In Western Europe and America, obsolete household appliances are disposed of by special companies that have to pay extra for this. In Russia, it is simply taken to a landfill. Or it is being sold by advertisements that promise a good price for an old refrigerator. Where do these old refrigerators go then?
Myths about buying old refrigerators
The first thing that comes to mind is that old refrigerators are bought for spare parts. It is quite a logical thought, because there are, for example, a car mechanic with golden hands, who from two beaten "kopecks" collect one whole - why not be such masters in the field of refrigeration units? In fact, if this happens, it is very rare. There are almost no Soviet-era master enthusiasts left, they exist only among the reenactors.
Another popular semi-mythical idea is to scrap your refrigerator. This is partly true, but there are almost no valuable metals in the refrigerator device, so the gain from the transaction will be minimal, it may not even pay for the pickup. Some consider buying old refrigerators "expensive" as a typical scam. They say that a stir is created around devices that are not suitable for direct use, which are supposedly needed by antique dealers or contain some extremely rare metal. Someone takes it and tries to earn extra money on resale. But such would-be businessmen do not succeed in anything, and the old rubbish has to be scrapped for a penny.
Why are they actually buying old refrigerators?
As surprising as it sounds, old refrigerators are bought primarily for their intended use.
And it's not necessarily a matter of nostalgia for Soviet times (although this also happens). Often old ZILs are installed in small cafes, since industrial refrigerators are not cheap pleasure, and they take up a lot of space. And ZILs can be easily converted into freezers. In addition, they do not need as much electricity as modern models.
There is another reason why old refrigerators are being bought up - powerful compressors. They can be removed from the apparatus and used in airbrushing, at least for an airbrush artist a good compressor is a sure way to successful work.
Sometimes you can see ads that refrigerators are being bought out of order. Broken appliances are much cheaper than workers, and the range of uses is much the same. Plus, a broken refrigerator is not that hard to fix if you want to. Basically, old refrigerators in disrepair are used as reliable cabinets. The result is a virtually fireproof safe: an object placed in a refrigerator is not afraid of moisture, heat, or frost.
