I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

Just curious...

TIA!

jetgraphics wrote in
ups.com:

I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

Just curious...

TIA!



perhaps they were more subject to damage?
and you have to move the fridge to clean them.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

jetgraphics wrote:

I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

Actually they did collect dust, but the primary reason for moving them underneat
was to get the fridge closer to the wall. Looks better when the frige isn't
enclosed and keep things stored on top from getting pushed off the back.

--
"Tell me what I should do, Annie."
"Stay. Here. Forever." - Life On Mars

Rick Blaine wrote:
jetgraphics wrote:

I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

Actually they did collect dust, but the primary reason for moving them underneat
was to get the fridge closer to the wall. Looks better when the frige isn't
enclosed and keep things stored on top from getting pushed off the back.

--
"Tell me what I should do, Annie."
"Stay. Here. Forever." - Life On Mars
Also, I have a fridge with the
compressor and coils up top, and they
too, get
dirty.

On Oct 13, 2:11 pm, Rick Blaine wrote:
jetgraphics wrote:
I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

Actually they did collect dust, but the primary reason for moving them underneat
was to get the fridge closer to the wall. Looks better when the frige isn't
enclosed and keep things stored on top from getting pushed off the back.

--
"Tell me what I should do, Annie."
"Stay. Here. Forever." - Life On Mars

--- the primary reason for moving them underneat was to get the
fridge closer to the wall

That, and the elimination of the need for ventilation above the unit.

If I'm not mistaken, you can't "build in" a fridge with coils on the
back without providing gap above the unit for the heat to escape
through. That can be difficult if there are cabinets directly above
the fridge.

"jetgraphics" wrote in message
ups.com...
I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

Just curious...

TIA!

I suspect it was when self-defrosting units came to be. They need some place
to drain the water. The heat from the coils along with the fan works to
evaporate the water from the drain pan so you don't need a drain through the
floor.

Don Young

On Oct 13, 9:39 pm, "Don Young" wrote:
"jetgraphics" wrote in message

ups.com...I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

Just curious...

TIA!

I suspect it was when self-defrosting units came to be. They need some place
to drain the water. The heat from the coils along with the fan works to
evaporate the water from the drain pan so you don't need a drain through the
floor.

Don Young


They made self-defrosting units for a long time with coils in the
back. The one I have now from mid 80s is made that way and I know
they were made in the 70's with auto defrost and coils too. Not sure
when the non-exposed coil units first appearerd, but I would guess
90's?

Definitely better, as you don't have to worry about the exposed coils
in back when moving it and it goes back close to flush.

On Sat, 13 Oct 2007 20:32:12 -0700, wrote:

They made self-defrosting units for a long time with coils in the
back. The one I have now from mid 80s is made that way and I know
they were made in the 70's with auto defrost and coils too. Not sure
when the non-exposed coil units first appearerd, but I would guess
90's?

Definitely better, as you don't have to worry about the exposed coils
in back when moving it and it goes back close to flush.

But there's a down side.
Cleaning the under-fridge heat exchanger is a real pain.

I still have to pull out the fridge and unplug it..
Then, crawl on the floor,
remove half-dozen hex sheet-metal screws from the back cover.
( this exposes the fan and the coils ( sort of ) )
Lots of dust.... worse if you have a dog or cat
Squeeze the shop-vac hose into all the nooks and crannys.
Try not to bend, break or disconnect anything.
Replace access cover
Rassle fridge back in place, and plug it in.

How many average households will do this
once or twice a year ?

How many will have poor performance
or shorter appliance life due to clogged coils...

It was alot simpler when Momma could roll out the fridge,
run the vac hose over the ( exposed ) coils, and roll it back.

clogged heat
rj

My best guess at this is because people are stupid, and don't read the
manufacturers recomendations which specify minimum distances around
the refrigerator (specifically to dissipate the heat). Sine they know
you are going to cram in a refrigerator that will take up nearly 100%
of the space available, they put it at the bottom so they can vent it
out the bottom front.

replying to , Frustrated wrote:
Absolutely! I would gladly have the "ugly" back coils again, at least you
could keep an eye on them and clean when necessary. Just learned the hard way
that vacuuming the front grill cover like manual says does absolutely nothing.
The condenser coils are zigzagged underneath in a way no vacuum can reach.
Have a 2 year old warped and ruined bamboo floor to remind me now that I
should have bought the brush (that no one tells you about) and been cleaning
this inaccessible part every 6 months or so.

--
posted from
http://www.homeownershub.com/mainten...sh-257822-.htm

On Thursday, April 21, 2016 at 12:44:06 PM UTC-4, Frustrated wrote:

The condenser coils are zigzagged underneath in a way no vacuum can reach.
Have a 2 year old warped and ruined bamboo floor to remind me now that I
should have bought the brush (that no one tells you about) and been cleaning
this inaccessible part every 6 months or so.

I have one refrigerator where the coils are horizontal and stacked. That special brush will get between them.

But my other one has angled coils in a \/\/ configuration (side view). From the front you can vacuum the front \ of the coil. By moving away from the wall and taking the machine screws out and removing the back cover, you can vacuum the / of the coil. Well, part of it. That compressor makes access tricky.

However there is no way to get vacuum or brush anywhere near the inner /\ coils. I blow them off with a can of spray air, as best I can. It's better than nothing but doesn't really clean them.

replying to Frustrated, Greg Seaman wrote:
I Use a blower or compressed air to blow the lentout from under unit and
vacuum up after.

--
for full context, visit https://www.homeownershub.com/mainte...sh-257822-.htm

replying to , James Printy wrote:
Amen! The only way I can figure how to clean the coils underneath the frig is
tape a plastic garbage bag on the front of frig, take back off, and drag my
air hose from garage into kitchen and blow the dust out. Garbage bag traps
most of dust but not all and cleaning the blade on blower is a pain too. Like
to have the old ones with coil on back.


--
posted from
http://www.homeownershub.com/mainten...sh-257822-.htm

On Wednesday, June 29, 2016 at 11:44:07 PM UTC-4, James Printy wrote:
Like
to have the old ones with coil on back.


--
posted from
http://www.homeownershub.com/mainten...sh-257822-.htm

I just bought one with coils on the back. It is a small hotel sized one (not the mini dorm size, but just slightly under 18 cu ft.) I was very careful moving it, those coils run the full height of the fridge and look very fragile.

On Thu, 30 Jun 2016 03:44:02 +0000, James Printy
wrote:

replying to , James Printy wrote:
Amen! The only way I can figure how to clean the coils underneath the frig is
tape a plastic garbage bag on the front of frig, take back off, and drag my
air hose from garage into kitchen and blow the dust out. Garbage bag traps
most of dust but not all and cleaning the blade on blower is a pain too. Like
to have the old ones with coil on back.

They might sell a special brush for this, long and thin.

replying to , OkieEngineer wrote:
You nailed it! Under-side coils are impossible to get very clean. And, as
they clog-up with dust, the condenser temps go up, which means the compressor
pressures go way up, shortening the compressor life. The old-style rear
condenser units are WAY more reliable. I've seen them run 40+ years.
It might be true that the fan-cooled coils are more efficient, but that
efficiency will be gone within a month in most households where the coils will
quickly get covered with dust.

--
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replying to , Greg Seaman wrote:
I agree, it's such a pain.to clean all the time
believe the coils in the back were much better .I forgot to unplug the unit
and I broke the fan blade with the vacuum and within two years whole thing
died. Only lasted not quite 5 years. What happened to the fridges that lasted
10, 15, and even 20 years?


--
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replying to Don Young, dhsm_64 wrote:
Actually I have an old Kenmore non defrost with coils on the back and they are
not that deep so you can clean them and still get them close enough to the
wall! They do not get dirty as the ones under which are impossible to clean
from that front guard. You actually have to open the back panel and clean that
way but still they are dirty and greasy. The only true way to clean them is to
have someone tilt them back on a hand truck and you vacuum and wash them that
way .First one side and then the other. There can be frost free with coils on
the back and they are absolutely more quiet as there is no need for a fan to
cause the air flow needed for evaporation. IN a WORD they SUCK!

--
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jetgraphics writes:
I was wondering if anyone knows why the "old fashioned" back mounted
coil refrigerators were replaced with bottom mounted coils?

Back coil mounts didn't become as filthy nor did they need a fan to
blow air over them.

My theory: look at the volume occupied by a rear-mounted condenser with
the appropriate amount of air space behind the fridge (and above it as
well). That's a lot of volume that isn't storing anything cold. By
using a fan-cooled condenser, the refrigerator case can be about 3
inches deeper and a couple inches higher and still fit into the same
space without projecting any further into the room. That gives a
significant increase in inside room if the box insulation remains the
same thickness, or allows thicker insulation (for better efficiency)
while keeping the interior volume the same.

Dave

no doubt the current style is at least a bit cheaper to build
manufacturers will do anything to save a dime multiplied by millions
it makes big bucks

9 year old post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!