Nice! We use one of these for our beer fridge and it’s still cranking. Good to know that it might be a decently easy fix when it does finally break.

does it frost inside?

We had this fridge for 30 years.

Old fridges are pretty simple, I replaced a noisy fan in mine.

That fridge is in my kitchen. Same color.

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No

Old fridges are where it’s at. My uncle has my grandmas first fridge still working. And they don’t consume much more power than new ones like people think

There is an era where insulation sucked (70s?). Then the early models with auto-defrost and any models with door ice dispensers

But if the insulation (the wall thickness) looks modern and no door ice dispenser, yeah it's likely just as efficient as modern fridges

But it's good to check the power usage on all fridges. The ways they break can cause significant power usage, I've heard of people detecting a failed fridge before losing food by seeing it was constantly using way more power (defroster can get stuck on, thermostat can get stuck on, etc)

Not an antique unless you consider a 1980's fridge antique. These old GE's were built well. Around the early 2000's is when problems started arising, probably due to computer control boards (had to replace one in my 2005 GE SXS fridge in 2013).

They’re actually built to be repaired by a tech… and that’s a loose term lol. Can you read a manual and turn a wrench? You’re good for everything except the coolant at that point haha

How do these old ones compare to new ones in terms of electricity costs?

Aw man. My grandma had one of these in malaise beige back in the day.

What did you notice/what was it doing that made you look into repairing it? My outside fridge just stopped blowing cold air and am looking into home repair now actually.

They cost an enormous amount to run compared to newer fridge/freezers.

>20-year-old refrigerator could use 1,700 kWh of electricity every year, compared with about 450 kWh for a similarly sized new ENERGY STAR model. At an electrical cost of 12 cents per kWh, that represents a savings of $150 per year and a potential payback of about 7-9 years.

Just like the one we bought in 1980

I'm like Leonardo Dicaprio. Made before 2001. I don't want it. /s

Is that magnet for the new realty company in Western Wisconsin?

The freezer wasn’t freezing anymore, but everything seemed to be working fine. After cleaning the coil, it’s freezing again

It’s close….

Crazy! We're practically neighbors.

In the Netherlands, a kWh cost 90 cents before the government price-capped it. Upgrade your appliances, folks.

Thanks, that’s how it started for me. Going to begin there. I really appreciate it. Glad it’s working for you!

My parents had that exact same fridge!

My grandparents had this same fridge in their house from the 70s until they sold it 2 years ago.

you just ordered a fan for it? my sounds awful at times. I was thinking it just needs cleaned maybe.

good to know. i had wondered that also. but then again a new one won't last for decades and new ones cost a minimum of $800 these days.

Yeah that was my issue. Clean the coils and figure out what's rattling. Not many moving parts on a fridge.

Someone wants in on that fridge sticker craze.

I have little faith in new refrigerators lasting 9 years. I am an appliance technician but I'm not refrigeration. Our fridge techs often replace 4 compressors a day in their routes. It's generally not cost effective if you're paying for it out of pocket. After a few years the warranties don't pay for labor on sealed systems, even if parts are covered.

Yeh. I think the "rule" for antique is 50 years, except for cars (20 years, IIRC). Anything lesser is "vintage".

I have a early 90’s fridge and it only uses $20 a month. I changed the freezer fan once.

My Lexus sc400 is from 96. It likes modern today.

I will never believe people that tell me modern appliances are better than old ones because “they are more efficient!“. It’s more efficient to not have to buy a new appliance every 6 years.

It'll strongly depend on the brand. I wouldn't expect a Samsung to last longer than a few years but a Miele should last a lifetime.

@ Properties

That's the one.

I don’t get this. Fridges in major cities are literally given away for free (semi used and In great condition). Why would you not upgrade your fridge to a modern one that is actually a lot more energy efficient.

My wife and I moved and we wanted a fridge for the garage, go on Facebook marketplace to have people begging for others to take their fridges off their hands. It’s a pain to throw away/dispose of so it’s easier to just offer for free if the buyer is willing to pick up. $30 uhaul rental and you’ve got a new fridge.

LOL, yeah! I was driving my '95 Camry up until about 3 years ago. It's still on the road. I upgraded to a 2004 Camry! Things are a lot different from 1976, when I had a '64 TR4. That baby was ANCIENT already. I loved her, though. Had to sell her, as I couldn't afford a "Sunday only" car. The longevity difference in cars today and then is just mind-boggling when you think about it. When I was in driver's ed, a car over 100k was extraordinarily rare. Today, that isn't even high-mileage.

Fridges we’re built to last back then. Now everyone knows how to make things cheap so they break. I wonder if a commercial restaurant fridge is the way to go these days. Anyone know?

Yes I used to rent from them.

@

"Only" uses $20/mo. 🤣🤣🤣

We had that growing up

No, it doesn't. You could say it looks good, but modern? Nope.

you guys are wasting electricity like crazy and don't know it. there is such a massive difference in power usage for inverter and non inverter compressors. it's probably like 50% more efficient.

Key word is could. Really depends on what we're comparing. Fridges without an external freezer are about as efficient as a new fridge. Of course such "efficiency articles" always bash on old fridges and seem to only compare the fridges with wasteful integrated freezers. Get a separate freezer chest and it'll also be way more efficient than a modern fridge freezer.

It's probably bad, but not for the fridge portion. The freezers are usually where you loose the efficiency compared to new ones.

That’s a proud old at symbol!

If the fridge has no external freezer, it's not more efficient anyway. Old freezers were terrible, but the fridge part is fine. It's very different to keep things above or under freezing.

It's usually the freezer which hogs power. The fridge part by itself is usually very comparable to modern ones...

Might be worth plugging an old fridge into a meter and seeing how much power it uses before buying new.

The very basic fridges still seem to be fine, but most people will not touch those given the lack of creature comforts or designs.

With these energy prices in Europe, it definitely is cheaper to upgrade.

Not fair to take prices during a shortage to make long term decisions.

But I agree with the conclusion, in OP's case it would be better if that thing broke or went to a museum.

Fair.

Our electricity price is currently linked to the gas price, which neared 4 euros ($4 these days) per m³ before the price cap (€1.45/m³). Russia sucks. Of course, there's price, but there's also the fact that lowering energy consumption is better for the environment.

Once there are order-of-magnitude improvements in efficiency, it's probably a good idea to upgrade.

Depending on your energy mix (and the difference between that and a new one) it's probably worse for the environment to run an old fridge than to replace it with a more energy efficient one.

Maybe I used the wrong word, I didn't mean "unfair" as in morally, but as in "wrong", economically and mathematically.

I'm in Europe too, so I understand the gas-electricity market relation.

My point was that when you make economical calculations you need to know what the future price will be in time. You are not buying all the electricity now at current price, it's not something you can accumulate in your house. You will be buying it in time at the market price. So you will save exactly the difference each time. If now you are saving 50 cent for each KWh, maybe 12 months from now you will save 17 cent for KWh (I'm talking about the energy price only, without grid costs etc). If you make the calculations assuming you will save 50 cent/KWh for the next [insert lifetime] years you are doing a wrong cost analysis, plain as that.

Of course this is not clear with this antique, because with our prices you would get your money back in a few months. A few years with the low American prices.

But take a 350 KWh a year fridge you are considering, and a 450 KWh a year fridge you already have. The new fridge costs 300 euros. Are you sure you will save more money upgrading to the more efficient one? (I'm simplifying and assuming the old one doesn't break) You would reach the breakeven point in 6 years with 50 cent/KWh. But if prices go from 50 to 17 (one third) in a year it'll take 1+5x3=16 years. If it goes down in 3 years it's 3+3x3=12 years, etc. That's why unfair. You are assuming prices will not go down again, as if this was the natural price. It is not, it's a crisis price. It is not about opinions, but economics. 🤷

I won't enter into the environmental analysis because in the schizophrenic society we live in imo it's silly.

>You are not buying all the electricity now at current price, it's not something you can accumulate in your house. You will be buying it in time at the market price.

You lost me after this but somehow I completely agree with everything you said.

I meant 'fair' as in 'that's a fair thing to say'. Communication is hard.

But good calculation, more people should think about it that way.

Most refrigerators are replaced because of broken door shelves, or simple fashion (the stainless steel look sold a lot of appliances), not because they quit working.

Every fridge should be BIFL— they basically have one moving part. I lived in several apartments that had 40-50 yr old fridges.

In other news- since buying houses- fridges suck— the modern ones. Ten years is now a long life. Makes no sense at all.

My parents have this exact one I’m pretty sure

How long do new fridges last? Are they pretty reliable?

I see a lot of refrigerators on here. Please have someone check them for leaking refrigerants. The chemicals used in these are so toxic they are illegal now. Our government is cheap and lazy. There was not a recall. You have to protect yourself! I don’t want your family to get cancer bc you have a vintage fridge.

Same. Replaced the automatic defrost heating element once. Which had the side effect of me learning of ways to vastly improve its efficiency, which may well be the biggest energy waster on these old fridges.

edit - almost forgot the "always on" heating element to prevent condensation in the ice dispenser chute, which also caused yellowing of the plastic (replaced and heater wires cut) until it looked like the house was inhabited by chainsmokers. These older fridges definitely weren't doing themselves any favors from an efficiency standpoint.

I grew up with the same fridge. Its working after 35 years.

I got one like that in my garage. Full of beer and pop it just keeps working

> early models with auto-defrost and any models with door ice dispensers

I have one of these offenders. I cut the wires to the "always on" condensation heater and plugged the ice chute. I currently use a system to skip usually every other defrost cycle, but there is a permanent fix using a rheostat from those old halogen floor lamps to vary the power to the heating element itself (half is good starting point from what I hear).

Not justifying old technology, but they kinda never break. The over/under on repairs on modern commonly purchased refrigerators is alarming. My only source is personal experience. Bought two different “highly rated” refrigerators (LG, Whirlpool) that both malfunctioned and failed within a year. Meanwhile my garage fridge, inherited parents 1988 Amana) runs like an absolute top. Just bought a GE sidebyside 3 months ago. 🤞

Depends on what you're buying and how much you're willing to spend.

In general you want to spend more for fewer features to get the best quality.

They can be better if you are looking in the right places and are willing to pay for it.

But people expect a fridge to always be the same price and never take inflation into account.

How much did this "basic" fridge cost when it was bought? I'd wager the equivalent price today is $2k or more. Most people wouldn't pay more than $500 (well, $1k now because of shortages) for something like this. Well that price difference had to come from somewhere, and it came out of durability and longevity.

@

You really should replace this- the energy efficiency is horrible - so much money lost from the energy bill and larger carbon footprint as well.

If you told a historical human being that it would cost less than 1 hour of labor a month to preserve their food for 3 or 4 times as long, they would be astounded and think you were selling them a bridge.

But are they as equally bifl? I don't know how much a new fridge costs these day but that could be an important factor.

They should be as long as you buy one that’s essentially just a compressor and light in a box. Avoiding ‘smart fridge’ technology that’ll get abandoned after a few years.

Lol this is my fridge! And definitely needs a coil cleaning