The way John phrases this: “They’ve left me to carry a 2,000-lb fridge up those stairs?!!”, it does imply that 2000 pounds is the weight of the refrigerator. The joke depends on the wordplay with the words “2000 pounds” meaning different things depending on if you mean weight or refrigeration. Commercial refrigeration systems can be rated in tons of refrigeration; however, cooling systems may be more typically specified in kW (or MW) or in Btu/h.
The roots for refrigeration are in the ice making industry, and the ice manufacturers wanted an easy way of understanding the size of a refrigeration system in terms of the production of ice. To be specific, one ton of refrigeration capacity can freeze one short ton of water at 0°C (32°F) in 24 hours.
One short ton = 2000 lb
And there you get the 2,000-lb refrigerator John is talking about. The weight John has to move is a different matter. Refrigerators in 1988 were generally about 250 pounds, or nearly 100 kilograms. 250 pounds is still a pretty good amount of weight, but it is not 2000 pounds.
The way John phrases this: “They’ve left me to carry a 2,000-lb fridge up those stairs?!!”, it does imply that 2000 pounds is the weight of the refrigerator. The joke depends on the wordplay with the words “2000 pounds” meaning different things depending on if you mean weight or refrigeration. Commercial refrigeration systems can be rated in tons of refrigeration; however, cooling systems may be more typically specified in kW (or MW) or in Btu/h.
The roots for refrigeration are in the ice making industry, and the ice manufacturers wanted an easy way of understanding the size of a refrigeration system in terms of the production of ice. To be specific, one ton of refrigeration capacity can freeze one short ton of water at 0°C (32°F) in 24 hours.
One short ton = 2000 lb
And there you get the 2,000-lb refrigerator John is talking about. The weight John has to move is a different matter. Refrigerators in 1988 were generally about 250 pounds, or nearly 100 kilograms. 250 pounds is still a pretty good amount of weight, but it is not 2000 pounds.