I've got a grid-tied photovoltaic system on my roof, and
in an effort to reduce my energy consumption and zero out
my net usage, I purchased an Equator 375 refrigerator/freezer
that is rated to use 0.88 kilowatt/hours/day. The specs for
this refrigerator meet meet all my needs
This refrigerator is manufactured in one of the European
countries under the name of Vest Frost (or something
similar) and also under the Conserv name. It's marketed
here in the U.S. by a Houston company (yeah, I know, maybe
that should have been a red flag) named Equator Appliances.
That's where my problem begins. When the fridge was
delivered over a month ago, I upacked it and plugged it in,
and the outlet sparked. The same outlet the old, inefficient,
refrigerator was (and, unfortunately, still is) plugged into.
After a week and a half, the company sent a repairman
from a Sacramento, about 50 miles away, to have a look.
He confirmed that there was a short in the fridge, and left.
About two weeks ago, the company in Houston decided the
problem was with the electrical cord, and said they'd send
one to the repairman and he'd come back to fix it. The
repairman still hasn't received it.
I've been over a month now with what is essentially a
useless pile of junk in my kitchen, right next to my old
SUV-equivalent of a fridge, which is still sucking up the
juice.
My question is, Has anyone else had any experience with
this company that would either confirm or challenge my
suspicions that I'm being given the runaround at best, or
being ripped off, at worst?
Any feedback will be appreciated.
John Patterson
Grass Valley, CA
I have two 7.5 cu.ft. chest freezers, Conserv brand, which have been giving
fine service for 3 years. They came from a distributor in Ariz. whom I
can't find now - just the Houston one.
A neighbor has a refrigerator/freezer, I don't recall whether it is Conserv
or VestFrost, uses 2 compressors (I like that approach), has been run on a
modified-square-wave inverter for several years, and the freezer compressor
died last year.
A year ago I talked with an outfit in Mass. who sells these units. He
advised against buying Conserv or Sun Frost - claimed a good American reefer
would outperform them for a much lower price. (My kind of salesman!)
If you've noticed my post about converting a 19 cu.ft. Kenmore upright
freezer to a reefer, using an external industrial thermostat, my power
consumption over 24 hrs, temps. ranging 65 deg. morning to 93 deg. peak
in the afernoon, are similar to the rating of your (much smaller?) unit
(probably optimistic). Yesterday I measured 916 watt hours.
And yes, I think you are being screwed around with. And the "service" guy
was a sub-genius, maybe moron.
Tom
On 2004-06-17 jpatter@cruzio.com said:
>Newsgroups: alt.energy.homepower,alt.energy.renewable
>I've got a grid-tied photovoltaic system on my roof, and
>in an effort to reduce my energy consumption and zero out
>my net usage, I purchased an Equator 375 refrigerator/freezer
>that is rated to use 0.88 kilowatt/hours/day. The specs for
>this refrigerator meet meet all my needs
>This refrigerator is manufactured in one of the European
>countries under the name of Vest Frost (or something
>similar) and also under the Conserv name. It's marketed
>here in the U.S. by a Houston company (yeah, I know, maybe
>that should have been a red flag) named Equator Appliances.
>That's where my problem begins. When the fridge was
>delivered over a month ago, I upacked it and plugged it in,
>and the outlet sparked. The same outlet the old, inefficient,
>refrigerator was (and, unfortunately, still is) plugged into.
>After a week and a half, the company sent a repairman
>from a Sacramento, about 50 miles away, to have a look.
>He confirmed that there was a short in the fridge, and left.
>About two weeks ago, the company in Houston decided the
>problem was with the electrical cord, and said they'd send
>one to the repairman and he'd come back to fix it. The
>repairman still hasn't received it.
>I've been over a month now with what is essentially a
>useless pile of junk in my kitchen, right next to my old
>SUV-equivalent of a fridge, which is still sucking up the
>juice.
>My question is, Has anyone else had any experience with
>this company that would either confirm or challenge my
>suspicions that I'm being given the runaround at best, or
>being ripped off, at worst?
>Any feedback will be appreciated.
>John Patterson
Tom Willmon
Mountainair, (mid) New Mexico, USA
Only the mediocre can always be at their very best.
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