Secret Life Of Machines - The Refrigerator (Full Length)

/ carlthepianist
Commercial refrigeration equipment was first developed in Australia, where the winters weren't cold enough to produce much natural ice. A brewery was the first company to commission an artificial ice making plant (in 1865) so cooling Australian lager was the first use of artificial refrigeration.
Accompanying Sheet:
www.secretlifeofmachines.com/i...
Please see www.secretlifeofmachines.com for more information
Thanks to Tim Hunkin the creator for allowing these excellent videos to be freely distributed on-line.
Category:

[@davidforster8654]

I remember this one very well............I was in it. It was a geat series that Tim did, wonderfully educational. I see myself back in 1987, had a lot more hair then. I am 60 now. Sadly The Ice Factory closed not long after this was recorded. I remember being offered a commission of £100 for my time but declined, instead asked for all the film 'rushes' and outakes which I still have...priceless! Ice in those days was used in fishing vessel holds to keep the fish in perfect condition, ice was also used in ice sculpture and for keeping the Wimbledon tennis balls at stable temperature, mainly because as the balls became warmer the air inside increased and they bounced more. I am still in the refrigeration business living up in Aylsham, Norfolk. I think Tim Hunkin still lives Nr Southwold in Suffolk. I supplied a little compressor for him to construct a hand cranked refrigeration demonstrator for The Science museum in London, where I believe it is still there. Tim is very clever. The great Ken Wood opened the new domestic section in 1992, to which I recorded the the ceremony. Happy days.

[@ka8syv203]

This series is my finest memory of 1980s televison. Wish more folk knew of this classic TV show. Regards, Frank.

[@abundantYOUniverse]

That is absolutely fantastic. Thanks so much for sharing this with us, who love this show. It was so well done, so perfectly put together. Thank you Mr. Forster for your part in all of this.

[@ecstazyrm]

David Forster thanks for your comment and participation!

[@pradolover]

Thanks David i love the way TH sought out the actual engineers and guys in boiler suits to talk about stuff rather than suits or TV presenters.

[@Turrican]

David Forster I knew that was a Norfolk accent!

[@jaycee1980]

I've fixed a few people's fridge doors using Rex's technique :) I remember seeing it as a kid and it stuck in my head for years!

[@Wildeheart79]

Percussive maintenance is the solution to far more technical issues than engineers would like to admit 🙂

[@chronicleone]

This show is responsible for me growing into an adult that can be my own DIY repair man, however the two things I am usually stuck on fixing is fridges and air conditioning because the repair requires special equipment to capture and refill the refrigerant gases.

[@cameroncarter6789]

thats cool. 🏘

[@user-ov3gv8gd9k]

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[@jeanlavoie5598]

These are the best technical visual shows that i saw in my 67 years life. Anybody can easely understand the principles behind the mechanics. Great work!

[@dmbadcat]

The cooling effect is quite dramatic.. **BRRREKKAAAAAWSSGHHHHHSHSHSHHHHHPHSFRKAAA**!!

[@dmbadcat]

To relive the moment; 2:35

[@selah62]

+dmbadcat , yes it's an instant replay moment.

[@OAleathaO]

If a show like this was made today that moment would have been re-filmed. Even though the making of the show was so harrowing because of the limited production schedule Channel 4 allowed them for this show, it at least gave us moments like this. :)

[@afrog2666]

@@OAleathaO If it was made today, nobody that knew anything about pressurized gas and loose pipes/tubing would make that stupid mistake lol.. Might be intentional tbh..

[@scratchpad7954]

_BFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF!!!!!!_

[@WilliamHBaird-eq2hp]

I discovered this show in my twenties. Loved it then and still like it 30 years later!

[@Velodynamic]

Fun fact is that many of the fridges that has ended up at the scrapyards just had a faulty termostatic switch wich could've easily been replaced. I've got an Electro Helios refridgerator from the 1960's that still to this day is working just fine...day in, day out.

[@calif1mc]

Doc Brown made a pretty cool refrigeration machine in 1885 :D

[@tomservo75]

Yeah, one dirty-water ice cube at a time :P

[@PiggyWiggyO]

And Indiana Jones hid in a pretty cool lead lined fridge before the very very big bomb went off ; D

[@MegaJoojee]

@@PiggyWiggyO 🤦🤣

[@sail2byzantium]

Ahhhh! Mr. Lewis, I can't thank you enough. I loved this show watching it in the middish-1990s on The Learning Channel (back when it lived up to its name--before it devolved into "TLC"). Mr. Tim Hunkin and the late Mr. Rex Garrod were deligtful as the show hosts. Much appreciate the trip dpwn memory lane.

[@petcatznz]

As a child in the 60s I can recall stories of kids getting locked in old-style discarded fridges and suffocating as a result of not being able escape due to the external locking handles then still in use.

[@marka2520]

Part of my job is to decommission electrical appliances. Even though fridges today have an easily breakable, magnetic seal we still, by law, have to remove the doors because of the legacy of the danger of older fridges.

[@grahamkearnon7853]

The series surprisingly has some charm to it. The tutone music sure takes me back and, explanation is always clear, very good show. Also 1988 was the year the navy kicked me out, thank god.

[@0utcastAussie]

Cool (pardon the pun) watch. I used to work at Hotpoint in the compressor department at their Peterborough plant (1979 - 1982) and made most of those bits.

[@GR8TM4N]

That 1957 fridge is a lot better than the 2000's fridge i'm having today :p haha :)

[@calif1mc]

+Jorge Rodriguez I disagree, while the older cars are definitely cooler looking and fun, newer cars are built better in many ways. My dad sold new cars in the early 60's, they had 90 day warranties on them, yes, 90 days.

[@waswestkan]

False dichotomy. Modern fridge are all in all as good or better than those made in the 200s and 1957.

[@waswestkan]

Another false dichotomy FWD cars go the same distance RWD cars did and do. Alliance like cars have gotton better ever since they where introduced if on compare apples to apple. In regards to cars. Kansas has no mandatory vehicle inspection to take the true junkers off the rods. Despite that it's rare to see an oil burner going down the road.. True it's more difficult for the lazier DYI types to effect repairs, but repairs can be made by those that know how to troubleshoot and are willing to spend the time.

[@mikehat2481]

Greg Lyris perv

[@OAleathaO]

24:05 - Wow...I'd forgotten that monthly chore my grandma would have to plan for of having to defrost her fridge. 24:19 - "...that fridges were about the most reliable of our household machines..." I can agree with that. I can't think of a single issue I've had with any fridge I've owned in the past 20 years. The only reason I can think of why I've gotten a new one recently is I wanted a bigger one.

[@kerrykoskinen4038]

I am so dang excited too see this again. With the exception of video quality the show is as great as ever. SOOO funny and always easy to follow. I'm binging 30 years later.

[@Person005]

18:37 I don't know why, but that transition really cracked me up.

[@colinhowell2967]

Me too. "Right ... Meanwhile, back in non-shooty land ..."

[@cheliae8560]

Wow - that old way of making ice blocks. Amazing!

[@Velodynamic]

So satisfying watching the ice blocks sliding forward on the floor.

[@MrKilroy138]

I saw the show on the Discovery channel in the mid 1990's and I think I still have some episodes on VHS somewhere.

[@peterm3964]

Tim Hunkin Is a national treasure . Time for a Knighthood

[@franklinwilliams8852]

The Elephant is like don't RUSH me Holmes!!!! I'll get there dammit!!!! 21:40

[@threesixty8154]

So glad you took the trouble to upload these! When they first came out sometimes they wouldn't be on, so some episodes I never got to see... thanks!

[@FMHammyJ]

Isnt too bad that if they did the same series today, we'd have a loud voiced presenter, jump cuts too numerous to count, and blaring background music......ok....maybe the animation is a little cheesy, but overall a enjoyable series to watch and listen to.....

[@toonbat]

What I'm concerned about is that if this was done today, even by someone with good taste and excellent knowledge, it would focus too much on explanations with fancy graphics, rather than relying more on clever workshop displays like the ones here.

[@donaldasayers]

@@toonbat And it would be full of factual mistakes.

[@gs425]

Yes indeed. Or that annoying current trend of getting the person in front of the camera to look to the side as if they are talking to an actual person. But we all know it's space. Their focus isn't there. Guy Martin has to suffer this indignity for example.

[@donaldasayers]

@@gs425 Many years ago my family and I were part of a BBC documentary on parenting. At the end we were interviewed by Lorraine Kelly. Only we never met her, the producer did the interview with us in one studio and Lorraine did the questions weeks later in another. We hammed it up outrageously: "Well I'm glad you asked us that Lorraine..." Trying to get the producer to corpse.

[@afrog2666]

Britain and other countries still make documentaries that are nothing like that, it`s the ones made for an american audience that does things like, put COUGAR sounds on ANTS, making spiders roar like lions etc, all the while talking about POWER! SPEED! DEATH and DANGER!!

[@justinsorci5998]

I love this series....wish there were more episodes made.

[@danawright3099]

You have permission to make more episodes.

[@georgejohnson1498]

We had a LEC fridge in the 1960s and '70s like the one at 20:55. It was very long lived, but I am not sure how efficient it was! It seemed always to be on! Never had a fridge to last like it since for durability, and to add to your comments about the doors falling to pieces, you can add the feeble rust-proofing on more recent machines!

[@edwardfletcher7790]

I can confirm that cooling beer is still incredibly important to us Aussies ! Few countries understand how important cold beer is in 45 C (113 F) summer heat !

[@rjwh67220]

An excellent first application for this thrilling new technology!

[@PacoOtis]

Thanks for posting this video and thanks to those who made it!

[@kjamison5951]

Thank you Carl! These shows should not be forgotten.

[@peacemakerwolf8972]

One of my favorite programs! Thanks, Carl Lewis 😀😀😀

[@cmsracing]

Loved this show!

[@vachevyguy]

Great show loved watching it back in the day and it's still awesome 👍

[@vubhuhjkbhubohjb]

Amazing series watched a few of them from back when you could learn something from TV.

[@Pedritox0953]

Beautiful video

[@jamesslick4790]

9:54 My grandmother had this exact fridge (G.E. "Monitor Top") when I was a kid in the 1970's, By then it was doing work as extra food storage in the cellar, But it was STILL going! (I don't know what happened to it, but there are some still running TODAY!)

[@andylane7142]

The voice acting on this series seems even funnier in 2021. What a great program.

[@NJxD519]

thanks for posting...

[@65gtotrips]

There’s just something about British shows that is uniquely charming.

[@platovsky]

TIN HUNKHIN was a authentic genius 👌

[@memyopinionsche6610]

And remember with the old school locking fridges of yesteryears.. In the households.. Either you got a airtight box you can lock somebody in.. Or. Survive a nuclear blast explosion like in Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skulls .

[@jlucasound]

I miss this show... ;-(

[@MrSmthchri]

These programs should be taught in school. Most machines still work exactly the same

[@xaenon]

Except now they have elaborate circuit boards controlling them. Circuit boards that are ridiculously expensive to replace when they inevitably fail after 4-7 years.

[@barkebaat]

I really liked this program style

[@AndyGenova-jr9ol]

Timnrex are awsum great showing n graphics 👌 😎 👏 👍 🙌

[@thomasschaefer9312]

what a great show.

[@orah12185]

Excellent

[@fjccommish]

I lock my doors to keep elephants from entering my house to walk on my fridge.

[@BlackRose-vi2yg]

Been watching these as never seen them before. So much better than the rubbish nowadays. You'd have some wise guy presenter cracking crappy jokes all show.

[@zephirinjeff]

My guilty pleasure, is wanting this beautiful fridge.

[@carguy67b]

Fridges are an excellent example of planned obsolescence by the corportations. In the past they worked so well, the only real reason for change was just to improve the packaging and styling, but the keeping things cold wasn’t the reason to change. And the ozone depletion thing, fridges typically were not the culprits for freon loss. Very dependable. Great show, great series, have always loved viewing them.

[@mahammadoutunkara6430]

Thank you.

[@TestTubeBabySpy]

Havent seen anything on Tims KZbin channel lately. Hope he is OK. I made a tribute video for this series. Not widely seen in the u.s. but still made an impression on my kid-self

[@davaogary7042]

Tim is still with us and still active. Unfortunately, his sidekick Rex passed in April 2019.

[@kettleions]

Yeah! Thank you! 😊

[@my_dear_friend_]

Cool!

[@christianpatriot7439]

Prior to the 1860s Dr. John Gorrie used a steam engine to compress air. The compression naturally increased the condensed air's temperature. But it also drove out the humidity, which made it fairly easy for the air to rapidly change temperature when the pressure was released. The air absorbed heat as it expanded. Gorrie used his engine to cool the air in a hospital that he ran for fever patients in Florida. His nurse left the machine on accidentally one night and ice had accumulated in the machine's pipes. So Gorrie began using the ice to cool the hospital. He tried to obtain financial backing to put the machine into commercial production, but the natural ice industry saw to it that backing wasn't available.

[@Dsdcain]

My great grandmother had one of those old motor on top type fridges in the garage in the mid 70s, that was for great grandpa's beer and sodas for us kids. Funny part was the 1950s style fridge with the big handle in the kitchen. *:-)*

[@marcoguada42]

on tim hunkin channel there is a remastered version with commentary at the end

[@mattwardpictures]

You're not weird. Geek wasn't mainstream back in the late 80s/early 90s, but we showed 'em.

[@durgab.k.2051]

very interesting.....

[@SapioiT]

Wish you had a playlist for this series.

[@jesmondgrech3984]

The Russians are coming by Val Bennet

[@ooooneeee]

There is one: kzbin.info/aero/PLByTa5duIolYRtq45Cz_GmtzfWJyA4bik

[@spencnaz]

They should make an updated version of this, but with current appliances.

[@LowellMorgan]

Lots of steady-state tech today. It would be interesting to see how they demonstrate it in a compressible way.

[@JohnRowley]

I wonder if the lady with the cocktail is Tim’s wife, and if she is the wonderful voice behind the animations!

[@fjccommish]

My great great grandson bought one of those Imperials in 1957.

[@PassiveSmoking]

The first practical use for refrigeration machinery was cooling Australian beer. Why does that fact not surprise me in the least?

[@bobeden5027]

And the brine density was measured in degrees "Twaddell" I used to maintain the brine quality for the refrigeration system which was CO2 on SS Nevasa.

[@Jim-ie6uf]

I remember the fridge being called the Frigidaire, even it was a Norge. Another brand name. My great Aunt and my Grandmother. Man I miss them both.

[@drdook9167]

I had to watch this for my TAFE course.

[@biggerchris20]

I actually remember watching this show as a kid like five or six, (weird kid) they came on PBS. FUN FACT: Can your frig handle an elephant?

[@michaelhawthorne8696]

I think this series of programs were the prelude of the series "How things are made" 25 years or more later Very informal all the same

[@nickdryad]

I love the fact that Australians put fridges to use to cool beer

[@rfvtgbzhn]

it's not that long ago that people used iceboxes instead of refrigerators. During my mom's childhood after WW2, they didn't have a refrigerator at home, just an icebox. Once a day a man came to the house and sold big blocks of ice and they bought one and put it into the icebox to cool their food. It melted in a few days, after that they would just buy the next one. The blocks where quite heavy, maybe 20 kg.

[@matoatlantis]

23:28 whaat ?! /o\ .. priceless repair :)

[@tomservo75]

2:50 I could use one of those on a 95 degree summer day.

[@fredflintstoner596]

Mrs Richards: "I paid for a room with a view!" Basil: (pointing to the lovely view) "That is Torquay, Madam." Mrs Richards: "It's not good enough!" Basil: "May I ask what you were expecting to see out of a Torquay hotel bedroom window? Sydney Opera House, perhaps? the Hanging Gardens of Babylon? Herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically past?..." Mrs Richards: "Don't be silly! I expect to be able to see the sea!" Basil: "You can see the sea, it's over there between the land and the sky." Mrs Richards: "I'm not satisfied. But I shall stay. But I expect a reduction." Basil: "Why?! Because Krakatoa's not erupting at the moment?

[@tomservo75]

I certainly take my fridge for granted. When you watch a movie that takes place during medieval times and there are a bunch of people having a feast, do you wonder how they stored the meat before and after cooking? Were people just more immune to e-coli back then? After all, other animals can eat meat completely raw and be just fine. But that's kind of been an obsession of mine. I could not live any further back than the 1920s - electric lighting, refrigeration, and air conditioning. Prior to that I just can't imagine what life was like. I look at old Civil War photos and think how difficult it would have been living in the 19th century. I can't watch a movie taking place before 1900 without thinking, "Yeah but they didn't have electric lights or refrigerators..." But then again it's probably also the old style b&w photography that makes everything look so dreary.

[@ryanmalin]

Funny we use co2 as a refrigerant now. And yes if it goes below 70psi, it turns into dry ice. Usually we keep the pressure about 200-1200psi. Ammonia is still used. Propane and butane are common refrigerants now as well

[@phil955i]

Back when they actually went into detail instead of the dumbing down they do in factual programmes today.

[@davidlloyd3116]

I read that there was a special refrigeration act that was enacted in the USA to allow anyone trapped in a refrigerator to get out. Children used to hide in old abandoned refrigerators as part of Hide and Seek games, getting trapped and suffocating, unable to get out.

[@ruhnet]

Lol when he turns on the CO2 🤣

[@bryancmcdonald3978]

❤️

[@bryancmcdonald3978]

(🌳❄️) milk 🍼 inside 💦 wet burlap sack ; suspended with rope. Farm cooler. 😎 Bryan. ======== My , Dad & our preacher bantered about those coolers. ======= Block ice from lakes , reminded me . Our , preacher would draw water 💦 up - to drink ; for (oil 🛢️ field workers) - rule of thumb - is there ? ; 🐠 fish , in that freshwater.

[@BruselskySluzebnik]

Old fridges had more features than new ones.

[@afrog2666]

I like the reggae version of Take 5

[@rjwh67220]

Somehow they managed to do Take Five in 4/4 and still make it recognizable.

[@afrog2666]

Pure class at 2:51 lol..

[@mrbrent62]

Dr Emmett Brown used a steam engine to make an ice cube in the old west.

[@STR82DVD]

I would have hired Rex fix my refrigerator. RIP mate.

[@rckli]

I love these videos from John Oliver’s uncle

[@stauffap]

And now this technology will become even more important, since we can't actually do the energy transition away from fossil fuels without heat pumps, which basically work like fridges and are by far the most efficient technology to heat a building.

[@adventureguy4119]

Amazing series wish they was produced today. IT IS A DISGRACE at whats happened to the Uk and Northern Ireland

[@danrynazewski4151]

Good old days no gloves no safety at all ..love it

[@jeanpierreragequit1726]

2:50 lool

[@TheBamChug]

I love that opening animation gives you the distinct impression that when we leave the house, the vacuum and sewing machine are having nasty, mop-and-bucket-clean-up sex. Like, hardcore.

[@garfieldlawrence2988]

A Refrigerator Gun? Nice reggae sax music.

[@JustWickedSwede]

How come they didn't even mention Carl Georg Munters and Baltzar von Platen ?! They invented the gas absorption refrigerator.

[@briancherry8088]

2:52 - that WAS dramatic. Still laughing....

[@xaenon]

Honestly, who DIDN'T see that coming?

[@fastt4211]

2:50 lol

[@waswestkan]

Good thinhing it held the Elephany up. The Elephant most likely would have been shot if it broke a leg in a fall.

[@simonruszczak5563]

Appliances at the time needed to be elephant friendly. Edison demonstrated AC electricity was not friendly by electrocuting one with it.

[@thekaiser4333]

Was 2:50 intentional?

[@waswestkan]

In the event they mention absorption refrigerators I missed it.. They where the first practical refrigerators for domestic use, and where they only option for rural residents before the REA (USA centrism sorry) became into being. First ones burned either alcohol or kerosene. Where natural gas service was available units that, burned that where also available The downside of tho other than the presance of a flame was the need for a flue

[@gregorymalchuk272]

I was just thinking about absorbtion refrigerators top. Electrolux Servel made the most popular ones here.

[@bland9876]

11:20 even modern fridges lack this awsome feature

[@spooked636]

I know I'll get a response but just need to say, I'm so glad its seen as wrong to treat animals in this way today! Apart from that an interesting episode. M 👍

[@jamesslick4790]

I bought my fridge at Sears in 1987. Still going, although sadly Sears is not. Refrigerators and stoves are the LEAST likely thing to break down in the average home.