1951 Crosley Shelvador

[GPK]

Model Number

12345

Hello Readers, I just picked up a nice 51 Crosley. Unfortunately, the compressor hums and gets pretty hot after a couple minutes with no cooling to the unit at all. My current plan is to find a comparable compressor along with replacing the old cracked wires, and find a replacement relay.

I work as a handyman but this is my first time working on a fridge to this level. Any tips or tricks would be great.

How exactly do I find a compressor with comparable power? (Assuming that’s whats needed)

Also the relay, Is this something I could just bring to an appliance shop and they could match it? Along with the compressor maybe..

Thank you!

 

[rickgburton]

Is this something I could just bring to an appliance shop and they could match it?

If today's date was December 23, 1952, you probably could. Lol You can replace the hot wire relay with a solid state relay/overload. If the compressor is bad you're going to have some problems. The refrigerant in there now is R-12 and they don't make it anymore. Replacement refrigerants are available and the machine can be retro fitted with a new compressor. It can be a very, very expensive repair. The biggest problem you'll have is finding someone willing to do the work that's qualified and knows how to do it. Repairs like this are not as common as it use to be. Sealed system repair costs have reached the point where it's better to buy a new machine. If there's a sealed system problem during the first year, the machine is replaced instead of repaired. That relates to service techs with little or no experience with sealed system repairs.

along with replacing the old cracked wires,

This is a can of worms best left unopened. I've worked on many of the old machines where the wire casing was so brittle it would fall off just looking at it. Every time you touch a wire a piece falls off until it's a bare wire. You can't replace a bad wire by connecting a new wire to the same bad wire. To do it right, you need to replace the entire wire. When the wires were installed at the factory they were attached to the box with a clamp and screw or glued to the box with the insulation. So if you're thinking of attaching a wire to the old one and pulling it through, don't.

You can check the compressor windings but I need a picture of the compressor, the wires on the compressor and relay and the relay. I'll be able to tell you how to test it.

What are these parts?

 

[Old Fridge Guy]

You'll need to let it run for more than a few minutes to get any cooling. If the refrigerator has been in storage for a while it could take up to an hour or so before you start to get any cooling. Also, be aware that this is an automatic defrost model. That's what the left dial is for. In the picture of the control panel it's set to the automatic defrost position. You'll have the timer and defrost heater wiring to deal with plus the selector switch wiring. Is there a wiring diagram on the back of the refrigerator? That will be helpful. Good luck to you!