refrigerator in cold shop

In winter, my garage usually stays somewhat above freezing most of the time, but unless I turn on the electric heaters, the only heat it gets is from the car and what leaks out of the house. I think that conventional refigerator/freezers are designed to operate at normal room temperature--around 70 degrees F.

I like the idea of constantly adding a little heat to the inside of the refrigerator with a light bulb. That should take care of the potential problem of beverages freezing in the refrigerator compartment and also the problem of the freezer compartment not being cold enough because the system never cycles.

I will try it. Last year I lost several half gallons of ice cream that melted and made an ugly mess. Thanks!

Ryan

Think the Brits have the right idea. Get out the BRANDY and warm the belly.

Mark

Joe

First cold snap ya'll come over and let's empty my frig. Grin.

Mark

I'm thinkin' we oughta have a coupla practice runs before the cold weather hits. Load up the fridge we're on our way!

Dug

Mark

Insulation merely slows the rate of thermal transfer; either direction. So if the outside temp stays below the temp that beer freezes for a couple of days, it's frozen. Since beer is only 5% alki, mostly water, it pretty much follows the 32F thing.

Take it in the house on those cold days. Besides, since you are probably in there too, on those cold days, it's closer to you soas you can get to it easier.

Mark

I'm sure T-bone can supply the technical answer as to how this works.

Think of a pop machine that sits outside.

The ref unit (compressor) is controlled by a thermostat. Iffin the temp (where the thermostat sensor bulb is located) is below the thermostat set point she ain't gonna close and the refer ain't gonna come on. Then it's a matter of what is the delta t, what is the R factor of the walls of the ref, and how long will it take for the two to equalize..... i.e. freeze your beer.

Iffin you're going to heat the inside you have to provide a heat source. Now that could be a large light bulb, or you could have your beer hot and survive for a couple of days while it's cooling down to the environmental temp, but no heat source, and in time, the innards and outtards become one in the same temp. Iffin the outtards is going up and down, like cold nights and mild days, it's a game of tag. The inside tries to follow the outside but how fast it can follow it is determined by the R factor of the frig insul. Higher the R, slower it responds.

Pure physics my man.

Mark

Matt would be correct in that the cold product will heat the colder ambient air and transfer heat up to the point of time the product has no more BTU's to give up.

Then Mark would be correct as the unit will not come on as the cold control (thermostat) will not let the unit come on below it's cut-in set point and the "big freeze" is on removing additional BTU until the product becomes solid.

We have to add 450btu/lb to our calculations at the temperature stall point to lower/raise the product temperature. The stall point being the temperature at which a liquid begins to turn solid or a solid becomes a liquid.

Most home refrigerator cabinets full of product loose/gain heat at 10º per the first 24hrs then 20º the second 24hrs. Most of the heat leakage is at the door gasket.

Commerical refrigeration cabinets are slightly better.

This would be with the cabinet in the shade. Sun temperature is typicaly 10º warmer than shade ambient temps.

Most unheated buildings are 10º warmer inside than the outside ambient temps with zero air flow other than natural covection air currents.

In talking refrigeration, we only have a absence of heat, as "cold" only ocurrs at minus 460º.

Later,

Mark

There is a special name for that heater, I just can't remember it. What it does is face the door gasket and keep the gasket surface slightly warm. This keeps ice and condensastion from building on the face so the door gasket will seal.

Door gaskets have a magnet inside the gasket and that is what makes them seal "if" the door is in close alignment.

T_Bone

Joe

• More about frig heaters, maybe more than youn wanted to know

Mark

Mark

What is POP or Soda ????? ????? ??

Is that DAD and Soda water.

OH!!!!! !! You mean COKE. (to us southern boys)

Does not matter if it is cola or root beer or strawberry it is all called COKE in the south.

My old company had a problem with that and chewed us royally. We had a "snap action thermal switch" (like a click-click frog clicker...Vietnam pager) that we referred to by the company patented adjective (trade name) KLIXON. Next thing you know the switch was a klixon not the other and bye bye patent.

But in my part if Texas it's just "gimme a beer". Grin.

Mark