1952 refrigerator repair - please advise!

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The fridge has been plugged in for 30 min. Maybe it's a tiny bit cooler but only a tiny bit. I'll leave it plugged in for a little longer. It's still making what I'd call a fairly loud hum. Not sure how to describe it so I recorded it. The video is dark, because I put the camera all the way under the fridge right next to the compressor. 58limited, is this what your fridge sounds like near the compressor?

 
Hmmmm.  That fridge is producing the familiar sound of a struggling compressor.  It shouldn't be making that loud tapping noise, and the freezer walls/floor/ceiling (not so much the refrigerator section) should be noticeably cold to the touch after half an hour. 

 

I'll leave it to the experts to provide opinions on whether it just needs freon (since it was quieter when first put into storage it may have lost more over the past several years) or if the compressor has issues, or both.
 
Yeah, that's definately not a good sound. No sense in continuing to let it run. Hopefully with a recharge and new refrigerant oil, it'll be cured.

Otherwise, can these be upgrade to a modern compressor?
 
We should bear in mind that melissa needed to open up the access panel and hold the camera right next to the compressor to capture the sound.  While it doesn't sound healthy, it may not be so audible with everything closed up.  Maybe it's not as bad as it sounds if those factors are considered.
 
freon here I come

Is a freon charge something any refrigerator repair person can do or do I need a vintage fridge specialist?

RP2813 is right, it does sound less scary when just standing next to it. Compared to my modern "energy efficient" fridge, this is very quiet, but I think something must be wrong.

I hope it's not the compressor. For a few minutes there I was really excited that this might be an easy restoration!

Thank you for all your advice.
 
jiggle the fridge (while its running) and see if the sound changes? if so maybe its just a vibration from something touching the compressor ? Have you looked with a good light while it running to see if something is? You might try vacuuming it out ( while its off of course) and look close. I have an old fridge and its made that sound before, and went away on its on after a ran a while!
 
As for a service tech....

Start by calling around to independent shops, and those who service commercial refrigeration. Or, if you are a member of Angie's List, look there.

This is not necessarily a gigantic restoration. It could be on the smaller side.

Just try not to be easily discouraged. I have seen what looked like hopeless appliances come back to full life here.

Best of luck!

Lawrence/Maytagbear
 
If you have any connection to people in HVAC service, start there, and even if you don't, you can still call around and inquire if they'll re-charge it for you.  You don't necessarily need a home appliance repair person for this.  Freon is not cheap, however, so it would be a good idea to have someone verify if there is a leak in the system.  Otherwise you could be wasting time and money on a refrigerant re-charge.

 

Often independent appliance parts stores will have business cards of repair people posted.  That's another option.
 
If you need Freon???

Have you checked to see if its getting cold? I have a way older fridge than yours, that did have to be recharged. The outfit that I used was Cooper & Hawinkins Eng Inc phone 510-845-4225 out of Berkeley Ca. They were very nice and recharged the old girl with a refrigerant called 409A, a freon substitute used here in California as a replacement. It only need 6 ounces of this to fill it! yours may need about the same? You could try calling them and see if they can recommend someone in your area! Or maybe they have a branch down there. I paid $160.00 for them to come and recharge last year! Its been working perfect since. Dont give up just yet! Hope this helps
 
Melissa, mine does not sound like that. I would have it checked to see if it needs a freon charge.

 

I bought my GE Combo in 1996 at an auction and it ran fine for the next three years. I moved and had to place it in storage for 5 months and it wouldn't cool. I had it recharged by an appliance repairman. The fridge now works fine during normal on/off cycling, but I still have a problem: when I loose power for a day or more, it looses its charge. The fridge takes about 10oz of freon to charge. It can cost $120.00 to $160.00 for the service call and freon. I have charged mine myself the last few times - I was given a partial 20 lb cylinder of freon. The last time I charged mine, I took a chance and used Freeze 12, a freon substitute that can be put directly in a freon system without having to flush it out. So far it is working fine.

 

 
 
OLD GE COMBINATION REF

If a refrigerator needs recharging IT HAS A LEAK in the sealed system. Every attempt should made to locate and repair the leak. Few refrigerators will work long or properly if you just try to recharge them, also it is not legal to just recharge them without trying to do a proper repair.
 
So does this unit use Freon 12 or Freon 22?

Normally the patent plate will be marked say X oz R12 or X oz R22.

A unit that is low on gas has a leak; and will run a higher percentage of the time.

Many refrigerators and freezers have long lives if left in one place and when moved the shocks tweak the closed Freon system and one gets a leak.
 
In proper repairs one finds the Freon leak. The tech removes all the Freon; then pressurizes it with Nitrogen, and often uses an ultrasonic microphone to hear the leak. If big the leak may spit out the telltale dye they often use to find leaks. The leak is then fixed; then they recheck again since there maybe many leaks. Once are the leaks are fixes they pull a deep vacuum and hold it there to boil off water vapor. Then the unit is charged with Freon again.
 
it says freon 12.

here's everything the plate says in case it sheds any additional light

AH103AA16 (STAMPED AA1363369)
primary system refrigerant content 10.5 oz freon 12
test pressure 150lb low side 202lb high side
1/4HP motor 115VAC 50-60cy fl-am 3.3-5.5

i think i'll try that service company and maybe they'll be able to fix the leak & charge it up. $160 I can do since I got the fridge cheap.

58 Limited - the interesting thing about this situation is that it worked fine until it was unplugged. Then 7 years later when plugged into the same spot, it didn't work. there was no movement to damage it. but who knows. 7 years is a long time I guess!

melissa++4-28-2011-10-55-31.jpg
 
bent coil sadness

When I looked from another angle, it looks like the first condenser coil is bent - i have a hunch this is very bad news for my fridge. I imagine this is pretty much impossible to repair.

Any chance it was designed with a bent first coil?

58 limited, I looked closely at your pix and i didn't notice a bent coil. Since your pix is at a slightly different angle that mine it's a bit hard to tell.

http://picasaweb.google.com/sanford...hkey=Gv1sRgCJiZ8NOlnoT7KA#5600690781976258098
 
That's just a cooling fin for the compressor and has nothing to do with refrigerant.  That bent section isn't causing any problems.

 

As I stated above and has been repeated since, if refrigerant is being lost, there's a leak, and you need to have someone find the leak and fix that or it's not worth bothering to recharge it.

[this post was last edited: 4/28/2011-14:33]
 

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