How loud should it be?

I have a Vendo 23 in my family room and it is very quiet. The wife doesn't complain at all. I just picked up a Cavalier 96 (for $200) and it seems to be quite a bit louder. Even though the compressor turns on and off the fan runs continuously. Is this normal? Would a modern fan motor quiet it down some? I doubt there is much I could do with the compressor but that's only on for a portion of the time. I suppose I could insulate it's exterior but I fear it would overheat.

Any comments or words of wisdom?

Nate

[johnieG]

Hello Nate; The compressor should cycle as the unit reaches it's set temperature, and most evaporator (inside cabinet) fans do run continuosly,however the condenser fan (outside) usually cycles on/off with the compressor, sometimes the blades are bent and it causes bad noises/vibrations especially if its scraping the coils I had one fan missing a blade What a racket! and I'd check the rubber isolaters on the compressor too, dry-rotted or missing rubber will really make the machine loud. on door machines if the door-seal is not doing its job you'll also hear the inside fan whirrrring away! hope it helps...JohnieG

Thanks, After letting it run a couple of days I don't believe anything is "wrong". However, I believe your door gasket comment is correct as this one is hard as a rock and certainly letting some sound out. As for the condenser fan I may persue an ultra quiet electrical cabinet type fan because the compressor itself is rather quiet. Of course I'll keep all the original parts and wont be drilling anything!

Thanks,
Nate

[johnieG]

Coll Nate, but be sure the C.F.M.(cubic feet per minute) rating on your "muffin" fan is a high or higher than the original, also a "feathered blade" on the muffin style fan will be MUCH quieter than a smooth-edge,some of the high volume (C.F.M.) units are as loud as a hair-drier! try to match the diameter of the replacement to your old one should help maintain air flow requirements of your machine.

Last night I took a look at the original with the flashlight. It appears to be around 8". I couldn't find any good data on the CFM but it appears to be ~200 or so. I think I can get away with a little less with proper mounting as the factory unit is poorly located. (They would have interpreted it as protecting the fan in case the condenser got plugged). By putting it right up to the condenser I'll be able to have all the air that goes through the fan come through the condenser. The factory fan is rather far away and with a clean condenser maybe 50% of the air through the fan comes through the condenser. It's so far away in fact that I don't think I'll even have to dimount it to get the other one in there.

Nate