2nd hand autofridge

Submitted: Wednesday, Feb 20, 2002 at 01:00
ThreadID: 771 Views:1875 Replies:2 FollowUps:0
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I was considering buying a second hand Autofridge. Its about 5 years old. The bottom is a bit worn but the owner says its otherwise OK. Is there anything else I should look out for in terms of wear and tear?
Thanks
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Reply By: Jim - Wednesday, Feb 20, 2002 at 01:00

Wednesday, Feb 20, 2002 at 01:00
Hi Rich.
I have used a 39 litre Autofridge for nearly 10 years with minimal problems. Mine too is exhibiting some wear on the bottom where things have wriggled on rough roads. The only problem I have had is with a bit of a 'clunk' developing recently. This is caused by the motor mounting springs within the compressor housing stretching and allowing the motor to sometimes contact the housing. It still operates normally and the advice from the manufacturer is to not worry about it. Unlike the Engel, the Autofridge does not require a spring mounting base when used on rough roads, but eventually (like 10 years) it can start to show some symptoms of suffering. If you raise the motor end of the fridge approx 50mm and then drop it with no resulting 'clunks', then the springs are probably still OK. Only other minor issue with ours is that it tends to freeze anything with a high water content that is on the bottom and against the sides, even on the lowest thermostat setting. This is probably unavoidable to an extent as the principal advantage of the Autofridge is the eutectic plates in the sides that are frozen to store extra 'cold'. We have had the thermostat adjusted in ours which has reduced this tendancy, but we also pack the fridge accordingly. We have a smallish plastic container which fits neatly across the top lip of the inside that allows us to store butter, lettuce, tomatoes, etc, without fear of them freezing. Re the marks on the bottom, we have cut to size and fitted some of that non-slip material sold in caravan supplies stores to cover the bottom of ours. Apart from the obvious protection, it also mans than most things are above any condensation water or other fluids that end up in the bottom after some days/weeks of use. In summary, it's a great fridge with no real problem areas and when ours finally does die, I intend to get another.
AnswerID: 2154

Reply By: Rich - Friday, Feb 22, 2002 at 01:00

Friday, Feb 22, 2002 at 01:00
Thanks Jim,

Sounds like you've had significant experience with one. You seem to suggest that items do not freeze or store too evenly (like most fridges!), but this is overcome with adjustment. The larger model has a small fan, do you think this would be to any advantage? How did you find the power usage, as specified?

Thanks again,
rich
AnswerID: 2169

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