2 Vintage A/Cs ???

[retromania]

Our GE

Had the three round louvers trimmed in gold. Those mounted in a separate piece that could be romved from the unit. Then the bottom piece held the mesh filter. The controls door blended in with the bottom part. Push buttons and a dial thermostat. Mostly gray in color. A really fine appliance even tho the lights in the neighborhood dimmed when you turned it on! LOL

 

[cfz2882]

yeah,mine really pulls some amps too-IIRC,it was something like 12amps of 230v current...The low speed compressor just uses sheer horsepower to do the job vs high speed compressors that can rely some on the inertia of the 3450 rpm to pump the refrigerant.Also, the big shaded pole fan motor is located in the indoor air stream-adding it's heat to the return air stream back to the evap.Unlike many modern A/Cs that sound like they are running heavily loaded in very hot weather,this old GE is totally unfazed by such conditions-sound doesn't change at all-kinda like a big 1958 car cruising the interstate getting 12 MPG LOL

 

[retromania]

cfz

you're exactly right

 

[sambootoo]

Here's my cir. 1960 something GE. I use it in my workshop. Not sure of capacity but like others have said, the thrust is not that strong but very cold. No fancy features or controls on this one, either. Just on-off and a thermostat. A really fun, useful toy!

 

[toploader55]

OMG.

That GE is almost the same as the one we had.

Ours had a 2 speed fan. But Exactly the same Grill set up. I could never understand the Air Directors to be able to blow the air back into the intake grill. The Upper very most top louvers had a left or right louver that could be adjusted by taking off the front and changing them from behind.

When we first turned the unit on, we all were like "Huh" ? "That's it for thrust on High Fan for a 15,000 ?" Well, 1/2 hour later that room had dropped like 5 degrees. As I recall, that unit was very quiet for it's size.

 

[tomturbomatic]

That is later than 1960 with the 4 louvers that made it almost as restrictive in directing air movement as a Fedders, except for the afore-mentioned top rectangular grill.

 

[retromania]

Yes.

Our's was very quiet to be the size that it was.

 

[toploader55]

Weird thing about that Front Grill...

The air for the most part just came straight out. If in between those round louvers had been solid, there would be a better chance of directing the air. But when you put your hand in front of the unit, the air just fell out to the floor. AND IT WAS COLD AIR.

 

[charco68]

Love this thread!!

I've always been interested in window/wall A/C's, and I can't tell you why. Growing up, our house had central while most others in our subdivision didn't, and I thought we were the unfortunate ones! To this day they still catch my eye, and I enjoy their sound. Won't bore you all with stories/memories, since I'm going to ask for help:

Can anyone identify the unit in this window, please? This is my mom helping her dad with a migraine (I'm sure the photo flash helped, right?) in her sister's house in St. Pete, FL. They built the house new in '58, had two of these installed. They upgraded to Sears Coldspot units in '72, with the woodgrain front that opened toward you for controls and filter.

Never been able to identify this model...wish I had a full pic of it. On the left were the controls, one large one on top, two small ones below.

Thanks!

PS: I actually own this house now, a real treasure to have. However, the owner b/t me and my aunt put in central A/C...*sobbing noises* : )

 

[tomturbomatic]

It looks to me like the 1957 Westinghouse units our neighbor had, but your description of the controls has me doubting that. I thought they were among the most beautiful window units ever made with the egg crate inside grill and those 4 square louvers. They were thinline units with fans that looked like lawnmower blades. The louvers on the rear of the case were formed to point in different directions to eliminate a hot blast from the unit.

 

[cfz2882]

last "real"GE ACs

though i've seen GE"carry cool"small ACs as recent as 1990,i don't recall seeing any "big"GE ACs made much after about 1982 or any GE central air or rooftop units newer than around '82 or 83-is ~1983 about the last year for "big"GE window ACs?

 

[retromania]

You won't believe this....

I live in a townhouse that shares a commone wall with the townhouse next door. We each have a GE an outdoor central air unit installed new in 1978. We have had no trouble with our units. Mine rattles and there some rust on it, but it keeps going. Not the most efficient unit, but what a track record!!!

 

[charco68]

Another pics of possible Westie?

Tomturbomatic, thanks for weighing in! The square logo in the LRH corner could easily be a styled "W." I found a family movie of my aunt's birthday in June of '58 (that's her in on the L about to blow out the candles.)

It's grainy, but here's a shot of the whole front. In my brain there were three controls; obviously just two here.
Always wondered if it was as good as the '72 Coldspot that replaced it, that thing ran forever. Used to lull me to sleep when I fell asleep on her sectional couch visiting in the summers.

Now, my grandfather (just a few streets away) had a grand hi-end Ward's Signature A/C installed through the wall, with the 220 plug on the outside of the house. Didn't want to ruin the esthetic inside. He was a MW through and through...every single appliance possible they made.

 

[gr81nknox]

GE central air units

General Electric sold their unitary products(aka central A/C) to Trane in the early 80s. Trane kept the same design on the units for many years after and to this day, Trane still designs and builds their own compressors, uses the "weathertron" name on their heat pumps, and uses the spine fin coils on some of their units.

GE still sells A/C units, however, they look or sound nothing like their older models and they long ago quit using the spine-fin coils.

 

[cfz2882]

spine fins

those GE spine fins are a real P.I.T.A.to clean once they get plugged with tree fuzz and lint-have to be carefull using pressure washer so the spines don't get flattened over and need "fluffed"back up...

 

[toploader55]

Reply Pic #27

That unit to me looks like it could be a Welbilt.

I doubt I still have it, but I do remember having a brochure on Welbilt A/Cs.

They had the Square Louvers and "Eggcrate Grill" like the one in the pic.

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[tomturbomatic]

That looks like a Westie and yes, that little medallion at the bottom was a W. The large dial controlled all of the functions like cooling, fan speed, exhaust, vent, etc. The small dial was the thermostat.

 

[retromania]

Price Difference

What was the price of Westinghouse appliances as compared to some of the other brands?