Gas Fridge? Ice Box?

Automatic Washer - The world's coolest Washing Machines, Dryers and Dishwashers

Help Support :

It is very hard to tell if that is designed as a block-ice powered icebox or is electric and missing its mechanical parts. The styling with the art-deco door was very common on almost-identical Frigidaire models of that era; however I am reasonably sure this isn't a Frigidaire model.

If you look at block-ice powered iceboxes, they usually have a corrugated galvanized lining in the block area, which has slots in the bottom and a drain tray under the slots. Typically a block ice holder is mounted horizontally, as well due to the typical shape of the ice blocks they sold back then. With an upright block, it would probably tend to melt unevenly and topple over.  Also, iceboxes typically had a drawer under the main cabinet for catching the melt-water, which I don't see here - although it could be missing. But there are no shelf tracks or any other signs of that ever having been present.  In this one; that box might be an ice block holder box, but it also looks like the evaporator casing from some of the 30's electric refrigerators. They enclosed the evaporator and had a few holes in the enclosure as seen in this one, to allow for air circulation. The enclosure was important in the smaller cabinets to contain some of the cooling in the evaporator area. That allowed you to freeze ice cubes in the evaporator without things in the cabinet freezing. Looking through the holes in the rear of the box inside the cabinet; there is what appears to be a hole through the rear of the cabinet. That would make me think that lines or wiring went through there. 

There were many small brands and manufacturers who came and went back in this day. It could have been from one of them. Without seeing the top or back, it's very hard to tell more. That would give an idea if it had mounts for a condenser, or a gas flue (Electrolux) or other signs of mechanical parts. 

It is interesting nonetheless and would be cool to fix up with a "bespoke" cooling system.

Sincerely,

David

 
 
David, you raised some of the same questions I had, which made me wonder how it could have worked as an ice box.  What appears to be a drain hole at bottom rear seems odd, and without some kind of tubing arrangement the entire cabinet floor would collect water. 

 

I had forgotten that early evaporators like those on Frigidaires had ice tray storage tucked into the evaporator, so that's another possibility.  Perhaps the design of having the evaporator on the side instead of on top was an attempt to provide more even cooling.  That might explain the advised meat storage on the bottom instead of in closer proximity to the evaporator as seen on refrigerators from pretty much all of the well known manufacturers.

 

It's an interesting piece, but yes, definitely a project that I have no business pursuing!
 

Latest posts

Back
Top