Recent content by rp2813

Well, looking back, I realized my sister's first car was actually a '56 Bel Air 4-door sedan with 3 on the tree. It was shared with her best friend who lived next door. It was a German-made car and the speedometer had KPH instead of MPH. AAA cut them off because they had called in for tows...

My sister's first car was a '65 Biscayne in dull metallic aqua with 6 cylinder and 3-speed column shift. A family friend worked for GMAC and the Biscayne came in as a repo. My dad got it for like $250 or so in 1969. It was so stripped down that the AM radio didn't have any selector buttons...

Thanks Keith. I felt fairly certain that alternating current had something to do with it, so I appreciate your explanation. Another curious thing is that depending on where you are in the bedroom, the resonance isn't present. This includes directly in front of the machine, where it's nearly...

Keith, I've heard compressors on refrigerators make a similar rhythmic resonating sound and always felt it wasn't an indication of imminent failure, so thanks for confirming. Since the monsoonal humidity cleared out yesterday, it cooled down quickly last night. I used the fan-only setting on...

I can't even fit through the attic access point in one of the bedroom closets. I'm pretty sure it hasn't been insulated, but only a small person could get up in there to check. There are definitely a few draft points; all three doors to the outside and one window that's having an "unscheduled...

Thanks for the additional comments and input. My housemate is leaving town tomorrow and has been chasing around, so I'm hoping we can tend to the Panasonic within the next couple of hours. Keith, I've attached a shot of the house as it looked when we bought it in 2018. It's an undocumented...

Thanks Keith. I'm down with everything you stated above, but as much as I'd like to replace the compressor isolators, that's more than I want to take on, and besides, the machine operated almost silently for a while after installing the more durable weather stripping. Today I'm going to have...

Here's the latest: I got some MD brand closed cell weather stripping -- 1" wide by 3/4" thick -- and placed it between the top flange and the bottom edge of the closed window. I did this by myself and wasn't able to fit more stripping underneath, but the machine did quiet down dramatically...

My house has a central heat/AC system, but I see no point in cooling the whole house in order to maintain a comfortable sleeping temperature in my bedroom, so that's where the window unit comes into play. I agree with all comments above regarding not buying new. The last thing I want is any...

Thanks Matt. I had thought about both of those spots, as I had already used some "bubble" type of gasket material that has no foam core on the plastic intake grille with borderline results. There's also what appears to be fuzzy velcro stripping on the underside of the unit just inside the...

I decided to replace the portable AC unit in my bedroom with a window type in order to gain more floor space and easier access to the closet. The portable is a Soleus 9K BTU that has been a fine, quiet performer for the past two years, but suddenly after never being necessary, it had to have...

Welcome, David! I'm a big fan of vintage GE refrigerators, the full run of their Combination models in particular. IMO, you can't have too many experts on this forum when it comes to those machines! Ralph

From what I could find on line, it appears you have a Frigidaire Flair stove. The bake element can be made to order if you can't readily find one through an appliance parts retailer. My nearby independent appliance parts store has sent out failed elements for me in the past to have a new exact...

I got this Admiral AM-FM radio for cheap about ten years ago on eBay. I wanted to listen to NPR in my workshop, and that required FM. For an original tube radio, it sounds really good. Now it's in the basement for when I'm going to be down there for any length of time. It would clean up...

I stopped believing in Consumer Reports in 1997 when we found a deal at Sears on a Raytheon Amana laundry pair which CR had top-rated that year, so we went for it. The washer ate through belts and rinsing was woefully inadequate. The dryer was tinny and consistently overheated. Even with...