vintage 1941 GE refrigerator repair help needed

[melissa]

I'm trying to make my recently purchased 1941 GE fridge/freezer work. I turned the dials to the coldest setting and I was thrilled to realize it gets cool, but not cold. Certainly not cold enough to freeze water or keep food cold. The built-in themometer has the freezer at about 50 degrees.

The fridge is beau-tee-ful, and I realllly want it to work. Any ideas what may be wrong with it?

 

[rp2813]

That's more like a 1951 than a 1941. 

 

Sounds like low refrigerant level, a failing compressor, or perhaps a bad cold control. 

 

Most working refrigerators will be running right up until the time of purchase as proof that they are in proper working order.  Buying a fridge that isn't running or that a seller is resistant/refuses to plug in presents a huge gamble.  The cost of repairing the cooling mechanism components can easily exceed the value of the refrigerator.

 

 

[sudsmaster]

If it was transported on its side and then immediately plugged in, then the problem might be oil in the coils.

Try leaving it standing up in place for a day or two, so the oil can flow back to where it belongs, and then plug it in and turn it on.

And I agree, that's more like a '51 than a '41. Still, it's a very nice design, and the separate freezer compartment is a highly desirable design, more so than the single door designs that usually featured a tiny freezer compartment that at most could fit a half gallon of ice cream, a frozen pack of Birdseye chopped veggies, a six ounce can of frozen OJ, and some ice cube trays. OTOH, if all one wants to do is chill beer, the single door designs rock as well!

 

[appliguy]

The Oldest this GE Combo can be is

1947 because that is when GE introduced the first two door model. PAT COFFEY

 

[cfz2882]

condenser fan

if this has a condenser fan check that fan is operating correctly and any air
baffles are in place if there is a fan.

 

[arbilab]

I don't think there was such thing as condenser fan in 1951.

If it were leaking refrigerant over such a time, there wouldn't be enough left to reach 50*.

However, it it has been in use for 60 years, there may not be much left of the compressor valves. If it runs continously that lets out the thermostat. If it never gets below 50* in the freezer, the system has a (BIG) problem. Barring the oil redistribution above.

2 refrigeration guys told me, 'if a fridge has a bad compressor, send it to the landfill'. They say the sealed system cannot be breached without serious side effects (orifice blockage) and it was once demonstrated to me (1984). But do rule out all the worst cases before you give up. It is a handsome machine.

 

[athanasius80]

Melissa,
I would second the notion of letting the refrigerator rest in an upright position for a day to let oil return to the compressor.

After that, how cold does the food compartment get? How cold does the freezer get?

 

[rp2813]

I don't think these GE's had condenser fans either, but my tiny 1939 Westinghouse did.

 

[melissa]

no condensor fan

there's no condensor fan and I have had it standing upright for a while. Still 50 degrees.

Indeed it was not running when i bought it. I was told it had worked for years, but it was unplugged when the owner died. I know that was dumb of me to buy it anyway, but it was just so dang pretty.

Would a freon charge help it?

Thanks for the updates on the date.

 

[westingman123]

Oh, my, that IS pretty. I hope you find the solution. I have the last model before combinations came out--the itty bitty freezer variety--in my kitchen. I miss the bigger freezer, but aesthetically it's a fit!

 

[rp2813]

A refrigerant charge could offer a temporary fix, but there's no telling how long it would last.  If the freezer is only getting down to 50, the system has lost quite a bit of refrigerant.  That freezer should be at zero or lower with the cold control set in the middle range.  If it's a really slow leak, like maybe it started 50 years ago, then a charge might last you for quite a while.

 

[hydralique]

To determine if the system needs a freon charge you'll need a service tech set up to monitor the pressures in a refrigerator. Because the freon volume of a refrigerator is much, much smaller than in a house or car a/c system it needs a far more precise freon charge. Charging refrigerators gets done all the time, but because of the expertise and equipment involved it's usually done only on newer warrantied refrigerators with a failure, or expensive high end boxes like Sub-Zero or Viking. No doubt there are some older service techs around who could do it for the GE but they may not be easy to find.

 

[philr]

After looking at these pics, I was wondering...

When did the fridges (other than Crosley) were finally allowed to have shelves in their doors?

I used to have a single door GE "Deluxe" from the mid-1940s (it still used SO2 as a refrigerant) and it had a huge compressor (similar to those on monitor tops) with cooling fins all around it.

Was this patent only for the United States?

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3365/3216269575_87a74162a2_b.jpg

 

[arbilab]

Very few home fridges have charging ports like car or house AC does. They are sealed systems. Cannot be charged or monitored for pressure without welding ports into the existing plumbing. Similarly, there is almost no way the refrigerant can get out.

So no, it's not likely low refrigerant unless yours DOES have ports, which are essentially the same valves bicycle tires use, and those definitely age. You can tell by looking. It's more likely that 60 years has hammered the compressor valves where they don't seal any more. Sorry, know that's not what you wanted to hear, but that's most likely what's happening.

 

[58limited]

My 1952 GE Combo, which ran fine in college, even after sitting unplugged for weeks, began to  leak out the charge whenever there is a power failure lasting over 12 hours back when I moved in 1999. While running, it doesn't seem to leak and will cool for years, but I have to top off the charge if there is a long power failure. Back in 1999, my appliance repairman added a port so I could fill it myself as needed. He also replaced (or added) a dryer tube if I recall.

 

The same thing was done to my 1954 Frigidaire at the same time. It had sat for weeks, maybe longer, when I bought it and did not cool. It has never lost its charge since and has been running constantly (except during power failures of course) since I got it in 1999.

 

I talked to Mike "Monitor Top" Arnold several years ago about my GE. He thought there could be a leak in the low pressure side. He also suggested removing the flat cover over the freezer section on the back of the fridge to inspect the capillary tubes for pinhole leaks. If a capillary tube in that location is leaking, there will be a visible oil spot on the surrounding insulation. He suggested a strong industrial epoxy for repair: clean all oil off and apply the epoxy over the leak site to seal.

 

[arbilab]

So 50's fridges DID have ports? Golly, grandma's fridge had a separate motor, belt, compressor. That was in the early 50s, the fridge was almost undoubtedly older.

 

[58limited]

No, the fridges did not have ports. Mine were added by the repairman.

 

[hydralique]

Sometimes you have to be careful about consistently adding just freon over the years, as when the old charge leaks out it'll take some of the refrigerant oil with it. Eventually the compressor can run low on oil and be damaged. This used to be pretty common on automotive systems back when you could pick up small cans of cheap freon at any car parts store.

 

[volvoguy87]

Gaskets.

In what kind of shape are the door gaskets? If they won't seal properly, the fridge will run more and if they are bad enough, the fridgwe won't cool, no matter how much it runs.

Dave

PS: Yes, you can still get gasket material.