I have a Dixie Narco soda machine that stopped cooling. I removed the refrigeration unit and the fans and compressor seem to be working good. The evaporation radiator barely gets cold. Can this be because of low freon? Is it worth the trouble to add more freon? How much does it cost to add freon? Can the freon cans from Pep Boys be used? This refrigeration unit has two recepticles that look like tire air inlets. Is this where I can add freon? Can I do this myself, or can only a pro do this job? How much will it cost to add freon? I found someone who will sell me a used working refrigeration unit for $175. Is this used unit worth it or should I pay someone to refill the old unit with freon? Who can do this service, an air conditioning repair guy?

Thanks for your help.
Sincerely,
Frank Hamann
Orange, CA

You are starting to dabble in the EPA Clean Air Act. You are risking an EPA fine of $20,000 per incident. You need to repair your freon leak before refilling your refrigeration unit with freon. No one will fill it without checking for leaks first. You can do it yourself if you have the EPA CFC Certification. The course is a take home class. I got my Universal cerification while in the military, but I believe it is also a take at home test. Once you get it, it is good for life. Keep your materials though. If you don't fill up refrigeration units often you will forget what you know. You don't want to ruin your machines.
Since I am certified (been a long time though) I would check for leaks, repair what needed repaired and then refill the unit. You will need a kit with gauges on it and need to reference your owner's manual to see how much pressure you will need to build up with your freon. Your resevoir should have it posted on a sticker as well. In cars you can take it slow and check the temperature coming out of the AC to see if you have enough freon in it, you can't do that in vending machines and it's not a great method. You will need the hoses with the guages on it. They aren't too terribly expensive. I hope this helps.

I've seen people shaking machines at my night job.. They do it for 2 reasons. They shake it if thier snack or can of pop doesn't fall, or if they think they can get a 2 for 1 deal on Mountain Dew (slot gives 2 away sometimes). I won't shake a machine after hearing that my uncle, not the brightest guy in town, flipped one over on himself and broke his leg.

As for a real solution, I hear the do not shake the machine stickers work well. I think you've probably seen them. They have a picture of a guy with a machine falling on him.

Just curious what your opinion is of the product and the company (Mad Dog Energy Products).

I would suggest going to www.vendiscuss.com and looking in the bulk vending section. There is a thread right now discussing this very thing. However, the people there do NOT give great review of it. It is a "business opportunity." You have to invest $10,000 in overpriced machines in order to reorder the buzz bites and get machine parts. The machines are mediocre at best. Vendiscuss forum's view on Mad Dog Energy Products

we are a manufacture triple vending machine in China, i would like give a advise you ,you can impoart
that machine from China
5 samples is ok , and put it out to testing then you will know all of assumption is clearly
and the XYZ is importing the machine from China too

How do you import the machines yourself? What do you have to do?

What would be a good starting point for bulk vending how many machines should I buy to start? How much should a business charge me to place a machine in their business what would be a good range?

It doesn't matter how many you start with. I started with 1 machine. I would suggest using a charity to start with. Many businesses are more than willing to help. Instead of offering a huge commision a charity will be happy with about $1.00/mo. Everyone will be happy.