US3358471A - Refrigerating system - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 19, 1967 T. BUTCHER ET AL I 3,358,471

REFRIGERATING SYSTEM Filed Aug. 15, 1966 V 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 TROY BUTHER,

ALVIN E. MOORE AND JOE B. BURROW, SR.

INVENTORST ME/1664i ATTORNEY Dec. 19, 1967 Filed Aug. 15, 1966 T. BUTCHER ET AL REFRIGERATING SYSTEM 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3

TROY BUTCHER,

ALVIN E. MOORE .AND

JOE. B. BU RROW, SR.

INVENTORS.

ATTORN EV Dec. 19, 1967 T. BUTCHER ET AL 3,358,471

REFRIGERATING SYSTEM Filed Aug. 15, 1966 V 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 FIG. 8.

n Hr? E i a f i i I Q i? v "I'" M1 Ir FIG. 9.

0 0 o {I 0 0] I I I] H I 0 IL 0 1w 0 TROY BUTCHER,

ALVIN E. MOORE O O 0 AND JOE B.BURROW, SR.

lNVENTOR S.

FIG. 7. 34a; 5. Mm,

ATTO RN EY /ET AL Dec. 19, 1967 T. BUTCHER REFRIGERATING SYSTEM 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 15, 1966 F/G. I05.

TROY BUTCHER ALVIN E. MOORE AND JOE. 5. BURROW, SR.

INVENTORS FIG. 12.

ATTORNEY United States Patent M 3,358,471 REFRIGERATING SYSTEM Troy Butcher, Waveland, Miss. 39576, Alvin Edward Moore, 916 Beach Blvd, Waveiand, Miss. 39576, and

Joe Barlow Burrow, Sr., 214 2nd St., Bay St. Louis,

Miss. 39520 Filed Aug. 15, 1966, Ser. No. 572,492 21 Claims. (Cl. 62339) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A refrigerator comprising: a large water-cooling tank having a substantial wall portion close to the cooling coils; flexible water-supply and drainage conduits from outside to the tank; a drain for coil-condensed water connected to the tank drain; means reducing the high pressure of water mains to pressure that will not buckle the tank Walls; tank-connected faucet or faucets; and lockable casters. The invention also comprises several types of: tanks (including a curved plastic container); faucets (including one above a sink drainboard); and drains (including pipes to sink drains, and conduits Within the refrigerators insulation).

This invention pertains to a cold-water-supplying system, incorporated in a refrigerator. It also relates to an improvement in the disposal of condensed Water within a refrigerator.

For various reasons cold drinking water, chilled within a common refrigerator, is desirable in homes. The usual method of the home-cooling of water by placing ice cubes in it is time-consuming, and also wasteful of electrical energy because of frequent opening of the refrigerator door. The tirne and complication thus involved often leads to either drinking tepid water from a sink or bathroom faucet, sometimes with wasteful long running of the water to make it a little cooler, or to drinking too many prepared s-Weet drinks in bottles.

In view of these facts, an object of the present invention is to provide an improved refrigerator, comprising a coldwater-supplying system.

Another object is to provide such a refrigerating system, in which a drain for water that condenses on and near the defrosted cooling coils of the refrigerator joins a drain from the cold-water tank and the combined drainage waters are conducted outside the refrigerator.

A further object is to provide such a refrigerating system which comprises a drinking-water faucet and a drain from it which is connected to the drain of a kitchen sink.

Another object is to provide an improved type of coldwater tank for mounting in a refrigerator.

A further object is to position a cold-water faucet above a kitchen cabinet worktable top and to place a dishdrainage rack on the top having a wall-separated area, beneath the faucet, in which a drinking glass may be placed.

Still another object is to devise a built-in drain within the shells and insulation of a refrigerators walls.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention will become more fully apparent from the following detailed description of the inventive structure and from the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevational view, partly broken Patented Dec. 19, 1967 away, of the cold-water system, mounted in a kitchen refrigerator.

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view of a portion of a kitchen in which the invented cold-water system is placed, partly broken away to show in vertical section a kitchen sink and the middle of a refrigerator.

FIGURE 3 is an elevational view, partly broken away and in section, showing a cold-water system associated with a refrigerator that has a lower ice-freezing compartrnent.

FIGURE 4 is a detail view in section of a portion of a refrigerator wall which comprises a built-in drain.

FIGURE 5 is an elevational view, partly broken away and in vertical section, showing a drinking-water faucet mounted on a kitchen wall and a dish-draining rack comprising a section for a drinking glass.

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view from the plane 66 of FIGURE 5.

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of part of a kitchen work-area which comprises another form of drainage from a cold-water faucet.

FIGURE 8 is a downward, sectional view from a horizontal plane through one form of the refrigerator mounted cold-water tank.

FIGURE 9 is a sectional view from FIGURE 8.

FIGURE 10A is a downward, sectional view (from the plane 10A10A of FIGURE 11) of another form of the tank; and FIGURE 10B is a variation of this form.

FIGURE 11 is a vertical sectional view of the tank of FIGURE 10A.

FIGURE 12 is a perspective view of the refrigerator, withdrawn from a kitchen wall to show its flexible watersupplying, drainage and electrical connections.

FIGURE 13 is a detail view, partly in section, showing one of the locking casters (on which the refrigerator may be moved) and an attachment of the caster to the refrigerator shell.

In FIGURE 1 a closed, fluid-tight cold-water tank 2 is shown as mounted directly beneath (or alternatively directly in front) of the ice-freezing coils of a refrigerator. This container may be made of molded plastic, or of galvanized iron or other metal (preferably coated with porcelain). Preferably, it has thin walls, through which heat transfer readily takes place. The thinness of these Walls is made possible, without their disruption by high Water pressure from a water main, by a reduction of this high pressure (usually 40 to pounds per square inch) by means of a pressure regulator (pressure-reducing valve), located in box 114 of FIGURE 12, or in any other convenient lo cation, which supplies water from a main water-supplying system via pipe 3 and valve 4 to the tank. Pipe 3, as well as the other conduits in the refrigerator, may be of plastic, copper or other metal.

Water under substantially constant pressure preferably the approximate range of five to ten pounds per square inch thus enters tank 2 via a standpipe of the type shown at 5 in FIGURE 9, debouching from the pipe at a point, 6, which is well above the bottom of the container. Within the tank the water is cooled mainly due to the proximity of the top (or else rear) tank wall to refrigerator cooling coils. In one type of refrigerator these water-cooling coils are in the upper, ice-freezing compartment, and in another type they are cooling means for said chamber. The disthe plane 99 of tance between the coldest tank wall and the coils varies slightly and depends on the material and shape of the wall. If the tank is made of metal the wall preferably is very slightly spaced from the coils; but if it is of plastic (still thin, but a little thicker and having less heat conductivity than metal) it preferably contacts the metal of the coils. In any event, the container is so close to the coils than a thin sheet of ice forms in the part of its water that is adjacent to the water-cooling coils.

But the tank has a sufiiciently large volume and sufficiently large minimum distance across its reservoir space to prevent the formation in it of a wall-damaging amount of ice. It holds more than a quart of water-preferably two to three gallons; and the minimum dimension across its space is at least two and preferably is several inches.

Not much ice is formed in the tank because a major portion of the unin-sulated tank walls is in heat-transferring contact with the portion of the ambient air in the refrigerator that is substantially distant from the. coils. This portion of the air, which cools the vegetables, fruits, etc., that are stored in it, has a temperature well above the freezing point of water.

The cooled water-cooled in its layer adjacent the coils to approximately the point of freezingsettles to the bottom of the tank; and at this lower level there is a supply of drinking water of the desired temperature, amounting to at least several glasses full, and preferably at least a gallon. From a pipe opening near the bottom of the tank (for example, 7 of FIGURE 9) water is withdrawn, via valve 8, when a faucet outside the refrigerator is opened. The valve 8 is normally open, but may be closed when the tank is being installed, removed or cleaned.

Two other valves are sealingly connected to the lower wall of the tank. One of these is the drain valve 9, which is opened when the tank is to be drained--for example in its removal or when the refrigerator is to be inoperative for a long time. The other valve, 10, is connected to a vent pipe, such as 12 in FIGURE 9, which opens near the top of the container. This valve is opened when the tank is originally filled with water and, thereafter, when too much air accumulates in the top of the sealed tank. If this provision for occasional venting were not present the gradual accumulation of air in time would substantially reduce the volume of water being cooled and also reduce the effective area of the heat-transferring walls.

Two gauges mounted on the tank are in communication with the water inside the reservoir. Gauge 14, indicating the pressure of the water inside the container, enables the user accurately to set the reduced pressure at the amount which gives a satisfactory flow of drinking water from the faucet means. This setting, below the safe maximum limit for the tanks walls, depends somewhat on the length and diameter of the tubing to the faucet means and the number of spigots that are ordinarily being used. The other, temperature gauge, 16, serves several purposes: (1) when its reading substantially increases without change of the refrigerator temperature regulator 18, this increase is a signal that the tank should be vented; (2) the user thereafter can ascertain the temperature of the water that is being regularly supplied, and, if desirable, lower this temperature by setting refrigerator regulator, 18, to provide for a lower ambientair temperature in the refrigerator; and (3) the user can indirectly and roughly ascertain the temperature of this ambient air (by adding to the reading a figure representing the usual difference between the water and air temapertures).

Element 20 is a trough, of metal or plastic, fastened to the rear refrigerator wall and so placed below the coils as to catch in its open top the water which condenses on the defrosted coils and flows down a rear wall of said chamber. This wall is spaced forward from the lower rear wall of the chamber. The trough is sealingly closed at its lower end by a plate, through which a short pipe 22 extends, to convey the drainage to conduit 24, and so out of the refrigerator. This conduit also is connected to tank-drain valve 9 and vent valve 10. By this structure all the drainage water inside the refrigerator, which commonly has been evaporated from a pan on the motor and compressor, causing rusting of metal and damage to wiring, is conducted outside the refrigerator, and preferably outside the house.

Alternative types of drains are shown in FIGURES 2 to 7. In FIGURE 2, one drinking-water faucet, 26, is shown as mounted on an outside refrigerator wall. Its supply pipe is sealed to the wall by means of units 28 and 30 and at least one rubber gasket (shown as inside nut 30). Below this spigot, on the kitchen-cabinet worktable top, there is fixed a glass-containing, drainage-collecting plastic box, 31, having a hole in its bottom by which water dripping from the faucet or glass is conducted to pipe 32. This conduit is in communication with the refrigerator drainpipe 34, which terminates at and is sealed to the bottom of inclined drainage collecting trough 20. Just above this bottom, opens the lower end of conduit 36, conveying into the trough any water that is drained from the tank via drainage valve 38, or the air and any accidental discharge of water when venting valve 40 is openedfThe combined drainage from the refrigerator, cold-water tank and box 31 is thus conducted to a fitting in the drainpipe leading from the kitchen sink, and so via the sink trap 42 out of the kitchen. In practice, the trap preferably has a hole drilled in it and an end of pipe 44 is soldered or otherwise sealingly joined to the trap at this hole.

A second spigot, 46, also pipe-connected to cold-water tank 48, is shown as mounted on the kitchen wall. Drainage from it and drinking-glass 48 is caught by the sink drainboard. When not in use the glass is in a speciallyformed, small-volume part of the dish-drainage rack 50. This rack is shown in FIGURE 2 as made of galvanized-iron or stainless steel or duralumin wires, joined at their junctions by welding, soldering or the like. But preferably the rack utilized is of the composite type shown in FIGURES 5 and 6.

This two-part rack, made of plasticpreferably somewhat flexible molded plasticconsists of a lower solidplastic member, 52, and a separable, upper, apertured plastic element, 54. The lower member has an inclined bottom drain element 56, supported on integral ribs 58, lower toward the spigot and higher toward the sink, which cause its apertured bottom, 62, to be horizontal. The drinking-glass 64 is shown as fitting loosely in a separate compartment between two parts of the outer walls of element 54 and two walls or ribs 66 and 68 which are integral with bottom 62. The drainage racks for the washed dishes and pans are formed between walls 70 and 72, extending the full width of the inside of element 54, and forming drainage compartments of various widths, for holding upright the dishes or pans while they are drained. The drainage water from each compartment passes through holes in bottom 62, and out to the sink via channels between ribs 60.

All portions of this composite drainage rack are of substantially the same thicknesses, so that they are properly and equally cured when they are made of thermosetting plastic.

In lieu of box 31, a more easily removable box 74, of the type shown in FIGURE 7, may be utilized. This box may be fastened with waterproof glue to the top of the cabinet-top work-table. Although it may be drained as indicated in FIGURE 2, it is shown in FIGURE 7 as being connected to a conduit 76 which rests 0nand preferably is glued to the top of the work-table and an edge of' the sink. The lower end of this pipe is curved over the rim of the sink and drains water into the sink at a point near its bottom. The spigot, mounted on a side wall of the refrigerator, above the drainage box, receives a supply of chilled water from a cold-water tank which may be either in the top or lower part of the refrigerator, depending on the type of its construction.

Such a tank mounted in the lower part of a refrigerator is shown in FIGURE 3 at 78. The tank has a drainpipe 80 that is connected, via manually operable valves, to a drain hole in the bottom of the tank and a vent pipe that opens near the sealed top of the container. This drainpipe has a lower end and opening that is a little above the bottom of the inclined trough 82, which collects condensed water coming from the cooling coils 84 down the rear inside refrigerator wall. In the lower righthand part of the refrigerator, the coils 84 and ice-freezing compartment 86 are shown as broken away, to expose (in ve tical section in front of trough 82') the vent and drain pipes which are shown as adjacent to the rear walls of compartment 86 and tank 78. Although in some installations a separate drain from the refrigerator may conduct the drainage water outside the kitchen, the drainpipe 80 is shown as connected, via a trap (which may be a curve bent into copper or plastic pipe 87) to the lower part of a sink drain 88.

In FIGURE 4 an optional refrigerator drain, built into the insulated wall of the refrigerator, is shown. This drain comprises an upright pipe 90, imbeddcd in the refrigerator insulation, and flow-connected at its upper and lower ends with or without Ts such as the one shown at the upper end) to short lateral pipes which project through the two shells of the refrigerator wall and are Welded, soldered or waterproofiy glued to the shells. Lateral pipe 92 is flowconnected to the condensed-water-collecting trough 32; and transmits drainage to pipe 87 from trough 82' and from tlze upper lateral pipe 94. The illustration in FIGURE 4 is somewhat schematic. Pipe 94, which is here shown as opening directly to the bottom space of cold-water tank 96 and to the vent pipe, in practice is sufliciently below the tank to have vent and drain valves (of the type shown in FIGURE 1 or FIGURE 3 between it and the tank). Element 97 is a supply pipe for conducting cold water from the tank to an upper faucet positioned in any desired location; and pipe 98 is an optional drain leading from a drainage box below the spigot. Alternatively, this drain may be connected with the sink drainin which event pipe 94 does not project through the outer refrigerator shell, and is connected to the tank drain by an elbow, imbedded in the refrigerator insulation.

FIGURES 8 and 9 illustrate a preferred form of the cold-water tank. As here shown this tank is of metal, but optionally it may be of molded plastic, in which event its corners preferably are rounded. Elements 99, 100 and 101 are baffle plates for directing the circulating water. The incoming water flows into the tank at 6, goes over bafile 99, under baflle 100, and then over baffle 101, and so out of the tank to the faucet means via pipe opening 7. These bafiles serve two purposes: 1) to strengthen the thin, rectangular walls of the tank against buckling under pressure; and (2) to somewhat isolate the cold water above outlet 7 from the warm-water inlet 6. Each of the baffles 99 and 101 has a 9% hole or two ,6 holes at its base, or else a clearance from the tank bottom, for

rainage.

FIGURES 10A, 10B and 11 illustrate two alternative forms of the cold-water tank. These tanks may be of metal, but are shown as being made of molded plastic, which preferably is somewhat flexible. The tank of FIG- URE 10A is oval in horizontal cross section, but (as shown in FIGURE 11) is circular as seen in vertical cross secton from a plane parallel with the rear wall of the refrigerator. The tank of FIGURE 10B is also circular in such vertical cross section, but its back wall, 102, is substantially fiat, and so may be placed close to the wall of the refrigerator adjacent to the coils, with a minimum loss of its sto age space. In practice, the outer corners of this flat-walled tank are curved, instead of being sharp as here shown. The outwardly convex curves of these tanks aid in preventing disruption or damaging distortion of their thin walls. Two other means of preventing such damage are: the preferred flexibility and resiliency of the plastic; and the baflle plates 104 and 106. Each of these plates is placed in the middle of a tank, is integral at its sides and bottom with container walls, has small holes or other slow-dranage means near drain 110, and has a clearance between its top and the upper Wall of the tank. Water from outside the refrigerator comes into the container via pipe 108. This pipe, as well as conduit 6 has a cross-sectional area that is preferably at least three times the cross-sectional area of the total baffle-base drainage hole, or holes, or clearance. Chilled Water is withdrawn from the tank via pipe 110.

In FIGURE 12 a corner of the refrigerator is shown as pulled away from the kitchen wall, indicating the flexibility of the refrigerators electrical connections and at least its exterior water pipes. These pipes preferably are of fiexibile plastic, but alternatively may be of thin copper. Conduit 112 is connected at one end to the kitchens main water supply and is on the low-pressure side of the pressure-reducing valve in box 114.

Pipe 116 is an optional type of outside drain from the refrigerator, which may be utilized instead of the outside drain shown in FIGURES 2, 3, 5 or 7. Drain pipe 116 is shown as conducting the drainage water directly outside the house; but when the kitchen has no convenient outside wall the pipe is bent into a trap of the type shown in conduit 87 and thence the water is conducted into the house sewer pipes.

The refrigerator is preferably supported on four casters, of which the front two are locking casters of the general type of FIGURE 13. This caster has a U-shaped lever 118, which operates a locking mechanism in and on the axle. When the lever is moved downward to point A it locks the Wheel so that the refrigerator cannot he accidentally moved, but when it is in the position shown in FIGURE 13 the caster is unlocked, allowing the refrigerator to be pulled away from the wall.

This caster also permits leveling of the refrigerator on a floor. This is done by turning the caster so that its threaded bolt 119 screws up or down in the threaded aperture of the braced corner of the refrigerator frame. The two rear casters are adjustable up and down but have no locking mechanism.

In FIGURE 12 a spigot is shown as above a sink, 120. This sink has a drainpipe which goes through the refn'gerator walls and as indicated in FIGURE 1 is connected to drain conduit 24 via fitting 122.

Changes within the skill of the mechanic in the forms and proportions of the above-described structure may be made without departing from the nature of this invention or the scope of the following claims.

We claim:

1. Structure of the character described comprising:

a refrigerator having an insulated shell; within it a refrigerating chamber for the storage of goods in ambient air that is below the temperature of the air outside the refrigerator but is mostly above the freezing point of water; and coils having a freezing temperature for cooling said compartment and chamber;

a tank for holding and cooling at least a quart of water,

supported by said shell with a wall portion, of substantial surface area, in such close juxtaposition to at least a portion of said coils, that a thin sheet of ice forms in the part of the water in the tank that is adjacent to said wall portion, said tank having suflicient volume, sufiicient distance of the center of its volume from said coils and sufficient minimum width between said wall portion and an opposite wall portion to prevent wall-damaging, solid freezing of the water between said wall portions;

means to supply water under substantially constant pressure above that of the atmosphere from outside said refrigerator to said tank;

faucet means and pipe means connecting said faucet means to said tank;

means in said chamber for collecting water that condenses from said coils while they are defrosted;

conduit means, connected to said tank for the occasional draining of fluid from said tank;

drainage means, supported by said refrigerator, flowconnected to said condensed-water-collecting means and to said conduit means; and

means, outside said refrigerator, flow-connected to said drainage means, for conveying drainage water from the refrigerator.

2. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said means to supply water to said tank comprises: A source of water having a relatively high pressure; a pressure regulator connected to said source, for reducing said high pressure; and a conduit connecting said pressure regulator to said tank.

3. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said tank has at least one baflie, joined at its sides to the tank walls and having a clearance between it and the top of the tank.

4. Structureas set forth in claim 1, in which said tank comprises:

a rear, substantially flat side that is closely adjacent to a portion of said coils and is elongated in a horizontal direction;

a front side well-spaced at its middle from said flat side;

end walls joining said sides;

three baffles across the space between said sides, joined at their upright edges to said sides and thus forming two end compartments and a middle compartment,

I said baffies consisting of:

a bafile near each end of the tank which is adjacent at its lower edge to the tanks bottom and has a clearance between its upper edge and the tanks top;

and a middle baffle which is joined at its upper edge to the top of the tank and has a clearance between its lower edge and the bottom of the tank;

and in which structure said means to supply water opens into one of said end compartments and said pipe means receives water from said tank at a point near the bottom of the other of said end compartments.

5. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said firstmentioned wall portion is flat and said opposite wall portion is curved and curvingly joined to the first-mentioned wall portion.

6. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said tank is of plastic, is round, oblong, and comprises a baffle in its middle portion, bracing its longer side walls, that is integral with portions of the tank walls.

7. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said conduit means comprises two connected pipes and valve means controlling the flow of fluid in each pipe, one of said pipes opening into said tank at its bottom portion for draining water from the tank at the will of its user, and the other of said pipes opening into said tank at its upper portion for venting said portion when an excessive amount of air therein accumulates.

8. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said shell comprises two refrigerator walls and insulation therebetween, and in which said refrigerator-supported drainage means comprises a pipe in said insulation.

9. Structure as set forth in claim 1, which further comprises a kitchen sink, and, associated therewith, sinkdrainage means and a kitchen-cabinet work-table top, and in which:

said refrigerator comprises a wall near said work-table said pipe means extends through said last-named wall;

said faucet means comprises a faucet located above a portion of said top;

and said drainage means outside said refrigerator comprises an open-top water collecting and conducting means below said faucet means for collecting water dripping therefrom and conveying it to join with the water draining from said sink via said sink-drainage means.

10. Structure as set forth in claim 9, in which said collecting and conducting means comprises:

a container having a drainage hole;

a pipe flow-connected to said container of said hole;

and

joining means, below said sink, for flow-connecting said last-named pipe-to said sink-drainage means.

11. Structure as set forth in claim 10, in which said sink drainage means comprises a trap, and in which said joining means joins said last-named pipe to the sinkdrainage means above the major portion of said trap.

12. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said storage chamber extends downward to the lowermost part of said refrigerator and the refrigerator comprises a door providing access to said chamber, said door extending downward to a point that is adjacent to the bottommost front edge of the refrigerator.

13. Structure as set forth in claim 9, in which said collecting and conveying means comprises a device which conveys water into said sink.

14. Structure as set forth in claim 13,.in which said device is below said faucet and comprises a drainage member having an inclined, imperforate lower element, and an upper element having lower holes for drainage of water to the top of said lower element and having means for holding a drinking glass in a substantially upright position.

15. Structure as set forth in claim 1, in which said means to supply water from outside said refrigerator and said means outside said refrigerator for conveying drainage water comprise conduits of flexible material.

16. Structure as set forth in claim 15, in which said material is plastic.

17. Structure as set forth in claim- 1 in which said faucet is located outside of said refrigerator; and in which each of said means to supply water and said means outside said refrigerator for conveying drainage water comprises a conduit of flexible material.

18. A refrigerator comprising:

insulating walls and at least one insulating door, forming an ice-freezing compartment and a chamber associated with the compartment for the storage of goods in ambient air that is below the temperature of the air outside the refrigerator but is mostly above the freezing point of water;

structure comprising refrigerating coils adjacent to one of said refrigerating walls, for chilling the air in said compartment and chamber; a tank, holding at least a quart of liquid, for storing and cooling said liquid, supported by said walls;

trough means in said chamber, below said coils, for collecting water that condenses from the coils while they are defrosted, said trough comprising a water holding bottom and ends, oneof said ends having a drainage hole through it;

means for draining liquid from said tank into said trough; and

conduit means, flow-connected to said trough means at said hole, for conveying drainage water to a point outside said refrigerator;

and flexible pipe means, connected to said conduit means, for conveying said drainage to the outside of said building.

19.. A refrigerator as set forth in claim 18, in which said conduit means comprises flexible pipe.

20. A refrigerator as set forth in claim 18 which further comprises flexible electric cable leading to the refrigerator, in which said pipe means is constructed and arranged to permit movement of said refrigerator walls and door away from said building wal-l without damage to the pipe means or ca nd in which said refrigerator further comprises casters on which said walls are supported, at least two of said casters comprising wheel-locking devices, controllable to permit said movement and lockable to prevent such movement as accident.

21. Structure as set forth in claim 3 in which the lower part of at least one baflie and the adjacent portion of the bottom of the tank are constructed and arranged to provide a slow drainage of water past said lower part during the draining of the tank via said conduit means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS LLOYD L. KING, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. STRUCTURE OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED COMPRISING: A REFRIGERATOR HAVING AN INSLUTATED SHELL; WITHIN IT A REFRIGERATING CHAMBER FOR THE STORAGE OF GOODS IN AMBIENT AIR THAT IS BELOW THE TEMPERATURE OF THE AIR OUTSIDE THE REFRIGERATOR BUT IS MOSTLY ABOVE THE FREEZING POINT OF WATER; AND COILS HAVING A FREEZING TEMPERATURE FOR COOLING SAID COMPARTMENT AND CHAMBER, A TANK FOR HOLDING AND COOLING AT LEAST A QUART OF WATER, SUPPORTED BY SAID SHELL WITH A WALL PORTION, OF SUBSTANTIAL SURFACE AREA, IN SUCH CLOSE JUXTAPOSITION TO AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID COILS, THAT A THIN SHEET OF ICE FORMS IN THE PART OF THE WATER IN THE TANK THAT IS ADJACENT TO SAID WALL PORTION, SAID TANK HAVING SUFFICIENT VOLUME, SUFFICIENT DISTANCE OF THE CENTER OF ITS VOLUME FROM SAID COILS AND SUFFICIENT MINIMUM WIDTH BETWEEN SAID WALL PORTION AND AN OPPOSITE WALL PORTION TO PREVENT WALL-DAMAGING, SOLID FREEZING OF THE WATER BETWEEN SAID WALL PORTIONS; MEANS TO SUPPLY WATER UNDER SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT

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