Penncrest Freezer Is Home

[rp2813]

One Very Hot Backside

The freezer has been unplugged for a few days since it had tested out OK and I was still messing with the directly wired neon indicator lamp.

 

This afternoon I rotated the cold control from "OFF" to just past where it kicked in.  About 30 minutes later I felt around the exterior for warm spots from the embedded condenser and found a really hot one on the back.  This would be at lower left rear when facing the front of the freezer.  About 18" off the ground it's so hot to the touch that it feels like an old HOH dryer does above the door.  The entire hot zone is about 1.5' x 1'. 

 

If this is normal, I'm going to allow for space behind the box the same as if it had an external condenser.  Inside the cabinet, the rear wall is as cold in this area as it is anywhere else.  Strange, and a little bit worrisome.  Is this normal?

 

[rp2813]

UPDATE

The hot spot appears to be a phenomenon involved with an extended run period to recover after power is restored.  When running simply to maintain cabinet temperature, it's warmer than other areas, but not nearly so hot to the touch.

 

[circlew]

It's possible that Hotpoint brand freezers were sourced from another manufacturer, even if GE brand freezers at that time were made in GE's own factory. Remember that Hotpoint automatic washers were made by Beam for while, but GE was building their own during that time. Though Hotpoint was a division of GE, they were pretty much autonomous for many years while headquartered in Chicago.