Chrysler Airtemp

[whirlcool]

When we were growing up we had a Coldspot 8500 BTU unit in the kitchen, an Admiral in the den (I can't remember the BTU's but it was a HUGE unit from about 1956 or so.
My parents had a GM Fridgidaire 6,000 BTU in Turquoise in their bedroom. I seem to remember that on humid nights it used to ice up quite regularly. It was noisy, but it did cool well until it iced up.
Us kids never had a/c in our bedrooms. If it got too hot we had to go sleep in the den. Around 1968 or so we moved into a house with central a/c. What a luxury that was!

 

[danemodsandy]

Window Air Maintenance:

Before I moved to the house I'm in now, I had three window units in the one I was in previously. One of the things I never liked about window units- except the ones I maintained myself- was that most people's air conditioners were not too much shy of being filthy. I have seen some nasty filters, front panels caked with nicotine, and louvers that could hardly blow air for the dust on them.

I always vacuumed and then washed filters weekly, and hosed my units out at the end of the cooling season (you have to cover all switches and capacitors and motors before doing this, but it works wonders, leaving the unit's outgoing air smelling fresh and clean), as well as waxing the cabinets with car wax (Turtle Wax). I also oiled motors religiously. I always removed the units from my windows in winter; it made for a much warmer house, and the units weren't exposed to harsh winter weather.

I never understood why people wouldn't take a little time to keep their air conditioners clean- one of the big points about air conditioning was that it could keep the air you breathed cleaner. But a lot of people seemed like they couldn't care less, so long as the air was cool.

 

[cycla-fabric]

I remember growing up and my parents had a 1962 GE 6200 btu Thinline unit that cooled their bedroom really well it was always nice and cold. My mom complained though that it made too much noise when the compressor kicked on and ran. I bought my first ac back in 1971 with my paper route money that I saved(remember the paperboy). Looked at different models and picked out a Philco Ford 5000 btu spacemate model(still have the operating instructions for it). It worked well and lasted 27 years before finally giving out. Now I have two GE/Hotpoint porta cool models in the summer house, while the main house is central air. It’s amazing how many manufactures of window ac units there use to be growing up. Now there seems to only be a few left that make room window units and that is called progress, how sad.

 

[iheartmaytag]

The only window units I see anymore are Harier. I don't see the old names at all.
In 1988 I bought a 10,000 BTU Whirlpool that kept our small house pretty well. I sold that unit when we moved to a house with central air.

 

[whirlcool]

Frigidaire Room A/C's are still available from Lowes, and Fedders are still available through appliance dealers.
I would guess that they too are probably made in China. As pointed out earlier in this thread the Haier's are umbiquitous.

 

[toploader55]

Cool Video

Thanks Veg-o-Matic. My very first A/C that I saved money from washing dishes at my Dad's restaurant was a Mobile Air 5,000. Very Noisy, but I was 12 years old and all the neighborhood kids were green with envy. I told them they could get one too if they got a part time job like I had. Remeber when you could get a job when you were 12 ???? Now the Labor Board and Social Services would get you for Child Labor and fine the S--t out of you.

 

[jeffg]

If anyone subscribes to the Hammacher Schlemmer catalog, a few room A/C's are in their Summer Preview edition (pgs 18 and 57).

 

[DADoES]

IMO, the best window units are Friedrich. Still made in San Antonio, TX far as I'm aware.

 

[jasonl]

Believe it or not, my parents house in Chalmette didn't have central AC until the 70s. They had a Chrysler like the one above and a Western Auto "Wizard" (like Robert's washer). There's NOTHING like the hum of an AC to go to put you to sleep.

 

[jaytag]

comments on air

The GE above is a thinline, would like to find one. Friedrich is the last American made Air, and some of their low end units are produced in China.

My family had Philcos, we went through 3 only 2 of which I remember, the last was an 18k Texan, it was 2 speed and had air swing, not to be confused with air sweep a patten of Gibson, who also made the wizzards and citations for western auto.

The airtemp is a rarity these days amazing unit at 38 yrs just about as old as me.

 

[toploader55]

Philco

I just remembered a house not far from me that had up until 6 years ago 4 Philco "Noiseless" Models. I'll have to and see if they are still there. They were through the wall mount.

 

[toggleswitch2]

oooooh i'd love to see one of those and or the guts too.

 

[jaytag]

Another Oldie but Goodie

I placed this on before. I found this in its original box from 1980 on CL. It Kools wonderfully. Emerson made their own compressors and it has a different sound than the traditional rotary compressor.

 

[jaytag]

back end shot

EQK

 

[toploader55]

Extra Credit on the Quiet Cool

That's a beauty. I think they started making them in the early 70's. I remeber a commercial on TV . There were three Asian people standing there and the Daughter said as she bowed to her mother "Mamasan," then bowed to her father "Papasan", then they all bowed to the A/C unit and said Emersan". Does anyone remeber that commercial ?????