New to me 1957 NORGE Customatic

[heatgun215]

I just picked up this unit to put in my 60s kitchen that I'm slowly restoring back to original.

It has been plugged in for 10 years straight and forgotten about, when I opened it up it was still running and the fridge portion was FULL of ice, and the freezer door Frozen shut.

I am going to replace the gaskets, I think that's the culprit, hopefully nothing is wrong with the fridge portion icing over completely and it was just due to neglect.

Id give it an overall 8/10

Id like to fully restore it myself.

 

[turbokinetic]

It is entirely possible that the excess frosting was due to neglect. It could also be a result of a thermostat problem. Either way; that is a very nice example you have there!  

 

There has got to be an interesting story as to how it ended up sitting so long like that.

 

Sincerely,

David 

 

[heatgun215]

Unit has been plugged in for 12 hours now, everything is very cold. Food compartment was about 18 degrees and has ice buildup on the back, freezer is well below zero.

I made a temporary gasket with the self adhereing foam tape.

The cold control is set to the warmest setting, the compressor has not cycled off once, It feels very warm to touch, I can hold my finger on it for only 15 seconds.

I can switch the unit off and it will cease, but if I switch it back on before 15 minutes passes, the unit makes a struggling noise and a metallic click and goes quiet.

Can anyone affirm this may be a thermostat problem?

 

[turbokinetic]

Yes that sounds like a thermostat problem for sure.  The failing to start and clicking is due to a restart attempt before the system has had time for the low and high pressure sides of the system to equalize. That is normal for most home fridges if a restart attempt is made before about 10 or 15 minutes has elapsed.  The thermostat calibration should be selected to prevent automatic restarting before this time has passed.

 

If someone such as John L (combo52) has a thermostat part number off the top  of his head, that would be great.  If not, you may have to take the old one out and try to cross-reference it.  If nothing is found, you may have to review the manner in which the thermostat is sensing the temperature, and make an educated guess as to the correct model. 

 

 

 

[combo52]

1956 Norge refrigerator not defrosting properly

The refrigerator compartment is supposed to defrost itself. The heavy ice buildup is not caused just by a bad gasket.

Good news is the refrigeration system is probably strong because the freezer gets below zero and the refrigerator is down to 18°, this means you either have a bad thermostat or the sensing bulb of the thermostat is not attached properly to the evaporator plate in the refrigerator section.

If it is attached properly, you need a new thermostat. Go ahead and look up a thermostat from the model number and search for one. If you can’t find an original substitution, then we have to do a little bit of work to find one that’ll work on this refrigerator

Neat Refrigerator Otherwise hopefully you can get some use out of it.

John

 

[polkanut]

My Mom's cousin had this exact same model because I vividly remember the triangular handles with the button in the middle. They bought theirs new in 1956 and took it with them to the new house they built in 1978. It was relegated to the basement bar area in the new house. Unfortunately, I don't if it's still in use since I haven't been down in that basement since 1993.