vintage GE fridge, should I get it?

[vintagekitchen]

A friend's grandmother has moved, and is offering me her vintage GE fridge for free, rather than seeing it go to a scrap metal guy. She says it works, and was in use up to the day she moved.

I have never seen a model this old in coppertone, but the finish appears original and professional, so I am a bit confused. What do you guys think?

 

[vintagekitchen]

not sure why the pics are coming out sideways..

I've tried rotating them before posting, but still sideways in the post. Must be because I'm posting from my phone.

Anyways, here is a close up of the logo and handle, see what I mean about the coppertone not looking like a rattle can job?

 

[vintagekitchen]

and the interior. ..

It has the old style tiny icebox freezing compartment, and the shelves while removeable, are not adjustable

the gasket is intact, flexible, and not cracked.

The bottom crisper drawer and one shelf are missing, but the glass pan for defrosting the freezing compartment is intact, go figure.

Any ideas on a replacement crisper drawer and shelf guys?

 

[rp2813]

Free isn't bad if you want to scrounge the missing parts for it at your leisure.

 

It definitely was not coppertone/brown originally at that age.  I'm pretty sure the options when this fridge was produced were any color you liked, as long as it was white.

 

[polkanut]

Unless you need a 2nd fridge, and as long as you're happy with the Wizard Citation, I'd pass on this one.

 

[rp2813]

INDEED!

I would not under any circumstances consider replacing the Wizard with this GE.  It would have to be something really special for me to part with that Wizard if it were mine.

 

[vintagekitchen]

well, it's home now.

My friend called and offered to deliver the fridge with the help of one of his cousins, so how could I resist? After some obligatory cleaning, here she is.

 

[vintagekitchen]

Turns out the coppertone is a rattle can job, sadly it's a really good one. I say sadly, because I actually like it, but at some point in his childhood my friend decided to draw a horse on his grandmothers fridge, using white house paint. She thought it was cute and left it.

Anyone have a suggestion? I'm sure it will be impossible to remove the white horse without removing the coppertone paint beneath it. Is there a way to remove the paint all over and get back to the original enamel finish? Or were GE fridges of this era painted and not enamel?

 

[vintagekitchen]

Next to the wizard..

Actually, though I do love the Wizard, it would be the more likely candidate for a garage or basement fridge, since the compressor is noisy while running, and rattles every time it kicks on or off, as well as rattling when the fridge is opened or closed. It needs a new door gasket, the old one is split in places and shrunk. Last, it's an energy hog, probably due in part to the gasket, but also thanks to the heaters around the door which do keep it from sweating, but actually always make the outside warm to the touch, and burn through kilowatts to do it.

Here they are together, the wizard does not look pleased...

 

[vintagekitchen]

rather embarrassing money shot..

The wizard is in the dining area while I decide what to do about it, but here is a money shot of it, before I started moving food to the GE.

 

[danemodsandy]

Enamel IS Paint, Except....

....When it's porcelain enamel, and trust me, that box wasn't porcelain.

You either have one of those freaky rattle-can jobs that surfaces occasionally, where someone had the skills to make it look really, really good, or you have something that was sent out to be painted by a pro.

You might rub the white paint that the horse is painted on with - use some ammonia on a paper towel. If it comes off white, you just might have some latex paint, and you might be able to get it off without damage.

If the horse is drawn on with enamel, anything that removes the horse is probably going to damage the coppertone.

What made you take this fairly ordinary GE on, when you had one of the rarest fridges anyone here owns?

 

[vintagekitchen]

I can't believe how much fit in the GE!

I truly thought there would be a major difference in the capacity, (of course there is a difference in freezer capacity, but..). Everything in the refrigerator portion of the Wizard fit in the GE with ease.

 

[vintagekitchen]

But about freezers..

Here is the now nearly empty wizard, all that is left are a few items in the freezer. I do have a 1940's ge chest freezer stored under a tablecloth in one of the bedrooms, so I could press it into service, or I could just get used to using and purchasing fewer frozen items. Not sure about that yet..

 

[vintagekitchen]

Last picture, I promise..

Just so no one thinks I cheated, here are the few items I tossed when emptying the Wizard and filling the GE.

I rather like the GE. It got cool fast, and it's basically silent. Still not sure what to do about the lower freezer capacity.

 

[vintagekitchen]

Sandy..

I know the Wizard is rare, and the GE common, but in this are anything as old as the GE is actually pretty rare, thanks to nearly every family having one person in it who hauls scrap metal. This fridge nearly met the same fate, which is why it was offered to me.

As I said earlier, the wizard is noisy and an energy hog, and really too big for me, ( both in capacity and height, I'm a short guy). I'm loathe to let something g so rare go, but short on storage space as well, which is why the Wizard is now in the dining area, while I try to decide what to do.

If anyone on the site would be interested in it, I am open to offers from another collector, since I know it would be preserved that way. Otherwise I'm back to trying to figure out what to do, lol.

 

[danemodsandy]

Well....

....We all have to make our own decisions.

All I can say is, I wish you lived nearer to me - and that it was Spring! That Citation would have a new home pronto.

 

[rp2813]

Ahh . . .

After hearing those details about the Wizard, I know I wouldn't be able to tolerate it as my main fridge.  It does seem to be better suited to a garage where it won't rattle anybody's teeth, and I can relate to the energy hog concern.  The GE will only use a fraction of what the Wizard does.  Don't forget to hook it up to an appliance timer!

 

I don't think the GE's door is porcelain enamel.  If it were, you could possibly get away with using paint remover on it.  For sure the sides, top and kickplate are plain painted surfaces.  If you get good quality enamel spray paint that produces a smooth, high gloss finish, you could probably just paint over it as is with a little prep work to make sure the new paint sticks, and after two or three coats it should look pretty good. 

 

Take a picture of the horse and then let it go.  Your friend must not have any sentimental attachment to it if he was willing to give the machine away, perhaps to someone other than you if you didn't want it.

 

I think it might have all of its shelves.  You may come across the crispers in your travels or off another free junker/non working fridge that could turn up on craigslist.

 

[washdaddy]

Kevin-
Great save on the GE. That frig is the same model that I had in my first apt. when I first moved out of the my parents home many many moons ago. It was a good frig, kept things nice and cold, nice and quiet, only draw back was the small freezer.

If the chest freezer isn't too big, use that for your frozen items. If you don't have a place to put the Citation offer it here for a member- I'm sure someone on here would probably express an interest in it since it's such a rare find.

Rick

 

[carmine]

Try this to get off the white horse:

http://www.liftoffinc.com/product-latex-paint-remover.php

I've used it before with good results. Plus it's water-based-eco-blah-blah, so it probaly won't touch the spray paint.

If that doesn't solve your white horse problem, check into a good re-hab center.