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Post by coldspaces on Aug 7, 2017 16:51:23 GMT
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nana
5 Cubic Foot
Posts: 70 
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Post by nana on Aug 7, 2017 18:33:01 GMT
That thin tube I was talking about does just end on the right side. It's not touching the actual coils, just what seems to be the support frame. Was this fridge supposed to have the spacers or not? That is, should they be there and they're missing, or did it not need them in the first place. The repair guy is coming back tomorrow to recheck it. It would be good for me to have as much information as possible to give him. He seems nice enough, but I have the sneaking suspicion that he had it sitting around in his shop while he did other, more important things, and when he couldn't delay anymore, he slapped the new gasket on it, gave the rest of it the once-over, turned it on to see if it ran, and called it a day. Now he may be having to come back to do the things that should have been done all along. At least he's willing to come back. We live in a fairly rural area--bad word of mouth would put him out of business. I did check the black radiator looking coils underneath--they look OK, I guess. No big gobs of dust or dirt, just kind of old and grimy looking. There's nothing there that would seem to be insulating them from radiating heat. I did the flashlight test last night and by golly there was light leaking out just at the top left corner. no more than an inch on either side of the corner. Funny what you never notice if you don't know what to look for. There is a tiny bump where the pink plastic of the inside meets the white frame of the outside that looks like it is not flush like it should be, and that is the exact spot where the light leaked out. Here is a picture:  Could that little bit be causing so much trouble? |
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Post by ckfan on Aug 7, 2017 21:35:37 GMT
I doubt that the plastic sticking out is the cause of the trouble but it isn't helping. See if you can gently massage it back into place and hopefully it will let the door close better.
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Post by heviarti on Aug 8, 2017 15:59:04 GMT
Back in about 1990 I lived in a house that had one just like it. It is one of two non-monitor top machines I regret not acquiring. The other was a stand up deep freeze with a ridiculously heavy latch system.
If you haven't gotten it, get it.
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Post by blackhorse on Aug 8, 2017 16:13:04 GMT
Personally, I'd still put plastic strips between the thermostat probe and the metal it's clamped to. Just make a long strip with holes for the screws and put it behind the clamps/probe. Even if it didn't come with one, that would give you the longer cycles and colder cut-off point.
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Post by blackhorse on Aug 8, 2017 16:35:05 GMT
If you take off the thermostat knob, do you see this type of thermostat? (Genuine G.E.) The mounting tabs may be turned out instead of in, and there may be 3 tabs to hold the knob instead of a shaft, and certainly a different probe (this one has a hydraulic bulb and yours is a vapor tension probe) but is it basically the same? If so, there's a hole in the front with a curved arrow next to it and the word "colder". There is a tiny screw about a half inch inside the thermostat (indicated by red arrow in this picture). You will need a tiny flat-blade screwdriver with thin shaft, and be darn sure it goes straight in and is in the screw slot; there's plenty of stuff to get the screwdriver stuck in if you miss the screw. Unplug the unit first, turn the screw in the indicated direction (ccw or to the left on my sample), only about a quarter of a turn at a time. And gently; this is a precision part. Put the knob back on and turn it to the middle of the range, plug it in and check the temp in the morning or after no one has opened the door for several hours. Repeat if not satisfactory. And keep a journal of how far you turned it in case you need to return it to default later for some reason. Note that this may not give you the longer cycle times you need for a complete defrost. Or may be perfect. Won't know until you try. Attachments:
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nana
5 Cubic Foot
Posts: 70
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Post by nana on Aug 9, 2017 0:11:44 GMT
I am so grateful for all the information you all have given me. The repair guy came today, and the things he was saying pretty much matched what I have learned from you, so it's nice for someone who's not handy like me to be able to feel confident they're not being hoodwinked. He didn't want to try to bend the plastic on the frame because he didn't want to force it and break it. He said it probably warped with age, and he said that the little bit it was shouldn't be enough to make too much of a difference since it was small and at the top, which jibes with gravity helping it cool. Then he adjusted the thermostat like you all were saying, and showed me what to do if one clockwise turn was not enough, or was in the wrong direction. (It either didn't have a directional marker, or he couldn't see it.) And he said to let it run overnight without opening and check the temp in the morning before making any changes, so that sounds right too. It was set at #8, and he said to keep it at that until I know what the right direction is, then to set it back to #5 or so, in the middle, and work at it until I get it settled. Patience is obviously a useful trait to have when dealing with old refrigerators! I hope this does the trick. I'll wait and see before I try any fancy stuff with plastic strips!!
In other news, the freezer, being that it was turned up so high, made a quart of ice cream hard like a brick. We had to let it sit out 15 minutes before my husband could even scoop it! So that works fine!
In the interest of full disclosure, perhaps I should admit the embarrassing fact that in all this time and all this waiting I never once actually measured the width of the fridge, and was punished for this by finding out that it was exactly 1/4 inch too wide for the space in my kitchen. My other fridge had already been moved to the basement, so I had a decision to make. I decided I like my cabinets more than I like the fridge. They are beautiful, old, solid wood, and even though it was only a quarter inch, I did not want to cut into them. When the guy dropped off the fridge and we discovered the awful truth, he did not have the time to make the switch, so I was using my vintage fridge to keep the food in,sticking out in my narrow kitchen so that I couldn't even open the door all the way and get the full benefit of the lazy susan shelves!! Serves me right.
When he came back today, we switched them. I could swear my old Whirlpool was looking kind of smug. "So. You want me back, eh?" So my beautiful Lazy Susan fridge is relegated to the basement (It's a nice basement, I swear!!) to be my beer, garden produce, fermentation project storage fridge, as well as Thanksgiving overflow. Well, I have wanted a second fridge for a while, so I'm still glad I got it. It will get plenty of use! And as my husband pointed out, it's outward appearance was nearly the same as my Whirlpool. The really cool stuff was all on the inside, so visually it wasn't really a match for the Chambers anyway. It'll just be my little hidden gem, down in the basement.
Any ideas on how to fix that little gasket gap? I was thinking maybe that weatherstripping stuff they sell that's shaped like a v. It's flexible, and has adhesive on one side, and compresses flat and opens up just enough to fill the gap.
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Post by blackhorse on Aug 9, 2017 4:15:48 GMT
You can adjust either the plastic or the gasket by use of heat -very carefully- . The materials used are meant to be durable when cold (not shatter) so can be damaged by heat more easily. But after all these years I wouldn't try to bend the plastic without heating it. Suggest a towel and very hot water, NOT a hair dryer unless you have one with a "low" you can hold your hand in indefinitely (which would be less messy). The instructions that come with gaskets actually say to put them in hot water before installing to get them to relax from being in the package. So hot water (with rubber hot mitts) or low heat, and stretch as needed, and cool while holding in the shape you want (cold water, ice pack, whatever).
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Post by jake on Aug 9, 2017 4:39:32 GMT
That's great news, Nana. Sounds like you're almost there. Maybe just a couple more adjustments on the thermostat and you'll have it! After 58 years maybe it just lost it's original calibration and needs to be "tweaked" a bit. I put a thermometer in my GE Combination that's in my basement. It's similar to yours. Smaller and, I believe a bit older, but it's the same type of fridge. It's a cycle defrost model from the early '50s. The fridge is empty right now but I keep it running. On the number 5 setting of the thermostat dial it maintains +34°F. I haven't done cycle times but I can if you'd like for comparison.
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nana
5 Cubic Foot
Posts: 70
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Post by nana on Aug 9, 2017 23:38:03 GMT
That might be helpful, Jake, thanks! I would like to have a reference point for the number 5 setting because....
Yowza, and I say again, YOWZA! The repairman gave that thermostat screw one full, clockwise 360* turn yesterday. When I went down to check it this morning it was at 9* Farenheit!!!! I had to look at it twice to make sure I wasn't seeing things. There was a lot of condensation where that little gap is, but at 9* I'm not surprised! Good thing I emptied it out for the move and didn't put anything else back in. I turned the plastic dial back down to a normal 5, and I'll check it tomorrow and see where we are. At least I know now I'll need to turn it less than one full turn counterclockwise if it does need to be adjusted at all. Sheesh! The coils were good and frosted, you betcha. At least we all know it's capable of some serious cooling.
If I were to try to adjust the gasket, would I be able to flatten it back out if I can't get it to bump out correctly?
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Post by jake on Aug 10, 2017 3:28:22 GMT
That tells us the refrigeration system is in good shape and the thermostat is out of adjustment. I'd suggest turning the screw 3/4 of a turn back from where it is now. Let it run another 24 hours and check it. Now you know which direction for colder and which direction for warmer. As was mentioned earlier this is a very precision adjustment. So once you turn the screw back the 3/4 of a turn if it's not right yet make small adjustments from this point. I'd also suggest making your adjustments with the dial on number 5 since this is where it will be for most of the time. Once you can get it in the lower to mid 30s, temperature wise, I'd consider it set. In the mean time I'll get those cycle times from my GE.
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nana
5 Cubic Foot
Posts: 70
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Post by nana on Aug 11, 2017 1:52:27 GMT
This morning it was at 25*. Still a little on the cold side, but better. I finally got that darn thermostat out of there. Two screws, contorting myself upside down and backwards. I'm small and flexible. How on earth do you guys do this stuff? Anyway, after all that, I gave it a quarter turn, not 3/4. I figured as long as I can get it above freezing, I will do any further adjustments with the dial. After all, my basement stays a steady 50-60 degrees year round. It won't have to work too hard or deal with too much fluctuation.
Unless there's a compelling reason why that's not a good idea?
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nana
5 Cubic Foot
Posts: 70
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Post by nana on Aug 11, 2017 14:07:19 GMT
After my efforts of yesterday, this morning it was at exactly 32*! Hooray! I turned the dial down (up?) one tick warmer to 4, and if it is between 33 and 36 tomorrow, I will consider it a success and leave well enough alone. Then I will turn it off, give it the good scrubbing it needs, and then begin using it for real. I think a case of really good beer is definitely going to be one of the first things to go in!
I did adjust the gasket so there is almost no gap. The problem is the corner where the ends are mitered together. You can feel the metal strip that makes it magnetic ends just shy of the corner, so there is a little 1/2 inch spot where it just isn't gripping they way it should and unfortunately that spot is right around where that little ridge is too. But it is way better now. I used a hair dryer and an ice cube. Took some trial and error, but I guess it's as good as I'm going to get it. There is still quite a bit of condensation on the outside of the freezer door and at the top of the fridge door, but I think that is inevitable when you have a cold thing in a basement in the humid summer. Our cold water pipes and pump always sweat in summer too. But it will eventually rust, I suppose. I wish there was something I could do about that!
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Post by blackhorse on Aug 11, 2017 16:14:33 GMT
Dehumidifier. Reduces humidity and prevents rust and mold.
Another choice is to put a register in the ducts for central air down there. If you have that where you are.
But humidity is definitely not your friend. It can even rot the sill plates of your house and make your house settle.
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Post by ckfan on Aug 11, 2017 17:25:35 GMT
I'm so happy you got it to work! Congrats! I knew it had to be the thermostat. The compressors on these models are built like Swiss watches.
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