What's inside a Refrigerator Compressor
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 ก.ย. 2024
- We tear apart a fridge compressor and show all the inner workings.
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Watch the next video where I turn this into a custom drill powered air compressor: • Drill powered Air Comp...
Refrigerator runs and doesn't get cold (low on freon, filter drier is clogged or the reed valves are broken)
Refrigerator won't turn on (burnt up electric motor or other electrical fault)
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I've heard compressors running for 58 years and finally somebody shows me what's inside!
THANKS!
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
I built compressors for 16 yrs, I love cutting them apart, and I've made air compressor and vacuum pumps from them! The compressors we build do have rings, not all do, but some of the bigger pumps do.
Very cool.
Can you tell me maximum pressure and temperature this compressor can take atmospheric air to ??
Not sure what a fridge operates at but a car AC(pretty much the same basic function) can reach up to ~20 bar(~281.4 psi) before the safety valves start releasing. Looking at the size of that motor compared to the piston, it'll take a while(depending on pressure vessel size), but I'm sure it can pump a surprisingly high pressure.
I've got a Buddy of mine with 6 of these on top a tank made of 10 inch steel pipe. Its the quetest air compressor I've ever seen.
An old compressor as a cheap vacuum pump. Genius!
Definitely gonna keep that in mind the next time I come across an old fridge...
Do you have to keep adding oil to the thing or will it keep going just with what's inside?
That was a good view of something most haven't ever seen thanks for sharing
Thanks Rick. -Moe.
Rick Ballard gdby
Thanks so much for breaking it down to its simplest components. It helped me a lot to get a good intro into the subject. I have been wondering how the compressor works, I am served!👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽
In addition I would like to know how one could (process step by step) turn the refrigerator compressor into biogas compressor to compress biogas into an LPG cylinder or a car tyre.
Thx!
Thats a first for me! I never saw the inside of one. Cool!
It's always fun to see how stuff ticks.
thanks sir
Khaliil01, man, that must have been a long time ago. These days the 'neighborhood tech guy' is someone who can attach pictures to grandpa's email before sending it, lol (no offense or anything). Times have changed...
I did a tear down like this and uploaded but I find his video came out better.
yes
No one had ever reviewed a compressor in such depths. Thanks man for such a great video
Thanks for watching.
First time I see one opened up like that. It's always the same with those things though, there's not as much to them as you might think. Thanks for sharing this Moe.
It's always fun to tear broken stuff apart and see what makes it tick.
Have you ever disassembled air tools? I was trying to take apart an old Harbor Freight butterfly impact wrench, but it seems like it had a one way assembly on the end plate, which must be pressed in, with no way to take it apart non destructively. I didn't take the hammer to it like you were doing in this video, because I wanted to see if it was simply some gummed up vanes in the air motor.
I've concluded there's no way to take it apart, but thought there must have been someone out in TH-cam land that's tried before. Doesn't seem like it though, because the only videos I could find were the regular pistol grip type impact wrenches.
DTR RTD, have you checked if AvE has a BOLTR on that?
@ A LeBlanc: So true. Very often the genius is in the simplicity of the design IMO.
The hollow chamber between the head and the line is a muffler. Keeps the condensation lines behind the fridge from buzzing loudly.
The "flapper valves" are called reed valves.
That oil is pretty thin compared to what automotive AC systems use.
Thank you for showing this I've never seen the inside of a refrigerator compressor before.That was very interesting to me.
Thanks.
It amazes me how simple the individual components of our mechanical devices are.
I always wondered what was going on with those, thanks for the video!
Great video. Ever wonder why these are so much more reliable than A/C compressors in cars? Rather than using an electric motor to power the compressor, the car compressor is powered by the engine via a fan belt around the compressor pulley. That pulley is connected to a shaft that goes into the compressor. As it enters the compressor, it needs a seal and that seal can eventually fail letting the refrigerant out. The fridge compressor has the motor inside so it doesn't need a shaft to run it. All it needs is two wires. While they're sealed, the wires aren't rotating so the seals will last indefinitely.
@Nunya Business They should have less problems as they've eliminated one pretty major reason for a leak.
wow ! thanks for this video , I got a couple of these and I can see lots of repurposing capability of these devices ! thanks again !🔭📚📘📐🎓🔨🔩🔧
Cata strophic the shaft attached to the motor moves actually similar to a jigsaw machine, too bad we dont have one
Cool, what ideas did you have?
Hey look guys!! It's an old school truckers habachi!!! Well sorta. Now cut just BELOW the welded lip and remove the resulting ring. Drill 5/8ths holes all over lid except right in the middle. Now drill a series of 3/4 inch holes about 1 1/2 - 2 inches up from feet.Remove guts (harvest for the copper if you want) remove rubber grommet feet and replace with wooden blocks. flip lid and drop into inside. load with coals and burn out the pag oil and other contaminants. Use existing 1/4 inch holes from coolant lines as a place to attach a paint can handle. Flip, wash out really well with Dawn. Reload with wood or coals and hand out skewer sticks and ask who brought the beer!!
A neat bit of engineering, shame its allways hidden for the life of the machine :-(
I knew there was a compressor in the case, but memory forgets the details, so it can be enjoyed all over again :-D
Thanks.
Good vid! What is amazing, is all the guys building these into 'mini-silent air compressors' for their garage, and that they work (for a while) without burning out! (it's all about that duty cycle, guys...that forever-on-state duty cycle, which these weren't meant to have)...
Thanks. I would say as an air compressor they need to run a max of 30 minutes before they get a cool down to prevent burning them out. While in an AC/refrigeration setup they get the refrigerant constantly cooling them so they can go longer.
Picked up a dryer today while driving around to cut customers grass. Love old dryers to scrap because 90% of the time I find loose change in them. Found dime,nickel ,and two pennies. I separate wire,motor good metals like brass,copper,ect then compress with skidsteer . Enjoy the vids!
Thanks Jim.
Jim Smith, after taking apart an old dryer to replace the heating element that shorted out due a bra underwire, I found a $20 spot. Paid for the repair, not to mention not having to replace the dryer!
Nice tear down and live run Moe!
Thanks. It's always fun to see how stuff works.
Always appreciate guys like you who spend their time to make these video. Thanks, now I know what’s inside that canister.
Thanks, I'm glad you enjoyed the video.
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Freon is a DuPont brand, it's a refrigerant vapor pump.
And?
vapor compressor
This video really open my eyes on the inner working mechanism of a compressor ! Hats up to you for spreading knowledge !!!
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
You've got some curiosity there m8. I was once like you. I would open up everything to see what's inside and how it works. This was way back when TH-cam didn't exist so I didn't have videos like this to learn about stuff.
I was Eric the car guy a few weeks back and he had some special bolts that looked smiliar didn't say what they are called. But he did say they are made to fit perfectly into a 12 sided spline socket or wrench
Thanks for the info.
Triple square XZN spline bit
ElleExxe Foursixty No triple square xzn bolts have a female impression, these ones on the pump have a male spline.
Why did you assume his identity a few weeks ago.Is it that bad being yourself?
Hmm, I've only seen XZN referred to when the bolt is a socket head style.
Moe, your enthusiasm is refreshing and your curiosity is in my playing field. There is a deep satisfaction in disassembly of that which is already built, assembled from many people and machines. To return an assembly of machinery into its prior pieces for examination is therapy for me. Well done. A question. How are the wires insulated in the oil so they don't short out? the armature wiring looks non insulated.
Thanks. The oil is non conductive.
Crude compressor, but effective. If they are so quiet, why are regular air compressors so noisy.
+Robert Heinkel - Primarily because of the shell and the spring mounting plus the fact that the gas it pumps is in a totally closed system.
Thanks this really help me dive into my project and learn more of what’s inside my wine fridge
We turned one into an air compressor when I worked in an appliance shop. Took a long time to fill the tank we connected it to but we didn't use it for a high demand application. Just short bursts of air. I believe the air compressors dentists use to run their little drills.use this type of compressor.
I have seen one as an air compressor. It was very quiet and never wore out. Useful for dusting of circuit boards etc.
We have such compressor on one of our small refrigerator made by Sanyo. The refrigerator is 25 years old and it still works without any problems.
43,000,000,000 revolutions in it's lifetime 😵
Well, I have seen large ones apart (the ones with external motors, belt drive) have always wanted to see inside small one but never wanted to get a dusty mess cutting it open. Thanks. I had thought the piston would be same as large ones, quite surprised at how absolutely basic it is.
Sixty five ford, our pathologist for cool junk. Love your videos
Thanks man.
This guy knows his stuff! Cuts right to the chase!
Excellent video!
Thanks Ken. -Moe
Ken N
Thanks for this. Mine’s way more than 20 years old. After seeing this I’m thinking there’s some piston wear and loss of compression. Fridge worked fine in winter but struggles to stay cool now that it’s above 80. Even cooling the house off at night doesn’t help. Enjoyed the tutorial
It could be low compression, low refrigerant or clogged filter dryer.
15 years ago i was working for a,division of Panasonic that made compressors very similar to that one. our base and cylinder were one piece and the con rod was AL. the pistons were 30mm on some models and were laser measured to match the cylinder. the crank shaft and motor core were "heat shrunk " together along with a AL bearing. we made everything in house except the block casting. btw the plastic piece that melted we called a muffler. and they use the weird bolts because the are automatically fed and tightened by machine
Thanks for the info.
Great video. Takes me back to that little tinkle the old fridges made every time the compressor shut down. Ahh childhood memories.🤣😂😁😀😎
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
My grandparents have a refrigerator that still runs from the 50's, where do I get one of those compressors?
Old fridges are built like tanks. I picked up a 1941 fridge a few years back from and auction. No one else wanted it. I plugged it in and started right up and ran great. Still works great and uses 1/3 the electricity my modern fridge uses.
rwdplz1 You may have to convert to a newer style compressor. It's doubtful you would recharge it with the old R12 and the newer refrigerants work better with the newer compressors.
sixtyfiveford sounds like someone replaced the compressor in that 1941s fridge with a freon pumping system like in the air conditioning in your house.
XanCraft21 R-12 freon came out in 1930. So I'm sure it was commonly used by the 40's.
You have to have the model number, serial number, and manufacturer of the fridge. There should be a metal data plate somewhere on that unit, hopefully it isnt tarnished so badly you can still read the numbers and letters. Once you have that info all it takes is looking on Ebay for a new compressor. You will probably have to convert to a new refrigerant like R-134a or R-404A though so dont worry about finding a compressor that runs on R-12 or R-22. Going online to the compressor manufacturer or calling the 1-800 number for the parts department they will be able to cross you over to a replacement compressor. Then find a refrigeration tech or AC tech and have him install the new compressor and filter drier. It takes a special set of tools and gauges and EPA certification to buy refrigerant, not sure about just a compressor but probably so. Pay a guy some cash and its an easy weekend job.
I've always wondered about whats inside those. I watched because i had a rather new 5000btu window A/C that lost it's gas so rather then "fix" it i just took out all the coils and cut a section of the case out and made what looks like a 12 inch wide A/C. But it's just the compressor i use as a air compressor to air up tires and such. I was going to ask some questions about it's safeness or anything i should know about my project. But at the end of this video i seen you was going to make something like what i did so i subbed and wrote this post.
Thanks for the interesting video and i'm gone to watch more.
Nice way to re-purpose a dead window unit. Thanks for the subscription. -Moe
Domestic used compressor has virtually remained same for last 5 decades or so. Only recently, induction motors are replaced with BLDC motor.
Amusingly refrigerators are moving faster to VFD's than residential AC units, the HVAC guys are taking people to the cleaners when they install old induction crap with starting capacitors, keeps those service calls coming!
Good video. I guess you haven't seen the movie The Brave little Toaster? You would win an Academy Award as the villain!
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
This is very informative! I know by the name itself that item should function as a gas compressor that will send the cooling gas around the fridge as i know a little bit of how some cooler work.. and on some electronic, this component named compressor often come to broke down first before any other component, so this video kind of opening a new window of knowledge to me! Thank you!
thank you, now I know why my old freezer made so much noise, all these time we thought it was some fan not lubricated enough.
What a cute little piston. I just watched a car compressor with 5 double cylinders, each side with what looked like 10x the volume as this little thing.
Yeah, they don't get much smaller than this.
success and success for "Sixtyford"
thank you for sharing that frigerator air compressor with us I always wonder what it looks like inside thank you again
Wow that was a pretty cool. I had always wondered what those compressors looked like from the inside.
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
Thanks for a great vid. I've always wondered what one of those compressors looked like on the inside. Now i know, thanks. cheers.
Thanks for watching.
Interesting to see how one of those compressors work. The one in my window air conditioner looks kind of like that.
It's fun to tear stuff apart and see how it works.
Wow man! i love the part you started the compressor with the drill. It was impressive! Thanks for sharing this video
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
I always wanted to see inside of one of those compressors. Dad worked on refrigeration systems when I was a kid, but I never got to see inside the sealed compressor.
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Why were there scorch marks on the rotor and wasn’t there a thermal cutout in the winding stator circuit to prevent overheating?
Thanks for all the detailed information you have provided in this video. I like your way of explaining every point. Keep sharing such great videos in the future also.
Awesome, I have to admit he said “pry this off” then he proceeded to hammer it. That was cool. But that said this was cool and informative
Hey Thanks.
I open broken stuff all the time to see what is inside...I can scratch that one off the list...Great Video....
These are always fun to tear into.
Great video, I’m fairly new in the refrigeration field. I’m current learning a lot about different types of compressors. In this case this would be a hermetic sealed compressor. Thanks for the video.
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
refrigerants have oil in it to lubricate the pump so they don't overheat
Took one of those and made a vacuum pump out of it to prep systems ready for refrigerant back in the 70's rebuilding commercial ice machines.
Thanks Man !! I've often wondered exactly what was in that hermetically sealed can but never took the time to tear into one. Now I don't have to. Curiosity satisfied. LOL
😀
First time I've seen what's inside. Thanks man!
Thanks for watching.
I hope I can do as well and be like you, I wish you and everyone a good time and happiness
Thanks for making this video - I've always loved seeing how things work. (As a kid I used to get into trouble for taking my toys apart).
I've heard of others using them for air compressors and wondered how they worked. The floating suspension design is interesting. It would be great for air-brushing!
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
Fascinating to see inside one of those. Funny they would use proprietary screws, like anyone's ever going in there!
Crazy screws. Someone pointed out they are probably "External Torx Plus" screw heads. Seams it would be cheaper to have a standard hex bolt, but I'm sure a million dollar robot can hold those strange screws better?
I always wondered what was inside, thanks. Can you do a follow up, and stick a 3600 rpm brushless DC motor in there, weld it back together, and gas it back up? I would love to see that! I don't get why there aren't many, if any, DC powered refrigerators out there... Not talking about peltier fridges.
I think some of the modern ones are DC computer controlled motors. It adds a fair amount of cost so it's only in the higher end units.
@@sixtyfiveford I did see some dc powered compressors on eBay, but wonder if they are actually ac motors with an inverter strapped to it. My reason for 'the want' of a DC powered compressor, would be to make an DC powered air conditioner, for when the power goes out, because a hurricane, for 3 days, during the hot summer. Florida is hot where I am.
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like you said, that compressor relies on oil in the refrigerant to cool it.....so, if you are going to make one of these into a silent compressor, you should add a few drops of oil into the intake side of the system occasionally
At 4:14 I was expecting the tail end of that hammer to hit me in the face. Cool vid.
Yeah, that wouldn't feel good.
Awesome!!! I always wondered what the inside looked like but also wondered how it worked!!! Thanks!!!
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
@3:50 oil inside splashes everyting for lube.
And we were told not to operate newly delivered ref and let the oil come down first for 5 hours or so if unit got tilted or lied horizontally or else it would damage the motor.
Thanks for taking the time to film this...I learned something new.
sir you done good job for learning about fridge compressor.it very help ful.thanks
Thanks.
Thanks for the video! If my compressor is vibrating, does it mean it is good or could it still be defective?
I thank you uncle for sharing the lesson numbers
I like to know what makes a fridge compressor so quiet, & if I can use that same method to make a 12v tire pump silent too. I'm trying to gather information for a project & wondered if you could help me out.
I always thought that metal ball was hollow, thanks!
My compressor has been making a horrendous clanking sound for several months(fridge is 19 y.o). I wacked compressor with my palm & the noise stopped. It sounded like the motor banging against the compressor housing. The fridge always worked fine. It was just REALLY LOUD continuous clanking.
One of the internal mounting springs more than likely fail out of it's perch or broke.
@@sixtyfiveford that's what I'm thinking, also. I've left the back off & when it gets loud, I thump it with my ✋. That'll have to do until I can afford a new fridge.
Kind of surprised to see a plastic part in there with all the rugged construction otherwise. Would this have lasted through the overheating if it was metal? The motor part might still have burned, dunno...
Very cool. Always wanted to know exactly how that device worked since I was a kid. Mystery box. LOL Thanks.
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
Great strip down of a compressor, did always wonder what wus inside one of those, so,. next favthom out, how they get on fire sealed inside that casing as fridge fires are happening over here in the uk, thanks.
It's not uncommon for the multitude of tubes to develop leaks over the years. This is due to corrosion or vibration generally. Since they use flammable refrigerant in the UK it causes fires.
very helpful to understand Compressor internal design
Thanks.
Nice breakdown. Thank you much for this visual. I would never break one apart myself. this has been most helpful.
Thanks, I'm glad you liked it.
I couldn't resist. I had to leave a comment and thumbs UP
Awesome.
Fantastic video! I have never seen wht's inside fridge compressor. Thx
First time I got into one of those I made a Hell of a mess with the oil. I knew they had oil inside, just didn't know how much oil they had inside. LOL You can do all sorts of cool stuff with those. Vacume Pumps. Low volume Pressure Compressor, They can actually achieve 2-400 PSI given time. Crazy high pressures.
They are fun to play around with.
So my bulk milk tank maintenance crew came out today because the compressor wasn’t working properly and they said the motor was goosed and supposedly changed it but there was no sign of the bolts being removed to get at the motor, I assume they never changed the motor, what say you?
Found out what is behind "ping-pong" noise in my fridge, thanks to this. The pump is bouncing against the inside of the receiver housing. The suspension springs must have softened over time. Comparatively new, five years, to be breaking down. I've had much older refrigerators that never made this noise.
I have same issue, yours still works? When it starts and stops ping pong
is that the same concept as the bigger 3 ton units used in residential condensers?
Basically yes. But instead of a piston compressing the refrigerant it is more than likely a scroll or rotary pump.
The heads are called system zero. They are security heads. They come in various sizes and the the drivers for them are not readily available. They are not cheap either. If you need a specific size you would have to get a whole set, or at least part of a set. I was going to get one for a particular job but there was no way of knowing what size I needed. They were small ones, not the size in this video, but would still have cost a fortune to get enough to hit on the size needed. Ended up using a pair of side cutters to grip the head. No good if they are recessed though.
Thanks saw this thing like more than 30 years never known what's inside. now I can die comfortably. Good job👍👍👍
haha.
Having an oil for lubrication pumped upward is a clear IDEA.
Yet, I wonder what happens to the oil if I want to empty the refrigerant in the compressor?
Either by running it while the evaporator line is open freely or by pumping the refrigerant loosely?
Will it be critical to add oil + refrigerant when I want to recharge the system again or refrigerant is enough?
Am I missing something? Like the OIL is R134a refrigerant? Or is it something different?
A small amount of oil gets pushed through the refrigerant lines with the refrigerant. A leak would cause a small amount of oil loss and generally a tiny bit of oil will be added back in when the leak is fixed/system is refilled with refrigerant. This is generally a very small amount and not adding oil back in to replace the theoretical amount lost would likely not cause any issues.
What truly surprised me is the size of the compressor piston! Large motor, tiny piston i can now understand how these things are designed to run their whole life without ever having to stop, other than when necessary refrigeration has been attained.!
These are designed to move very little air/gas but do it a high pressures 300+ psi.
Loved the drill powered compressor you cooked up from this!
Interesting - piston is a bit like the ones in electric car tyre inflators.
Must be some good uses for the motor if its in good nick!
Always a thumbs up for you Brother! How you liking the Grip 6? AND...third time is a charm. Asking this question that is....Do You Need A New Spindle for your deck? I've got PLENTY of them here and would be happy to send one your way. Cheers my Friend! Zip~
The Grip 6 has been very nice. I almost wish the belt had give or a very very firm elastic to take up slack while sitting but return to the same tension while standing. It does however hold tension better than any other belt. I bought 2 for my brothers for Christmas but haven't asked them about it as they live out of state. I would love an outside spindle.
Shoot me a private message Moe and I'll get your address. I just rebuilt one, so I'll send you that one so you won't have to worry about doing anything but installing it. Cheers!! Zip~
Always wanted to see inside one of those. 👍👍👍
Thanks.
What an adorable little piston
They don't get much smaller.
Made a small kiln out of mine. Pretty strong stuff.
They are very beefy.
Hello again, i've seen other teardown of these and ive noticed that some were placed upside down, the motor part was on top and the piston mechanism was at the buttom submerged in oil opposite yours. In your opinion wc design is much better in terms of wear & tear or durabilty?
Thanks for the video. Now I am no longer tempted to tear one apart out of curiosity.
OK Moe ya know I just have to tear one apart too now . LOL That's pretty cool. 👍
Great tutorial. Never had a need to learn this until now. My 25 yr old Hot Point fridge has been clunking, every time it shuts off, for a couple years now. Now the compressor is rattling inside, as if it's out of balance, or the spring is broke. (Maybe both?) Wonder how long I can milk it out? Thanks for posting.
They go a long time with the clunk. A spring likely just came off it's mount.
@@sixtyfiveford Thanks for your reply. But it's not just clunking, anymore. 2 days ago, it now has an internal "tapping", every rotation of the motor. As if something inside is contacting the internal wall, as it spins. I can put my hand on it, and feel it touching every revolution. It's a light duty tap, but know it's on its way out. I'm in the process of picking out another fridge. It was built in the 90s, and don't think appliances are built to last 50 years anymore. Not even sure it's worth rebuilding. But once again, thanks for your opinion.
What was the cause of the malfunction, shorted windings?
verified, Sanden automotive a/c compressor, 2hp compressor motor and some wiring.