Carrier window air conditioner - a big one

[gansky1]

18,000 btu, 220volt

I remember seeing these as a kid, could cool a whole floor of a house!

http://omaha.craigslist.org/app/5252003614.html

 

[toploader55]

Carrier also made back in the 60s-70s a 33,000 BTU Beast. I think those years they called them the "Weathermaker" Series.

 

My Dad had a Monster Console that had a Water Tower (Cooling Tower) on the roof. The unit was pretty much self contained. The console in the restaurant had the Compressor/and Blower Unit inside the cabinet. The Water Tower was the Heat Transfer Exchanger.  Good God... Ice Ice Cold Air.

 

[petek]

The first office I worked at in the freight sheds at the pier in Vancouver had two humongous Carrier window units in the data processing office which was perhaps 40 ft x 20. Overkill much. They were considerably bigger than that and fitted almost side by side iirc. I don't recollect them ever being turned on either.. it doesn't get all that hot and  humid in Vancouver. 

 

[norgeway]

There is a building

In uptown Lenoir, my hometown that was in the 40s thru the 80s Shields refrigeration and hardware, they were a Carrier dealer, anyway, still in that building and operating is one of those big consoles with a water tower, it is probably 7 feet tall and 4 feet wide, the compressor looks like a car engine!! and I think it uses Freon 500, if you stand in front of it it will make your teeth hurt!

 

[petek]

They were in these windows ,, I googled up this picture but must have been newer than when this was taken  

 

[tomturbomatic]

GE went to this configuration, too, in their higher BTU units. The thing I don't like about the design is that, like the Fedders with the Weather Wheel, the air discharge is limited in direction by having the intake next to the discharge. It's fine if the air is supposed to travel in a straight line from the air conditioner or in the direction of the side of the discharge grill, but if it is directed to the other side across the intake, some of it will be pulled back in which will cause the thermostat to trip prematurely and reduce the cooling capacity.

 

[a440]

Very nice Carrier. We had a 30,000 btu window unit Carrier many years ago during the early 80's. It was huge and would freeze anything that stood in front of it. In fact we played a game to see who would not last the longest standing in front of it as a kid. Ours had the discharge vent on the top of the front of the unit. I do remember that it had two blower motors. One for outside coils and another motor for the inside blower. Parents bought it to cool the downstairs of the home for a couple of summers while the home was being renovated. It was then removed and put into storage in the garage and never used again after central a/c was installed in the home. It was eventually given away on the local radio "swap shop" many years later.

 

[toploader55]

That's the exact Unit my Dad had Hans.  7 feet or so tall and that Compressor !!!

 

But if I recall correctly, it was pretty quiet for it's size.

 

And Yes, they would make your teeth hurt.  I remember my Dad's Bar Room Door had the decals "Air Conditioned, by Carrier"   He even had a sign outside that said the same thing. It was a Big Deal back in the fifties to have A/C.

 

[norgeway]

If im not mistaken

I was told it was installed in the store as a demonstrator,to show people how well it worked, I think it was 51 or 52, Shields also sold Kelvinator,Maytag and Bendix.

 

[norgeway]

I almost forgot

They also sold and installed Armstrong oil furnaces and Kresky floor furnaces in addition to Carrier AC, Shields is still in business but they don't do heating and ac any more, just sell furniture and appliances, Maytag and Kelvinator.

 

[toploader55]

Would you happen to know if that Console Carrier is still there ?

 

[delaneymeegan]

At that size, it's really too big for a portable unit.
I think they've learned, over time, that it really isn't practical for people to lift these in and out yearly.

Better as a sleeve unit.

Would rather have this than central air. More efficient.

 

[warmsecondrinse]

I bought a 13,000 btu, 120v unit back in '88. Much smaller obviously but otherwise looked exactly the same.

When I moved I had it put into the wall of my new house. I recently found out that it's still there and was working fine this past summer.