Help me Refrigerate my new Bar!

[jeremy]

Hey all, bought this little beauty on Gumtree yesterday. As you can (just) see from the pictures it is actually refrigerated and includes a compressor on the end there. Unfortunately the existing compressor is ancient and will never run again.



Although I think it is very cool, and well worth the money I spent on it without having it up and running as a fridge, it would be awesome if I could resurrect this component. Is anyone able to recommend a way of doing this? Does anyone know where/if/how it is possible to obtain a refrigeration element to install into this?

As far as I can tell there is not a coil that runs around through the lining of the cabinet itself, but rather a contained unit on the inside of the cabinet connected to the old compressor on the outside by a couple of copper tubes, which has a fan for pushing the air into and around the cabinet.



Anyone have experience with these things??





Cheers,

Jeremy.

 

[mrsupraboy]

What does the comp look like.

 

[sponge]

I'm not able to help you in the slightest, but she's a thing of beauty.

I'd love to see you get her up and running..

 

[jeremy]

OK, in my wisdom I didnt take any pictures of the compressor, but here are some from the original Gumtree Ad:





As I say, the ad said that the compressor "needs servicing" personally I think it "needs the scrapheap". I spoke to a plumber mate and he said that you probably couldnt get the refrigerant for it, and even if you could it would be very difficult and expensive to repair. In any case the tubes were already cut and I did remove it but probably could re-attach if need be.

At $120 including the T bar font and one tap I think it was a pretty good deal regardless!

 

[mrsupraboy]

Have u plugged it in yet. Describe to me what happens then turn it of. Any loud or terrible noises don't hesitate to turn it of

 

[jeremy]

Hi Mr Supraboy,

Thanks for the response!

Unfortunately due to the weight we needed to get a sack truck under each end of it to lift and shift it. The compressor made it impossible to do so and from the look if it and from what I was told it was completely knackered, I took a closer look and realised someone had already cut the copper pipes leading into the cabinet, so I just removed the compressor. As such I can still plug it in and turn it on but its probably not a good idea!

If it were worthwhile to do so I could reattach this tubing, as I say no refrigerant at all was leaked out of it, so I assume it has been out of commission for a long time.

What do you think?

Cheers,

Jeremy.

 

[mrsupraboy]

Edited

 

[jeremy]

Ahem, thanks for the advice. So is it possible to buy another unit like this one? Or is it possible to revive one in this condition?

Cheers,

Jeremy.

 

[mrsupraboy]

Yeah mate it is. U have to remove gas properly.

 

[Mardoo]

You could bodge it and bung a window-mount air con in the side.

But that's a thing of beauty, and an effin' excellent price. If it was mine I'd talk to a commercial refrigeration person and see what they might be able to do.

 

[jeremy]

Hmmm, yeah I was thinking that, but then I thought there must be a better way! I might have to consult a professional...

Its not possible just to buy a unit to replace what was already there? Or are they not particularly common?

 

[Camo6]

Cut the side out of the bar, pull the door off a bar fridge and jam that bugger in tight. Turn it on and voila! It might run constantly and the Mrs might not like the power bill but that bar's too good a bargain to not be chilled. Good score mate.

 

[shaunous]

Looks like a standard but smaller version of a cool room compressor to me. There is obviously a reason the previous owner cut the pipes, they can be resolded easy enough, but why did they cut them in the first place. Like others have said, turn the comp on and see if it grinds or clunks, it may actually just need a service if it seems to run smooth, don't leave going for a long time as it won't have gas to lubricate the pump.

 

[spog]

Be worth while getting a fridgie to look at it,it looks nice and solid and would be well insulated .
Years ago during a pub reno my then boss grabbed 2 of those that you have and used them for storage in the shed,bloody heavy things to move but during summer the temp inside them was cooler than Inside the shed though they weren't hooked up.
Good pickup and a steal at $120.00.
Am guessing with the pipes being cut that the refrigerant gas has gone,as others have suggested try starting it (your choice) surely finding a second hand cool room motor to perhaps replace the original would be worthwhile,find a friendly fridgie,a few beers might get him interested.

 

[jeremy]

Thanks from the responses all. I guess I just assumed that the old fridge would be cactus. The person I bought it from said that it didn't work but I didnt pursue it any further than that because I was told that an old compressor like that would be basically unserviceable and would use outdated refrigerant that couldn't be sourced anymore. Apparently when the thing was cut out there was no leak of gas or liquid, so it must have been properly run dry, I dont know if that is indicative of its condition or likelyhood to start again.

I might take the whole assembly to a fridgie and get them to have a look, as yet I havent plugged it in and turned it on as I am a bit green on the subject I don't know if it is dangerous to do so?

If the existing one is as dead as it looks, I would be interested in pursuing a replacement, something like this perhaps:

http://www.actrol.com.au/Products/Condensing-Units/Indoor/Hermetic-Reciprocating/Tecumseh-Hermetique-HTA/

Again, I dont really know if that is what I should be looking for... I have had a fridgie suggest bodging it up with an old refrigerated aircon, I suppose that would work, but I am assuming step 1 would be to cut a massive hole in the side of the thing with an angle grinder...

 

[booargy]

You will need a fridgie with an imagination. another option is to buy an ice bank chiller and put a radiator and fan in there then circulate coolant through the radiator.

 

[jeremy]

OK, so I had a bit more of a play with my new bar tonight and made a few new discoveries. Firstly I plugged in the compressor and switched it on. It did absolutely nothing. No noise whatsoever. Taking a close look I can think of absolutely no good reason why this would be the case. It seems as though the compressor, the fan and another couple of bits and pieces are all wired directly to the main plug, so the fact that none of them did anything is baffling. I cant see anything that looks remotely like a fuse? Any ideas? I guess the most obvious thing would be pulling apart the plug itself.

Here are some pics of the compressor:















Apart from the compressor itself I made a couple of discoveries inside the bar, firstly there is a light controlled by a switch on the front, still works!



Secondly, I checked out the fridge element inside the cabinet. The fan didnt work at first but it made a noise, so I removed it and gave it a little spin by hand and off it went!





Anyway, if anyone out there knows a bit about this stuff and can shed some light on what I am looking at here and how I might be able to get it up and running that would be great! Thanks for all of the comments and suggestions so far!!

Cheers,

Jeremy.

 

[mrsupraboy]

We're do u live

 

[mrsupraboy]

Tho u shouldn't of run the comp with the pipes cut

 

[mrsupraboy]

Is there a capacitor for the fan