Non Running Superior Kegerator - Worth buying?

[ubermick]

Heya guys - found a non-running Superior (rebranded Beverage Air to the best of my knowledge?) commercial kegerator for sale locally. It's a bit of a hike to get there, but if it's worth the trip then I'll hit the road. Unsure of the model, but attached a photo.

Guy claims that it ran perfectly until a power outage - when the power came back on, it no longer cools. Fan is running (said he replaced that last year as it was getting loud), but won't get cold, so he suspects a power surge knocked out the compressor. Obviously as well as that, lines will need to be replaced, etc.

So question would be if this is worth snagging? Size is exactly what I'm looking for, and he's asking $300. Potentially a good deal, but no clue until I know what it'd cost to get it running again. If it's $200, then great. If it's $500... then less worth it.

All advice is welcome - cheers!

[THE ICEMAN]

Yep, you have a BevAir. Superior is the company that sold it.
It could be something as simple as a temp control or new start components for the compressor, relatively cheap... Or the compressor could be locked up which would be in the $600 to $700 range.
When you say the fan runs do you mean the evaporator fan (inside, should be running all the time) or do you mean the condenser fan which should run only when the compressor is called for?


THE ICEMAN

[ubermick]

I genuinely don't know, Iceman - the ad didn't really give any details. I pinged him asking for more info, but haven't heard back yet. This is all I have, beyond the photo:

Commercial kegerator with 3 taps made by Superior. I had a power outage at the house and when it came back on, I believe it took out the compressor. The fan kicks still but won't get cold. I replaced the fan a few years ago due to a loud bearing so that works fine. This thing ran ice cold prior to power outage.

I'm guessing that the fan kicking is the compressor fan.

From looking around on here, I came to the same conclusion as you - it could be a $50 or a $500 fix. No way of knowing until someone who knows what they're talking about gets their hands on it. At the moment, it's an hour and a half drive from me, so haven't had a chance to see in person, and hesitant to burn a 4 hour round trip with everything unless there's a shot it's worth it.

[ubermick]

Well, that's the only photo he's sent me so far. At least it's R134A. Additionally he said that both fans work - so the compressor fan is kicking but not chilling. Didn't mention any clicks or anything. Will go take a looksee this weekend, hopefully.

[castruck]

Did you ever get the Superior/Beverage Air kegerator working? I just picked one up from Craig's List for free. The condenser fan is not working.

[castruck]

BTW you can get a new compressor for the Superior BM23 - Tecumseh AEA3417AXA Mfg # AE160AL-727-J7 Price $213.45. This doesn't include shipping and installation. http://www.buildinghvac.com