Icebox evaporating unit mounting location

[Bill Shreeves]

I've had enough with buying ice to keep my food cold and I'll be installing a new Cold Machine CU-100/VD-150 on my '87 34 in a few weeks.

What is the typical or most common side of the icebox to mount the evaporating unit and thermostat?  The Admiral will have input on where she thinks it'll be easy for her however, I wanted to know where others have it mounted.


Thanks!

[waughoo]

I bought a rectangle plate type rather than an "O" type as I felt the O type took up wat too much space in the box.  My plate is long enough to cover the forward wall and port wall and stay above the shelf at the top.  This gives me LOTS of space on the top shelf with very little obstructions.

[Jon W]

Mine is mounted to the forward wall.

[Noah]

The side wall nearest to where you plan to mount your compressor, as the copper refrigerant lines must exit through a hole drilled through the box.

[Bill Shreeves]

Thanks.  What Jon showed is what I've had in mind with the compressor installed under the settee just forward of the stbd. water tank.

Jon, How difficult is it to run the refrigerant lines between the icebox and the galley enclosure? I have yet to add any insulation.  That'll be coming later.

[glennd3]

Bill I mounted mine where you are going to. It works fine but needed extra charged lines for the distance.

[Stu Jackson]

I bought a rectangle plate type rather than an "O" type as I felt the O type took up wat too much space in the box.  My plate is long enough to cover the forward wall and port wall and stay above the shelf at the top.  This gives me LOTS of space on the top shelf with very little obstructions.

How does one make ice cubes with this arrangement?

[Bill Shreeves]

Bill I mounted mine where you are going to. It works fine but needed extra charged lines for the distance.

DOH, the default line length doesn't make it?  I didn't check yet but should have.  I guess I better order the extensions now since it took nearly 4 months to get the condenser.

[Noah]

The standard lines that come will the Alder Barbour Cold Machine 150 evaporator will barely reach to the after locker, if you mount it on the aft wall if reefer. It worked for me recently. If you are mounting the compressor in saloon, you will have mucho copper line length to spare—just coil it up.

[glennd3]

picture

[Noah]

BILL— Both Jon and I believe Glenn, are NOT using the ColdMachine 150 evaporator. . If you buy the Adler Barbour ColdMachine 150 you will have enough copper.

[Bill Shreeves]

BILL— Both Jon and I believe Glenn, are NOT using the ColdMachine 150 evaporator. . If you buy the Adler Barbour ColdMachine 150 you will have enough copper.

Thanks Noah!  I'll be taking a much closer look this weekend and hope to see that I'll have mucho copper lines.  I don't expect to get to the refer install for a few weeks yet.  I'm hoping to wrap up another big project then need to install some new instruments in the PODs on my binnacle.  After that, comes the refer.

[Jon W]

It was installed before I purchased the boat, but it doesn't look to be that difficult of an installation. I'll be at the boat tomorrow morning so will get some photo's of the compressor and copper runs and post to this thread.

[waughoo]

How does one make ice cubes with this arrangement?

One does not.  I use a countertop ice maker that I hope to run with an inverter when I get my house bank sorted.  The plan is for on demand vs storage of ice.

[Jon W]

Bill, I took some very rough point to point measurements this morning. Only use as reference, no curves taken into account. For some reason the copper tubing is routed in a big loop from the compressor to the fridge. No idea why. Maybe someone whose installed the tubing will know if it's a metered run requiring a specific overall length to have the proper volume of gas? If a specific tubing length isn't required, you can cut 3-4 feet out of my current tubing run.

My tubing runs from the compressor inboard along the bulkhead at the end of the water tank ~12", then forward ~14" along the inboard bulkhead of the sette to the edge of the opening then turns outboard for ~21" to the hull. From there it runs ~60" aft along the hull until just past the water tank fill hose, then up ~18" thru a hole into the cubby hole by the fridge and turns 90 degrees into the fridge. Not sure of tubing length from the cubby hole to the evaporator inside the fridge. Hope this makes sense and helps.

Looks like I need to do some cleaning of the fridge side bulkhead in that cubby hole.