antique fridge contest ?

[classicguywi]

I was told about this by a friend and reading it made me ill, thought that I would share this ulgy clunker program.

Mike

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[rp2813]

Based on the closing remark that older refrigerators aren't the energy hogs people think they are, the organizers of this contest should get a little more specific and focus on fridges that are big consumers.  That would still put plenty of beautiful units at risk, but at least something as classic as a monitor top or early Combination would be safe.

 

And didn't Obama's "Cash for Clunkers" program already address this issue a few years ago anyway?  That's how I ended up with my '57 Combination from RCD's pile.

 

[stan]

Wonder how much energy

It takes to destroy the machine rather than repair it? Or to manufacture a new one from plastic?

My monitor top is so well put together, and insulated, that it dose not cycle that often, it might use more energy when it dose, but it dose this less often than a new one, so I wonder if its really a wash between old and new?
It would be a interesting test, wouldn't it!

They'll have a fight on their hands to get mine!

 

[philr]

I have to admit I got rid of an old GE SO2 fridge with a similar program a few years ago as nobody around me would accept to take it. This was a mid-1940's model with door shelves (we in Canada got fridges with door shelves from other brands than Crosley before the 1950s!).

Later, I was a bit sad to see what happened to all these perfectly working fridges.



That was to make more space for early 1960's Frost-Proof energy hogs! There's no chance I'll ever give one of my Frost-Proof fridges to a program like this!

 

[travis]

All the money given away is from a grant or other subsidy. These programs goal is to drive consumer spending.

The major problem I have with all this energy efficiency crap is:

You can place efficiency guidelines on manufacturers of new appliances.

You can subsidize the rebates to entice people to throw out an old appliance and update.

But none of this has any affect on using energy responsibly. Turn lights off when you leave the room, put your HVAC on a programmable thermostat, fix leaky toilets and faucets, etc.

I see plenty of people that look like they can't afford it driving less efficient cars than I do. It makes me wonder if their houses are colder in the summer also.

I have 37 incandescent bulbs in antique light fixtures in five rooms. They're never on at the same time. It does burn my butt that you can't get a light bulb at a real store anymore.

How about offering a tax incentive for repairing your appliance and even up the playing field.

Maybe it's just that they don't want any of the older, well-built stuff around to remind us of what we had, or what is possible?

 

[goatfarmer]

To me, it's more of "we're from the government, and we're here to help" thing. Trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist.

 

[polkanut]

My friend Jon's grandparents had their first fridge into the mid 80's and it was a gas model.  Grandpa Plautz had a gas line run to his basement bar area where it was located.  When their furnace needed some work, the gas company repairman must've seen it and a couple of weeks later they were visited by a gas company inspector who promptly red tagged it.  Grandpa Plautz was so mad he made sure he wasn't home when the old girl was hauled away.  That cutie sure kept his beer colder than the electric thing that replaced it.  I don't remember what brand it was.

 

P.S. Jon's grandparents were married in 1922. 

 

[travis]

Tim,

That sucks about your friends grandparents fridge. I would have had it moved and brought it back when the gas had been turned on. The problem with old Servels is that some people didn't clean them out behind. I am not discounting the tragedy of 82 deaths in the US and Canada, but that's relatively few in relation to the time period 1933-1957 that the recall (1991) covers.

The article I found on-line about the recall, explains that with no parts available, or no manuals, that these may be improperly maintained or adjusted and pose a hazard. Well, I guess the same thing holds true with any of my old appliances. Lord knows I don't have a manual for my Magic Chef 1000!

I am wondering when they'll be a recall on the thousands of vintage fans. Seriously, you only have to get your finger close to one once to learn to quit poking them. I learned at age 4 not to put a house key in the electric outlet. I also learned that cloth was an insulator, because I knew my parents would be mad that I stuck a key in the outlet.

 

[classicguywi]

All that I know is that it seams like an utter waste, spending more time and energy to manufacture new things that replaces something that is far better built and will still outlast anything on the market today. This is one of the many reasons why Evan and I are working on turning back the hands of time on our house to the era in which it was built 1960's.

It is also why a good friend of mine who is an appliance repair man in Racine, WI and I have been tossing around the idea of opening a vintage/ antique appliance restoration shop.

Thank ya all for weighing in on this "energy saving" idea that seams to have been a brain-fart in many places not only my neck of the woods.

Mike

 

[travis]

Mike,

There's a limited market of people that are willing to pay for repair or restoration. Most people will compare repair cost versus buying new. Of course new is crap, but that's what you're going against.

The key is to tap into the vintage market. I am willing to pay to get the last part of whatever I am after.

I have been asked to look at appliances for friends. Most don't understand how to diagnose a problem or search for a part.

 

[polkanut]

We suspect that when the repairman was there to fix the furnace he might have made a mental note about the fridge and said something to the inspector when he was going to check on the repairs that had been made.  Jon's grandparents were completely blindsided when told they would have to get rid of the gas fridge.  Grandpa Plautz maintained it religiously so no chance of CO2 poisoning.

 

[travis]

I was always told to hide a Servel if the gas man ever came. Most of the gas men don't know what a Servel is, they just watch for weird gas appliances.

 

[goatfarmer]

They probably hauled the Servel away for nothing, got the $200.00 bounty from the government, and then got the money from the scrapyard. WinWin for them!

 

[athanasius80]

And they even admit that the energy hogs are the 1950s and newer machines...