunch.
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Post by icebox on Jul 3, 2018 19:13:52 GMT
So glad it works David, from your original description I was sure it would have no gas left in. Great news, thanks for sharing!
Same here! I felt bad that I talked so sad about it earlier! Should not have doubted, as they say. I really enjoy sharing these sort of projects and plan to continue. That's what makes this hobby worth doing. There are plenty of people who enjoy these, but they are spread across the country. Without the Internet it would be very hard to get the same level of interaction.
Spread across the world! I live in the UK and unfortunately Monitor Top fridges are very rare over here, although there is one on ebay in the UK at the moment: www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VINTAGE-RETR-KITSCH-FRIDGE-1935-BTH-REFRIDGERATER-BRITSH-THOMPSON-HOUSTON-YEOVIL/153058089958?hash=item23a2f91be6:g:XEoAAOSwE3ha8ukTI thought it looked pretty rough but having looked at what you have - and it works - given me some hope. Although I don't think my wife will let me have another fridge just yet! :-) But that's what I love about this forum, YouTube and the Internet; this sharing of information, stories etc just wouldn't be possible. Thanks to everyone on here.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 19:57:35 GMT
Interesting the British Thompson Houston badging on it. I realize that is GE's across the pond counterpart to our GE here in the states. I wonder if it was manufactured in England, or if it was only a branding thing and the completed product came from across the pond ready to use?
Cool to have you here from UK. Your comment above makes me wish I could "Like" this post twice or more! I have seen quite a few countries (more than many of my fellow Americans) but have only spend one night in hotel in England. I would not call that "having been there" by my opinion. Hope to have a chance to visit some day. Since I travel for my work, I get to see what real life is like in other countries, not just the tourist trap areas. It's an eye-opener.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 20:04:04 GMT
The eBay seller in the above link says: Please. Please save this fridge from becoming a steam puke robot! Please? Some things are Just Not To Be Done.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 20:08:30 GMT
Is the bellows tube solidly against the evaporator. It will take quite some time to cool the cabinet and allow the control to cycle. Plan on 2-3 hrs depending on ambient temperature. Well, I went to town for lunch and when I returned to my barn, the fridge was still running. It cycled off shortly after, and has cycled several times since I have been back. So far so good. Because I don't run the A/C here when I'm not here - I have a fan circulating the air in the room to give it a little relief.
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Post by Travis on Jul 3, 2018 20:35:08 GMT
Give it as much cooling as possible. It’s at least 86 years old. One of the failure modes is bad windings.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 22:24:29 GMT
Give it as much cooling as possible. It’s at least 86 years old. One of the failure modes is bad windings.
Yeah, that's what I am afraid of happening!
It's cycling nicely. At the moment, the power use is 141 watts, 2.6 amps.
The condenser is "very warm" and the dome is "almost hot" about like the exterior of a coffee cup. The room is in the 80's with a fan going. I just turned the A/C on in here as well.
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Post by ckfan on Jul 3, 2018 23:20:35 GMT
Yeah, it sounds like it’s working, and working hard! Best to be nice to these old girls.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 3, 2018 23:30:17 GMT
Yeah, it sounds like it’s working, and working hard! Best to be nice to these old girls.
Yeah, I don't want to ruin it unnecessarily. Part of the reason the A/C is on now LOL.
I would, however, rather it fail now instead of after I have it fully restored and painted. If I were to have to do any invasive repairs to the unit, it would be a lot less expensive before painting it. I can't do professional quality painting. That will probably be a little costly to me, since I'll have to pay a bodyshop to do it.
My plan is to run it for 2 or 3 days and monitor the performance. If it remains healthy, then I'll move on to cosmetic work. If it seems to be sick, then another repair path will have to come first.
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Post by turbokinetic on Jul 4, 2018 3:06:53 GMT
So, it's worked flawlessly all day. Maintaining 20°F in the evaporator. Made a short video to compare it to the CK...
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Post by birkie on Jul 4, 2018 16:02:53 GMT
Excellent! I usually let mine run for a few days or weeks to put them through the paces as well. Adjusting for the soldering iron, the watts are typical. The sounds different DRs make under different conditions are fascinating. Yours sounds a bit on the loud side, but then again they tend to be a bit louder in high ambients, and videos make them appear louder than they really are. For comparison: Typical running of my DR2 photos.app.goo.gl/Hg3dDGcAtps3TGTGAMy DRA2 during pulldown, and how sensitive it is to refrigerant in the oil (by varying the leveling of the machine) photos.app.goo.gl/dog7fJKDozNn5Kh89Typical running for that DRA2: photos.app.goo.gl/tEJdHE3NpNdCkUpm9Thw same DRA2 at the end of its cycle on a really hot day (notice the slight whistling tone) photos.app.goo.gl/C6r2Fyg1NtgjD2Zw8
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Post by solarmike on Jul 4, 2018 16:20:31 GMT
Man that is awesome to hear them running... They make a lot more noise than the FEAs that I have.... The DRs are cool for sure, Thanks for posting.....
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