GE Compressor Swap Cont'd

[cadman]

Alright, all buttoned-up and back in the kitchen. Now cross your fingers!

Bud, the compressor turned out to be a Panasonic, model DG66C10RAU6 out of a 22 cu ft WP (Estate) SxS fridge. This turned out to be a good donor because there was no way anyone was going to buy it for their kitchen. Pulled from a rental, it looked like it went through a war.

David, if you had suggested I try this a year ago, I would have said you're nuts! I always figured bad compressors and lost freon were death blows for nice looking vintage fridges. Between John suggesting a compressor source, Ben digging up the service info, and a DIY geothermal project that had prompted me to study up on refrigeration and buy A/C equipment (don't ask), I figured why not give this a shot. Pretty Wild!

 

[turbokinetic]

Glad you made it happen after learning what was necessary. As I've often said - it's not Black Magic getting these running!

Also that rear cover looks good.

 

[sfh074]

Well ......

an awesome job! So happy to see another vintage fridge saved.

 

[neptunebob]

I hope you recovered the R12...

I also wondered if you flushed the components with nitrogen before pulling a vacuum.  Doing so makes a vacuum happen much faster.  In fact, I think NASA uses this process in their vacuum chambers when testing spacecraft.  

 

How would you know how much refrigerant?  There is probably a label but with the new compressor wouldn't the volume now be different?

 

[cadman]

Hey Bob, yeah, the R-12 I took out then went into my '93 pickup. When charging R-134a I took John's advice of 6-7oz, ran it for a day, and everything checked OK. Nice even frost pattern and 'beer can cold' return line. Fridge and Freezer temps matched the GE service lit.

I don't have a nitrogen setup since I'm only a hobbiest; but this was a small enough system that I was down to 500 microns in an hour, and stick with Stay-Brite #8 for my joints. I've heard of some guys using welding gas as a purge, but it's a little pricey.

 

[swestoyz]

Late to the party...

...but I'll fetch a cold beer, if you don't mind.

Nice work, my friend!

 

[funktionalart]

This is exactly the thread I'd hoped might one day appear up here. BRILLIANT work. Now what kind of $$ would it take to get you down to Arkansas and do the same job on my 1960 GE Combination?!?!?

 

[cadman]

Allen, I could have used a thread like this myself! LOL I do feel bad for all these great fridges getting tossed, but when it comes to refrigeration, it's a tough hurdle to get over, at least in many people's minds (mine included). Too bad you're not closer!