The antique AC saves the day!!!!

[volvoguy87]

Heat Controler.

My appliance parts company (employer) has an account with Heat Controller and can get Comfort Air products. Their residential split-system (full size, not mini-splits) I believe are made by Rheem. Unfortunately, Rheem doesn't have a great reputation in the AC biz these days.

Dave

 

[philr]

I have to resurrect this old thread...

Petek, 

 

Apparently Frigidaire Canada also had it's a/c units made by Heat Controller from 1964 to 1970. They even had the same "split" model as the Chrysler Airtemp "Freeway Series" from 1965 to 1970.

 

I wish I could find some Canadian Frigidaire a/c units... I currently have two that I really like but they are both US models! I've been actively searching for a while and still haven't found one!

 

Here's a few pics of Canadian models. 

 

1970 R models



 

1969 P models



 

1968 N models



 

1967 L models



 

1966 K models



 



 

1965 J models



 

1964 H models



 

1963 and 1961 models which were made by Frigidaire.

 



 



 

 

 

[danemodsandy]

I Like....

....The flexibility and replace-ability of window units so much I'm not sure I want to go back to central.

If one breaks, you've got others, and you can shut off units in rooms you're not using. Seems like a better way of doing things to me - though the "invisibility" of central is nice from the decorating standpoint.

 

[whirlykenmore78]

Curently running

A 25000 BTU Kenmore unit.  Keeps up on even the hottest days and still cycles off regularly.   I believe it was built by LG.   Nonetheless a great unit.  The cooling power and noise level are very good. 

WK78

 

[petek]

Yep, those are the ones Phil.  Eatons sold them as well as Vikings I believe.. maybe in some of the old catalogs. They were so quiet, almost silent and could fit just about any style of window. 

 

[ovrphil]

Sandy - I was JUST thinking the same thing, for certain sq.footage homes. Then again, it never hurts to have a few on hand, in case central fails.

Some people in the East and up to Michigan are going to find out if their central air or heat pumps will give them trouble-free service this week, with this heat wave pressing down on them.

Great thread with AC heads. Only at aw.org!

 

[dustin92]

We have central A/C in our house, which was built in 1950, and was never designed for it. The A/C was installed in about 1990, but the house only has 8 heat/ A/C vents, in a total of 2600 sq. ft. We use two window units, one in a back bedroom, which tends to stay hot even with the central on, and another in an enclosed porch area that is not connected to the heating or cooling system. They are both 5000 btu units, one is a Perfect Aire from 2011, and works ok after I adjusted the thermostat, and the other one is a very well used Haier from 2005, which I think works the best of the two. We could actually use another one in the master bedroom, but I think we could cool the whole house with 3 of them, so the central would be useless.

 

[hydralique]

Dustin . . .

I wouldn't worry about three 5000 btu units obviating the need for your central system - there is no way 15,000 btus will cool 2600 sq. ft. A unit in the master bedroom might allow you to turn the central system off at night if there is nobody in the bedrooms that rely exclusively on the central system, but you're going to need it in the daytime when you have solar heat gain on the roof.

 

[dustin92]

Well, 1300 sq. ft. of it is a finished basement, walk out on one side and built into a hill so the walls are naturally cool, the 5000 btu Haier is keeping te lower level comfortable, and if the house starts the day cool, the other one will keep things comfortable upstairs until late afternoon if it is in the north side living room window. That's why I think we could get along fine with 3 of them. The house has thick plaster walls and ceilings, that once cool, will keep the house cooler all summer. If the plaster gets hot, it takes about 3 days to get the house cooled off to a comfortable temperature with just the central. When we moved in last summer, the A/C had not been run at all until mid July, and it took a good 36 hours to make the house bearable with the central and one window unit. Once the temperature is regulated, the units can cycle on and off even in the 96 degrees we had today. I just think three window units at about 4.5 amps each cycling on and off individually would be more efficient than the central unit, which is set at 71 ish, comes on at 73, and turns off somewhere between 66 and 68. The central unit is also about 20-22 years old, so is probably less than efficient.

 

[bwoods]

Chrysler Airtemp

Nice pictures of the Airtemp units. Chrysler had an HVAC manufacturing plant in Dayton, Ohio near where I grew up. Dayton had Frigidaire plants on one end of town and Chrysler Airtemp plants on the another.

Chrysler's vertical mount casement air conditioner, which came out in the mid-sixties or so, was quite unique.

 

[yogitunes]

even the window A/C's of decades past were cool looking....modern and sleek to fit any decor...

todays models, like anything else, is cheaply made.....and won't last as long....

but Congrats on having window units available in case the central goes out...too many times you see on CL people selling their window units because they got central installed, never hurts to have a backup...

I have several carry-cool versions with handles, easy to carry and install in minutes, "A" for if the central goes down, and "B" if power goes out, I can at least cool the bedrooms from the generator....

I don't know though about central being cheap to run and efficient, when it is on, that meter spins so fast I could play 78's on it.....and what a bill I get every month.....

yet in the city house, I have a huge 30,000BTU window unit, cools the whole house, with the help of a few fans, cycles on/off, will freeze you out, but my electric barely goes above $100.00 a month....I am not frugal with it, I like it ChillyWilly!

 

[DADoES]

 
<blockquote>dustin92 said:  I just think three window units at about 4.5 amps each cycling on and off individually would be more efficient than the central unit, which is set at 71 ish, comes on at 73, and turns off somewhere between 66 and 68.</blockquote> You have a thermostat problem, that's much more temp swing than is normal.

 

[bwoods]

Martin,

Wow, a 2 1/2 ton window unit, that is gigantic! Some houses have central air units that size.

It obviously is 220/240 volts. Just out of curiosity, how many amps does it draw, and what brand and age?? Who could ever lift it to get it into a window?

 

[sambootoo]

I find it interesting that Frigidaire sourced some of their ACs from Heat Controllers. My in laws had a Heat Controllers AC before they got central air. It was 18,000 Btu, quiet, POWERFUL! The chandelier in the dining room would sway in the breeze. That AC went to 3 different family members' homes before it was finally sold with the last house. Never saw too many of these units around this area. As for me, my 36 yr. old Sears (made by Heil) central AC is still cranking out the cold air for my home. I know we're cooling on borrowed time but this has been an exceptionally good unit. I do have a few window units on reserve, I use them in my workshop--a 1957 Coldspot and a mid 60's GE, both working just fine. I have a 25,000 BTU '68 Catalina (made by York-Borg Warner)that I'm trying to get working again--having fan motor capacitor issues.

 

[tomoldcars]

It does weigh more than 100 lbs.

That Airtemp Imperial is sticking through the back wall of the living room as I write. It was there when we bought the place in 88. It has performed yeoman service even through the 2010 record 115 deg. days, and is hungrily devouring money through these 110 deg. weeks. I turned it on the first time this year early July and was greeted with a loud hum. It took several power cycles to persuade it to run. It has since been reluctant to start 3 out of 5 times. I suspect start cap but I also suspect it may be reluctant to come out after 42 years of painting and plastering. I hope I can nurse it through the next month so I can chase down a newer, more efficient one during the cheaper, cooler months. Now, there being an identical one a mere 3000 miles away – Na, don’t think the Packard will make it that far.
Keep Cool, Tom

 

[yogitunes]

sorry....I do believe in over-kill when it comes to one of these....I can always turn it down, I can't make it bigger.....but when cooking or a house full of guest, there is no problem chilling it down quick...

amps I would have to check, its is a 220 unit, the cord and plug are the same as a dryer cord.....it's permanently mounted in the window, its a slider unit....

its a Whirlpool Designer Series, pulls air in from the center, and blows thru panels on the left and right.....I usually run it on low, and AUTO...once the temp is set, I leave it there....unless I need a quick cool down....it runs for about 10 minutes every hour normally...it is on the loud side, but compared to running a smaller unit continuously, I rather have this one....

I got it around 2001....hard to believe its that old....an appliance store was closing its doors, they were finding it hard to sell this because of its BTU's....I put an offer in of 200.00....lucked out and got it!.....I'd like to get a spare for that price....at that time and price, I should have bought 2....

it replaced a 18,000, and 2- 8,000 units....between the ceiling fans, and a floor fan, air does get moved around...its in the dining room which is centered....thats the frost/chill room!

everyone who walks in the house, and feels that chill, wants that unit!

 

[dustin92]

We ended up moving the other window A/C upstairs, since we aren't spending much time downstairs, and we put one in each bedroom. When we have needed the A/C, we turn on the central and both window units on High for a while (maybe an hour or so), it cools off really quickly, and then switch the central off. So far we haven't had a problem keeping the house around 70-72 with just the window units in the bedrooms, and a box fan in the hallway blowing toward the living room and kitchen. We have ceiling fans in all the rooms upstairs, (except for the bathroom) and pretty much run the kitchen, living room and both bedroom fans 24/7.

 

[bwoods]

humidity

Do you have any trouble with humidity because of the size of the unit, Martin? Sometimes when units are oversized they tend to cycle on infrequently and cool the air but don't run long enough to provide adequate dehumidifcation.

I have never been to New Jersey, so humidity may not be a problem there as it is in the South, here.

 

[yogitunes]

many people have commented on the humidity level because of such a large unit....and it seemed a concern to look into....butdon't seem to have a huge problem with it, or notice anything out of the ordinary....

it could be of the humidity levels in the Jersey area....never had the unit freeze up, or feel its cool yet humid in the air.....

out of curiousity, I have a temp and humidity meter in the house, of course it is in the room with the A/C....but it stays within the "normal" range...

for the most part of daily use, its is kept on "Low" speed, and around 72 to 74 degrees....sometimes it just cycles to sample the air, but not requiring the cooling to kick in.....I only go to Super high fan and "constant" on when cooking a lot or a house full of guest......rare

 

[yogitunes]

heres the unit I have in the dining room....

 

[yogitunes]

and I have a one bedroom apartment upstairs....this is built into the wall.....its also a 30,000btu unit.....again, maybe overkill, but it chills it fast, but sometimes needed being at the roof level...it can get quite hot up there!...it just bugs me to have a unit run constantly to keep the room cool, just like the heater, it comes on, heats up the area, and shuts off for a while until heat is needed again...I still have the original windows that came with the house, but it is very well insulated....

 

[washer111]

Whilst I won't enter some heated debate with you here, I will put in my two-cents:

An oversized unit will cool quickly in most situations, then cycle on for very short periods to keep the cool, then stay off. The thing is here is that it can actually be more expensive to have a large refrigeration system cutting in and out fairly frequently than having a lower-capacity system running long cycles.

Then there is the wear and tear factor: All that On/Off is bad for the system, like your car or computer (In the computing world, there are instances of servers running 24/7 for 8-10 years, being shutdown for maintenance and some of the hard-drives failing from being spun-up again), so can actually cost you in the long run if the system dies from all that on/off. It may also stress the electrical system, but I'm not sure of that one.

Like Barry said above, you may also have dehumidifying issues in particularly cool but "sticky" areas.

 

[yogitunes]

all I know is I am comfortable......my electric is the lowest I have ever paid for Summer months.....in the past I had three units maintaining the house, mostly running all day, and electric was running about 160.00.....now I am under 100.00, I ain't complaining!....

the APT unit only runs during the day, the only other thing running is the fridge, a few lights here and there as needed.....I should scan this in for you guys, I just mailed the bill in for $38.00....

NOW, the house in the country, central air, set at 75, only shuts off between 4am and 6am.....and my bill there runs 450.00 to 600.00 during the Summer...and this house is only 9 years old, fully insulated walls and windows, and an attic fan....I always expected better results for heating/cooling from this, thats not what I got!....

I rather have the window units, thank you!...

 

[dustin92]

I think the #1 most important to keeping any A/C unit working properly, whether central or window mount, new or vintage is Keeping the filters CLEAN. If the filters are kept clean, the unit doesn't need to work as hard, and uses less energy. I need to clean the filters in the window units at our church (2x 12,000btu Whirlpool with digital controls, circa 2006), but they need to be taken out of the windows to slide the filter out. The filters are packed with dust and both units are struggling to cool an area that should be easily cooled by one.

 

[yogitunes]

thats a good point with filter cleaning.....mine have the factory plastic mesh style...which is OK....but I have replaced them with the 3M Filtrete ones, worked great for a day or two, and then they started to get the slightest shade of gray from capturing everything, and cause the units to freeze up from rduction of air flow....so back to originals I go.....

same with these Filtrete filters for the central unit, fine for heating, but when cooling, the air flow eventually gets slowed down, and the unit freezes solid.....

anyone else experience these?

 

[vintagekitchen]

Yogitunes!!!!

That air conditioner you have in your dining room is the exact same one that my grandparents bought in the early 90's to cool their ranch style home. That beast cooled the whole house, living room, dining room, kitchen, and the 3 bedrooms. I would love to still have it, but it was sold some time in the late 90's, when they moved to a house with central air.

 

[whirlcool]

Our neighbor is an a/c / heating guy and he says that all but the cheapest Filtrete filters are overkill. We use the ones named "clean air" in the green wrapping. They are the thinnest ones.

The reason he doesn't like the Filtrete filters is that the thicker ones cut down on the air flow going through your a/c system. This makes your unit's fan work harder.
He said it's like sucking air through a straw. As the filter is used up, less and less air comes through the system. This can lead to a/d freeze ups which is not good for your compressor, either.

He says he gets a lot of calls from people with Filtrete filters who forget to change them and then "my a/c isn't cooling anymore". Let the system defrost and put in a more suitable filter.

His advice? Buy the cheapest paper "wavy" filter you can find and replace it monthly. And never use the blue fiberglass filters. They really don't do anything at all. The purpose of the filter is to keep your evaporator coils clean.

 

[yogitunes]

sorry for high jacking the thread Hans......but this is the perfect example for keeping the vintage stuff....you never know when your gonna need it.....

maybe we should start a thread of our vintage A/C's.....many don't think of these when gathering our collections....but if your gonna have a vintage kitchen, laundry, or whole house....these would make it complete....

 

[112561]

What in the heck were they thinking?

It's in a 1954 ranch in Fort Pierce, Florida. An unfortunate real estate listing picture. Can anyone identify this unit?

 

[washer111]

3M Filtrete

Provided you keep on top of replacement, even the highest performing Filtrete variants shouldn't pose an issue if your home A/C or Heat was installed properly (I know: Highly unlikely). Besides, past a certain level (Higher than 1200MPR, I recall), the airflow ratings begin to improve until you get to the highest models.

We personally use the 1500MPR Filtrete's and have no issue whatsoever with icing or airflow (perhaps the leaky, bodgy ductwork, in which case a filter is useless), and the house stays so much cleaner in the Summer!