Good, actually silent refrigerator

[ddrueding]

Looking for something for my office. As part of my efforts to eat cheaper/healthier, I want to put a fridge in my office. It doesn't need to be big, and if it could double as a side table, that would be awesome.

1. Good: A real thermostat and the ability to run at 38F (3C).

2. Silent: Really silent. I just replaced a monitor because of some high-frequency crap from it. Any noise is unacceptable.

All the ones I'm seeing online use compressors and can't manage less than 40F under any circumstances.

I'm considering building my own? Peltier coolers? A custom-made hardwood cabinet filled with spray-foam insulation (R7 per inch)?

Thoughts?

 

[ddrueding]

JTR: I remember you building a box that was capable of getting much colder, but can't find the links anywhere.

 

[ddrueding]

This one looks promising.

 

[udaman]

did U buy a high-end pair of cans or deep-pocket high-end audio gaming system for the office where U've suddenly become hypersensitive about noise levels? ...or just stumbled by accident into Steve Jobs reality distortion field (Jobs hates fan noise).

Seeing how this thread hasn't had a few dozen posts to vet it yet, I should prolly wait

JTR built a cooling box for sure, but not one that had much capacity.

Vetting Q #1, how much? (RU willing to spend).

Any number of Pettlier (sp?) that can be found in mobile home/camping supplies catalogs/online etc, usually designed to run off of several power sources, Propane/battery 12v, 120/240v etc. I'm sure there are others that are US AC 120only, but don't have the links handy ...Google is UR friend?

The mobile designed models while mostly portable, *cannot* in my experience, maintain (inadequate insulation?) any decent refrig. temps inside a hot car, or similar environ where it gets above 100F/shaded, or in direct sunlight. They will in an typical room temp environment (like an A/C cooled office) allow you to freeze anything, no problem...takes more time than a normal dedicated freezer, but they will go well below 32F via adjustment knob...not sure about 5-10F where frozen foods should be kept for extended (weeks) time, or keep ice cream from being too soft (low-fat/lowER calorie, or healthier frozen yogurt< Dreyers is pretty good )

 

[MaxBurn]

That one said discontinued, this is the replacement. Superconducting now.
http://www.compactappliance.com/SHP...r-Refrigerator-Black/SHP1701B,default,pd.html


I hate noisy fridges, I usually have to unplug the ones in hotel rooms.

 

[ddrueding]

How much money? $200 for a normal mini-fridge, maybe $1k if I decided to really go for a sweet custom job (depends on how geeky it could be).

If the geek/interest factor was high enough, building one might be quite fun.

120v AC would be the only needed input.

 

[ddrueding]

I'm thinking 110cm wide, 50cm deep, and 60cm tall in an ice chest layout (side table? bench seat?)

 

[CougTek]

I hate noisy fridges, I usually have to unplug the ones in hotel rooms.

On a three-days/two-nights stay, you should put yogourt and raw meat into it before you unplug it. The cleaning staff we absolutely love you Monday morning.

 

[LunarMist]

On a three-days/two-nights stay, you should put yogourt and raw meat into it before you unplug it. The cleaning staff we absolutely love you Monday morning.

Uh, do you usually have those items on a business trip?

 

[jtr1962]

JTR: I remember you building a box that was capable of getting much colder, but can't find the links anywhere.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showpost.php?p=2439222&postcount=178

Much colder than your needs ( I've had it down to -58°F ), and much more expensive ( IIRC I spent over $1000, and about 3 years of my free time, trying different things ). Next time I have a big stretch of time free I may play around with changing out the thermoelectrics for some newer ones I have. It wouldn't be a huge difference, but I'm reasonably sure some of the ones in there were slightly damaged. With new modules I might get under -65°F. The nice thing is nowadays you can get thermoelectrics on eBay really cheap. I bought a bunch of good used ones for under $3 each. When I built my temperature chamber they were about $27. The power supply electronics would be a lot easier nowadays also. A good PC power supply would probably suffice. I had to do a custom job back when I built it in the early 1990s.

If you want something with a real thermostat then there are a number of small thermoelectric refrigerators available with digital temperature controls, and an even larger number of wine coolers. eBay is good for the wine coolers. I didn't check for fridges, although better wine coolers can be set to at least 40°F for white wine, sometimes lower.

Building one isn't terribly hard, either. You either make or buy an insulated box. Cut a hole for where the thermoelectric assembly will go, mount it, and connect it to the power supply/thermostat electronics. I did something along those lines with an old 6 cubic foot refrigerator which had a failed compressor. Unfortunately, since this was a c. 1981 unit the quality of the insulation sucked. Even putting another 1" of Celotex outside it had trouble getting much under 40°F.

As much as I'd love to help if you wanted to DIY, there would be the logistics of shipping something that huge back and forth. Making just the cooling assembly and electronics might be interesting to me although it would likely be well out of your budget. We're talking dozens of hours here ( time which lately I don't have anyhow ). Besides, you can occasionally buy used thermoelectric assemblies on eBay. Best bet though is to just look for something ready-made. I'll keep an eye out in case I come across anything.

 

[Stinker]

Guys at this place sure are OCD about some weird stuff!

 

[ddrueding]

Just spoiled I guess, once you've had a silent work space for over a year, introducing noise to the space is most unwelcome.

 

[Pradeep]

Uh, do you usually have those items on a business trip?

That's just in his rectal carry on

 

[Pradeep]

dd: You could potentially chill the water loop of your water cooled pc with this.

Or just do what my wife's ex did and cut holes for tubing in the perfectly functioning family fridge.

 

[ddrueding]

I was reading about someone who plumbed the water loop of their PC into their swimming pool.

 

[Pradeep]

Makes sense. It would have such a large thermal mass that it would be unaffected by the less than 1KW being put in.

Sort of like geothermal (good if you have a river you can sink pipes in, otherwise drill into the ground). Savings are pretty significant over the long run.

 

[MaxBurn]

I also read somewhere that a guy buried a 55 gallon drum about 10 feet down to do the same thing.

 

[time]

I was going to point out the practical limitations of thermoelectric refrigeration (i.e. it sucks for anything that isn't tiny) and suggest absorption fridges instead:

Some of the national accounts with which the company works mandate absorption cooling minibars because they are silent.

But the article went on to point out:

One potential drawback to absorption cooling, though, is the need for additional ventilation ... "they need to be well ventilated both on intake and exhaust, usually around 40 square inches of space"

"If someone puts a couple of Cokes and a bottle of milk in an absorption-based minibar, it would be 24 hours potentially before those items are cold"

Mark Holzberg, president North America of Bartech Systems International of Millersville, Md., recommended a silent compressor unit ... The audible output of the silent compressor unit is 24.9 decibels.

"The ambient noise level in a hotel room when nothing is happening is 31 decibels," Holzberg said. "These things are very, very quiet. They're very different from the first compressors that were noisy."

Or, you could just build it into a cupboard like most people do.

 

[ddrueding]

Hadn't heard of absorbtion fridges. I'll read the link when I'm on a real computer (Blackberries suck).

 

[udaman]

http://www.staples.com/Avanti-1.7-CU.-FT.-Superconductor-Cooling-Refrigerator-White/product_792263

"superconductor" must be bleeding edge tech there @Staples!

Go for the steath model:

http://www.staples.com/MicroFridge-4.4-CU.-FT.Refrigerator-Red/product_804417

Google KW terms : silent compact refrigerator

I'd go for the double door/separate refrig/freezer models myself, keeps frozen stuff really frozen.

http://www.microfridge.com/catalog/product.cgi/26/39/P1/default/N/0

The Bartech systems in the article seem to be geared towards hotel sales of beverages, $$$$

U could get the combo micro/refrig models of MicroFridge @Staples, but not sure how you can determine how quiet they are...get a good return policy from wherever you buy?

Can rent the MicroFridge models (do search) as these are commonly used in college dorm rooms.

Even the Dometic I have, dual power source capable, I think it's thermoelectric? Has condenser? expansion/cooling heat-exchange fins that make 'creaky' sounds if you are in a dead silent room occasionally. Also you'll hear an occasional click of the relay when the cooling is powered on to maintain temp at adjustable setting.

 

[ddrueding]

Nice finds Uda. That MicroFridge company looks pretty good, though the one you linked to is barely "micro" (4 feet tall). This one (34") looks about right.

Still tempting to go ballistic and commission something awesome, but I really don't have the time/money to spend on the project in order to do it right.

 

[time]

Actually, I found MicroFridge earlier, but the article I linked to mentions them explicitly so I tried to keep it simple for ya.

Also, I couldn't find empirical evidence that MicroFridges are truly quiet.

 

[ddrueding]

You did indeed time. I can't blame age yet, so I'll go with lack of sleep as my excuse tonight.