Fermentation chamber question

[banks412]

Ok guys,

Help me with an engineering question. I am roaming CL trying to find a chest freezer to convert into a fermentation chamber. I'm seeing a great deal more upright freezers over chest freezers (what I'd prefer). My question is this: if I bought an upright freezer, could I turn it on it's side and use it, assuming I built a small platform to keep it off the ground and protect the compressor and any parts that may be exposed on the back side? I was looking a picture posted on CL of an upright freezer that was turned that made me think of it. See below.

Would this put too much pressure on the compressor to run this way? CAN it even run like this on it's side? If it WOULD work, this thing would be a BEAST of a chamber. Maybe even too much space, as I've only got one or two things going at a time. Might not be cost effective for me. I dunno....

Any and all comments are welcome. Please let me know if I'm nuts for even considering this.

 

[Leithoa]

I'm not even an HVAC novice so I could be wrong. I would think you could not just tip a freezer on it's side and have it work. Based on my general understanding, depending on the design, the circulation of the refrigerant would be affected and you'd run the risk of over stressing the compressor.
There are a few HVAC experts on the board so let them chime in.

 

[abarnett]

Also not an expert, but I'm pretty sure the compressor will not run tipped on its side. It requires gravity to keep itself lubricated and/or sealed (or something like that).

If you could somehow remove and re-orient the compressor, without damaging the lines, it may work.... Find one cheap enough on CL and give it a try!

 

[banks412]

Ok - duly noted, guys. Thanks for confirming what I was already thinking. I did find one fairly cheap. The one pictured is on CL for only $50. Kind of an expensive lesson to learn for this homebrewer on a budget, so I think I'll just wait for the right one to come along...