I have a really old belt-drive Grunert reefer on my B-40. I mean OLD- it is original to the
boat, which was launched in ‘73. (Anybody here that old?)
Anyway, it still works. It keeps frozen things frozen in
Texas in the summer. In those days , (if not always) Grunert packaged systems, meaning they bought off-the-shelf components such as
motor (Century) and
compressor (Tecumseh), solenoid (Cole Hersee) thermostat ( who knows?) , and possibly made the condensing, evaporator coils and mounting frame/pan themselves.
The Tecumseh
compressor hasn’t been made for at least 20+ years.
Parts are totally unavailable. The 1/4 HP
motor draws per measure as much as 36 amps.
Clearly better choices (in many ways) exist today: more efficient, possibly more effective. Possibly not better built.
I would like to change the compressor and motor to a modern integrated compressor like a Danfoss. Other than re-insulating the box itself, I don’t want to change all that out with its attendant re-design headaches. I want to keep existing coils and lines- they’re cupro-nickel, and since they’ve only been re-charged twice in the last 25 years I will continue to gamble with them. It is presently charged with “Hot Shot” (R-134?)
In summary, if possible I would like to somehow save the refrigerant that is in the system and drop in a new compressor, retaining the existing coil and line system.
Am I making this sound too simple? Is this doable?