Westinghouse water cooler

[stoner55]

Hello all,
I'm wondering if anyone can identify this compressor by sight. Its in a mid 50s Westinghouse office water cooler with a built in fridge. Also holds two ice trays. I cant see a single marking or tag on the compressor. I just had it charged with r12 the other day and it really works great. The water is cold, the ice is frozen and the refridge is cold but not freezing. It cycles on for about 29 to 33 minutes and off for about 20 minutes with 3 or so gallons of water, a filled ice tray, and a bottle of wine to keep cool.
My only concern is the compressor is pretty hot to the touch and reads about 120 degrees with my laser temp gauge aimed at the center of the compressor. Its not noisy, just has that muffled ticking sound. If anyone knows what this one is, can or should oil be added? It says in info I have on the unit that its permanently sealed splash system. Is that a normal temp for this type of unit?
I've cleaned it off the best I can (pic is pre cleaning!) without removal, and have cleaned the coils on the back of the cooler pretty well also. (its air cooled)
Thanks for any info!

[MoonDawg]

         Seems like it's working OK to me. Can you show us a complete picture?  I'm not sure what a Westinghouse water cooler looks like!

[stoner55]

Here you go!

[johnieG]

As big Physically as they are, these old "battle-ship" ( as in "as big as a battle-ship) style compressors can be as small as 1/8 of a horse-power, typically this application would call for a 1/4 HP/medium temperature unit, considering it is also running an Ice-tray section as well as cooling the water reservoir.  

That's a lot of heat to move/remove from the system, plus the compressor itself has to get rid of its own internal heat, the majority of this internal heat is disposed of via the high pressure gas discharge to the air by way of the condensing coils, usually there is a cooling fan to assist in removing this heat, however yours is just convection air-cooled.  and as you've noticed, some of the heat is radiated from the compressors metal housing as well.

I've seen case temperatures reach between 120-180 degrees Fahrenheit easily, I see the cooler still has its original fiberglass insulation down below, this is for sound-deadening in an office environment, it also retains more of the heat from the compressors case.  if possible you could remove it to help lower the temp' down there. assuming the additional noise isn't objectionable. you could also add a small air circulation fan possibly down around the compressor area.

If you've recharged the system as you say, make sure that it's not overcharged as this can also lead to higher than normal compressor temperatures, and overloading of the compressor. this is always a possibility when using only your pressure gauges instead of a refrigerant scale to weigh in the correct charge.

PS...if you've added gas, I assume you found & repaired the associated leak.  

[stoner55]

Thanks for your informative reply johnieG!
An original brochure I have on Westinghouse water coolers states that this model is 1/6th hp. The unit was recharged at exactly 10oz per my a/c guy. He echoed what you said as far as not overfilling it. I forget the method he used, but it was to inject the exact amount.
                         
Someone at some time had put a pin tap that you can see on the right line in the picture. He replaced the cap on it and checked everything for leaks and found none. Its running and cooling great, and as long as the temp on the compressor is normal, I'm happy.

I was thinking of replacing the old insulation, but I'll try it without and see what the noise is like. Its pretty quiet. I like your fan idea too. Although with the vents on the side, and the way its sits up off the ground there is quite a bit of air flow.

So the cycling seems correct, and 125 degrees on the case is normal, or would I want it cooler?

[johnieG]

See? It was smaller ( HP -wise) than the physical size would suggest.  The case temperature on the compressor is what it is, a fan will help if needed, FYI, these machines tend to develop leaks in the water bath coil, hard to detect, also check around the ice compartments evaporator tray, often the victim of a knife puncture during a rushed defrosting / de-icing attempt,  believe me, if it was low on freon, there IS a leak somewhere. Keep an eye on the system pressure, & wait and see. 

[stoner55]

Yes my a/c guy checked very carefully for leaks. The copper tubes melded to the outside of the reservoir and the whole reservoir are encased and filled with granulated cork and sealed up. If I have a leak in there I'm kind of hosed.
So far its all good, so I'll just use it and see what happens.

Thanks again for the info

[sc1101]

Funny you happened to post this. It is exactly what I'm looking for minus the bubbler. The exact one I want is the Westinghouse R1. I just posted about it the other day. Very cool unit you have there. Let me know if you decide to sell it. Thanks
http://soda-machines.com/discussions/index.php/topic,21094.0.html

[stoner55]

Those Coolerettes are well...cool! Mine popped up on ebay some time ago and I finally got it up and running. I had only seen pictures of this model and hadn't seen one for sale before or since. They must be out there.

I have a Westinghouse water cooler and water fountain sales brochure from 1956 with my exact model shown, so it dates back to at least then.
Ive been try to see when the Westinghouse emblem on it was used, but so far no luck.

I've messed with it since my first post and it now is cycling on and off literally to the minute at 16 minutes on and 22 minutes off in a 71 degree house. The drinking water comes out at 43 degrees. I think the cycling must change a bit as the water in the bottle gets lower.

Good luck with your search, but for now I'm going to be holding on to this one!

ps nothing like the "bubbling" in the bottle when your getting a glass of water!

[collecture]

Westinghouse did everything "In House" (no pun intended), so what you have is a Westinghouse compressor. Looks identical to my Westinghouse (Vendo) Junior compressor.