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RV Refrigerator Troubleshooting
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 ส.ค. 2013
- Does your camper refrigerator not get cold anymore? Does it slowly warm up on you while you are traveling? This is how I have helped my my 20 year old refrigerator keep it's cool.
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10 years later and you just helped me sort out my fridge from 1987 in 2023 🙌🙌🙌 Thanks!
Cool. Glad it worked for you.
Perfect brush for the burner tube cleaning is gun barrel brush, .357 caliber
Better technical video than most of the self proclaimed pros put out!
Yeah Buddee!! You rock Nelson! I did it! I fixed my own frige. Took off the silver door and found flakes of rust clogging the area from the bottom of the round tube to the entire length of the flame area. Shop vacced it all up, put the frig on gas and I had ignition! I'm ready to roll boondock-style! Thanks for this complete cohesive and easy to follow vid! You rock!!!
Happy to help!
Wanted to say "THANKS". Did exactly as you said and it WORKED. It was rust particles and pieces of rust sitting on top of burner (flute) tube. Vacuumed out junk and it works great, items came from stack. Life saver going on trip in three hours.
Just bought a used RV...researched for days why I couldn’t start the fridge. Had to turn the On/off valve seen @ 2:05. Thank you for making this video!
Just want to thank you for your video. I started having problems while camping. The gas check light would come on every time I turned around. So I followed your video and sure enough my vent was full of rust. I took if apart and cleaned it up. Now it works great 👍 Thank you for sharing that. Happy travels!
Glad it worked for you!
Nice video, helped get a nice blue flame. I’ll see in the AM if it’s cold as it should be. By the way, a .45 caliber cleaning brush fits that tube perfectly. Mine looks new inside and out. Now for 12 volt troubleshooting
My family's Dometic RGE 400 was much louder than usual and no longer cooling as it should. The freezer temperature seemed fine, but the fridge wouldn't go below 55°F. We cleaned out the burner with a 5/8" airlock brush, which can be bought at a homebrewing or winemaking supply shop. Now we've got a clear blue flame, no noise, and a cold fridge. Thanks!
+Eric West Nice. I hope it keeps working well for you.
Same problem, good advice, fired up first try, Thanks for the video.
Good video. RV refrigerators were a complete mystery before.
I would like to thank you for this video I am elk hunting in Williams Arizona and my refrigerator stopped getting cold I watched your video did what you said to do and now it is making ice cubes again really appreciate this video thank you.
Thank you! RV place said controller board was shot....saved my friend a pile of money when I cleaned it up. Nice blue flame.
The first time I cleaned the burner on mine it didn't make a huge difference. A week or so later, I took it apart again and did a better job of cleaning the burner and knocking the flue to loosen up any rust. There really wasn't a huge amount of rust. (12 year old Dometic) I also too the nozzle off of the gas control and blew it out a bit. This time, I could see a much nicer flame, and in a short time I had a very cold fridge!!! Thanks for your help. The main thing to remember is the clear statement you make at 5:06. If you have anything other than a nice blue flame, you have a problem.
Thanks again from Ohio.
Thank you for this video!! Got an 05 refer that was not working and this video got the job done. Thanks again.
Just went on a camping trip here in michigan and my freezer was real slow to get cold and my fridge just wouldnt get cold...lucky i had enough coolers to keep our food cold but i got home and watched this video and took mine apart and it was caked with crap and rust! cleaned it up and it works just fine now! Ive had this camper 17 years and never done this and its a 1979 and im betting it had never been done because the flame is nice and blue now and was orange before..in fact the flame sounds stronger than it ever has! Thanks for the help!
I am glad, keep it on the road as long as you can brother.
back in 72 i bought 35 foot rv and the fridge was 110 volts ac or 12 volt dc no propane in the fridge. It got warm on me my 8th year and I was about to replace it when another rv'er said don't waste your money simply remove it turn it upside down and 4 days later put it back in and it will work. I thought he was nuts but figured what did I have to lose. when I hooked the house battery's back up an hour later I checked it and it was working fine it was still in it when I sold it 6 years later and I passed on the fix to the new owner. I'd take it out every winter and turn it upside down then reinstall every spring never had a problem after I learned that trick. The fellow that told me was a retired Frigidare service tech for 46 years before he retired. He said the oil in the refrigeration system and ammonia eventually moves away from the heater and buy turning it upside down everything goes back where it belongs.
All I know is it worked when I followed instructions.
thanks so much for the tip
What a great story! I can only imagine doing it myself outta desperation as it seems so "off the wall". XD
Good job...mines a 1988 fridge . I lite it right where the blue flame is . Piezo lighter shot. But lighting at flame has worked for seven years.
This morning when we were leaving the camp ground I decided to test the gas option on my Dometic 2662 refrigerator. The "check" light came on so I removed the panel on the side of the camper and tried to start the gas burner on the refrigerator again. I noticed flames coming out of the protective cover near the burner jet. I quickly turned off the refrigerator. When I got home I watched this video and removed the cover over the burner tube and noticed all the slots on the top of the burner tube were clogged with some sort of hard dirt-like substance. After removing the burner I noticed the tube was filled with a dry--mud like substance. I suspect an insect (perhaps a bee) tried to make a nest in the tube. Anyway, I got my gun barrel brushes and air compressor and cleaned out the burner tube and slots. After reassembly the burner started on the 1st snap. Thanks for the informative video!
Awesome, I am glad you got it to work again.
Okay my fridge looks just like this and I thought I was missing pieces but seeing this video I'm reassured I just need to clean it out. Thx
Atwood Refrigerator HE-0801did light at the burner and there was no visible rust or soot. I took it off and polished the flame vent holes and the frig once again in my Grand Design 2015 Reflection worked efficiently by propane. Thanks for the video. It was an easy fix.
Glad it worked for you!
Pretty darn helpful. I have just bought a 1990 Lance L900 beast and was pretty scared about that fridge...this gives me a good place to start as I try to fix things. Thanks!!!
+Vin Weathermon I hope it works for you.
The chimney on the refrigerator is about an inch around. It is surrounded by the Ammonia gas tube. The larger galvanized tube around the outside is filled with 1 tube, 1 chimney, and insulation. You go to the top vent and remove it, remove the diffuser cover and use a piece of coarse steel wool on a wire coat hangar wire and use this to clean your chimney. If the chimney coats over with carbon it will not transfer the heat to the ammonia tube.
Thanks!!! I made it as far as the point where you show the rust in your hand before I ran out to my RV and repeated your steps!!! I had a spider nest down near the burner vents!!!!! I didn't have access to compressed air, so I used a bore brush from a gun-cleaning kit to clean her out!!! Good as new!!!
Sean Fitzpatrick Nice.
+Sherri K. Buchanon
*Shop Refrigerator Cebey Monday 2015 Sale Off Now >>> **Best--Refrigerator.blogspot.com** .*
Thank you a million times for making this video and putting your soul on the internet line. "once again, I'm not responsible for any injuries, we are dealing with propane!" lmao, as kids we never got that warning before launching off M-80's at each other;) All the best
Good video. My propane fridge is 40 years old. When I change the 20 pound propane tank it sometimes won't light for a day or two. I thought it might have been the piezo lighter.
I also had a problem cooling, found out the burner wasn't burning properly which caused sot in the flu (chimney) cleaned it out with a wire and has worked fine.
Great Vid thanks. Could not get my 3 way to lite. Turns out the little gas valve you pointed out was closed. "Open Sesame" and presto works like magic! Thanks so much for this vid. Thumbs up.
not sure why there are 100+ thumbs down, this video is of the best I have seen yet!! Thanks
6/11/2022 nice video, Tnx a lot. My Dometic 2004 model is ready to crap out, the A/C heating element is rusted in Solid - Kroil sprayed on it, still won't budge... almost ready to order an "EasyChill" all A/C Fridge and dump the Propane Tanks.
hey man good video. I just went thru this proceedure myself today. good tip I'll give ya on that burner tube, I dropped mine in my ultrasonic cleaner with a solution of water, ammonia and dish soap. ran it an hour and the inside of my tube is like new now.
anyhow reason I come here, last night I developed a gas leak, yeah inside the camper!
That's the reason I'm doing the cleaning today. the leak has something to do with the fridge but I can't for the life of me locate it.
Right now burner flame is going good after cleaning, got best flame I've ever had following the ultrasonic cleaner. but I still can't find this leak, I only smell it when the fridge is on gas.
I've removed the front panel, snoop tested all the fittings with gas flowing (very good ventilation and fan running) but still no luck.
after ripping the rear side apart, valve and all I moved to the inside, pulled the thermostat plate with gas controls and dials apart and snoop tested everything and still nothing.
any ideas what it could be? I even thought maybe my flame isn't efficient enough and is allowing unburned fuel to escape but I find that hard to believe as good as she's burning.
I'm out of ideas and yet I sit here still smelling the gas.
is it possible another appliance only leaks when there's gas flow to the fridge maybe? soon I cut the fridge off it goes away.
mind you I can clearly see the entire gas lines, fittings and everything how I have it pulled apart. I know I'm not missing anything. Could gas be squeezing out from around the jet air intake ports maybe? you know, where the jet pulled fresh air in before it hits the burner slots?
maybe I'm getting some back pressure or to much gas pressure going into the flame? I don't know just throwing things out there.
Thanks!
thanks so much for the info I love knowing how the internals of things work.
Great troubleshooting!
Here are a couple more low-tech fixes for RV fridges that aren't cooling properly:
1. The thermistor is usually clipped to a middle fin in the freezer--wrong position!
Move it to clip onto the warmer end-fin, and at a higher vertical position on that fin.
This should cause unit to run more, therefore chilling better.
2. Another manufactured-in fail--point on some RV fridges, is bad, spongy insulation on unit.
No refrigeration unit should ever use open-cell foam or fibrous insulation, because those soak-up moisture and grow mold. RV's are susceptible to mold anyway; fixing this helps reduce that issue [though only in part].
Replace that spongy insulation with closed-cell foam, and thicker than original if there's room. Sticking it well to the basic box is best, to block condensate forming between the box and insulation.
Just avoid insulating over cooling coils in back of unit.
Thanks for the tips, you must work on them?
NelsonStudios Not professionally, but I do play with them! [been known to run with scissors on occasion, too]
We had an elder living with us who needed their own fridge; all we had was an RV fridge. In process of fixing that to work, learned about the soggy insulation issue on RV fridges.
..IDK if all of then have that fail-point [regular fridges have far too little-but that's another story], but it had something to do with ours. And knowing some bit more than basics about insulation; and some experimenting on other old fridges.
One thing I discovered causing my fridge to not work on gas. After removing the shielding cover and then the cover around the ignitor the burner & flue was a large cinder block gas.
Note it is hard to see as it is black sot.
Instead of saying "you're working with propane and I'm not responsible...."
You should have instructed the viewer to disconnect power and shut off the propane supply valve......
If you read the service manual it will clearly tell you this. There are labels on the fridge that say this as well.
I do it with gas flowing, the flow to a fridge is so very small but that little flow should still help a bit of rust from sticking in an orifice. Your idea could also be a good one, all I know for sure is when working with propane I am not responsible.
very interesting. I dont have a camper anymore,but i didnt know how the fridge worked. i ws hoping i would never have to figure it out. now i know! Thanks!
"dinosaur electronics" I thought that was a joke at first LOL
What a name for an electronics company :P
Great info.
Yes ...I have cleaned out the burner tube ...polished the vents in the tube, and the end of the igniter. There was a LOT of almost black metallic rusty material in the burner tube. And I removed the orifice and checked that it was clear. I'm new to this 3-way fridge stuff ...so please bear with me as I ask dumb questions: I have the original Install and Operate instruction booklet, which has an exploded view of the parts, etc. Question: the gas shut-off valve near the burner controlled by a slotted screw, not a lever. Should the slot be side-to-side, or up and down for the 'ON' position?
I just love went out of the thousands of videos that doesn't make you see what Stevie always wondered are you my friend you helped me out considerably thank you very much very simple very easy to understand instead of getting into text how you had to read the paper this morning which you know what I'm saying every guy that gets on these videos always has tell you about his family first and get around to it about 4 of a quarter of the way through the damn video and never leave you here they always leave you wondering like Stevie Wonder okay thank you very much my friend
The people at dinosaur are great!!
Sounds like a dirty burner, the ac heating element is inside and working but you are not getting good heat transfer from the burner. Try blowing it out with compressed air or take it apart to clean. Might have something behind the orifice but that is rare.
What if your old girl runs on electric and not cooling at the bottom? Freezer works bottom doesn’t. It’s a 1986 dometic rv fridge . Camper is 1986/skyliner brand . Thanks for advice if you can give me some.
Rather than tapping on the chimney to knock rust loose. Can you remove the chimney and brush out with a wire brush or replace the chimney as the galvanizing has burned away with a stainless steel chimney. A replacement chimney can be fashioned from a standard double wall fireplace chimney pipe. The inner tube of the stainless will not rust.
Great video but sometimes it's the jet orifice getting an oily buildup around the Ruby that causes a yellowish flame ( solid blue is preferable ) . Get a ten millimeter box wrench . Unscrew it then drop it in a cup of alcohol overnight . That should dissolve the oil . Blow out the jet with air or your mouth . Reinstall . An honest repair place would probably just order a new jet to solve the problem . A dishonest place would do what I described then charge you for a new jet . Hope this is helpful .
It will help save someone's camping trip for sure. Thanks.
both freezer and refrigerator works good when unit plug in - on the road frezzer is good but refrigerator will not cool good
Thanks
thank you very much i had mud dobbers plugging the burners
Good tips Nelson, thanks! I have a 1997 Class C Fleetwood Tioga. Only had this rig 3 yrs. Fridge worked fine on both propane and elec (2-way only), then started acting up. Now it runs on electric fine, but propane burner goes out in a minute after igniting. Flame had a tinge of orange in the blue, so will check out the chimney flue type thing for rust.
I used a compressor and cleaned out the burner area for 15 mins, but did not bang on chimney. I don't know how to turn off the DC battery power in my rig. Don't see a disconnect switch, maybe I should shut down the converter fuses? I will check solenoid, gas valve inside this area, clean out 'chimney', and if burner end can be removed, I will do that too and clean it. It would be great not to pay someone a lot of money to fix this. Are there any parts to replace cheaply? Currently staying in my RV and leaving town in 2 wks to move to a new city, so very anxious to get my fridge working.
Just with what you have cleaned so far has the flame shape/color improved? If you are desperate the fridge could be lit with a bbq lighter. You can pull the battery cables off one side of the batteries to cut 12v power. If you have a solar panel it will depend on how they have wired it but normally pulling post off will cut that too.
NelsonStudios - I went to see an RV repair shop. They checked the flues, and they were clean. Checked DC current and traced weak power to a loose battery connection. Checked thermocouple, it was bad, so they replaced it. Burner went off nice and strong, and now works on propane just fine. Yoo hoo! I feel so glad!! I will review your video again at a later date and make some notes for future trouble shooting. I do need to get a 12V tester or Multimeter and study how these fridges work so I can troubleshoot it myself. Thanks a lot for getting back to me!!
I am glad it worked out for you. Failed thermocoupler is one of those issues I haven't had...yet
Thanks. Very helpful
I also mostly boondock and replaced my Class C Onan generator with a home designed battery/inverter power center. I use the inverter frugally to extend the battery bank charge as long as possible, so I need the fridge to work on propane.Didn't know a darn thing about these fridges. Watched your video and cleaned the burner tube yesterday. Now has a nice blue flame but fridge gets down to 37 degrees on electric and only 42 on propane. Although the flame is nice and blue it seems a bit small. Now I'm thinking that not enough gas is getting through the jet and it needs to be cleaned also. Looks like an easy fix just like a small engine carburetor jet. I'm going to take it out and clean it with carb cleaner and maybe run a wire from a wire brush through it a few times.
+william serrahn I have heard that sometimes funk can get on the jets. Maybe cut a bristle off a wire brush and see if it is small enough to fit.
I took out the jet (10mm wrench). It has a little crystal imbedded in the brass. I sprayed carb cleaner both ways through it and wiggled a wire in it. Later read the you should used wood alcohol and never use a wire - oh well. Anyway installed it and fridge worked great on gas - it must have been a bit dirty. So I would add advise to also clean the jet while you are in there.
Glad to hear it worked!
When trying to cool with propane, I repeatedly get nice blue flames that only last for a second or less, but continually restart each time the igniter clicks. The flame never stays on for me.
i have a chescold portable 3way unit and it works great on 240v & 12v but on gas it gets warm or does nothing. so if i can open it up and check the burner ill let you know how it goes. It worked ok on gas about 10 years ago but i had it in storage since then, flame is blue also.
+Mick Wolf Might have leaked all the ammonia. Look for yellowish deposits. You also might take it out of the unit and rotate it 360. Leave it an hour or more on each "face" and end with it sitting upright.
Its getting to minus 10 on Ac, cant see or smell any deposits, was stored in a dusty dirty place though.
my bro has the same unit, it didnt run on gas so we checked the lines, it was all good up until the jet, so we removed it and put ut up towards the sun and saw a blockage, poked a strand of wire through it(very very small from a dc power lead of some sort) and checked it, it now has a good flame much bigger than mine does. so now im going to do the same.
the jet part was seethrough also like it was made of glass or something and where the hole is showed a dark blockage when looking towards the sun. it got cold in the few minutes it was running but a full test is needed. ill report back when mine is done.
+NelsonStudios my jet had a blockage also, tested for a few hours on gas and got down to -9 Celsius and kept on going, yay thanks, my beer will be cold now 😀
My ignition and electronics seem to work intermittently on the fridge and water heater. Not seeing a ignition and flow of gas. Also electric to the fridge but not cooling with switch in on position and auto setting.
I got one of these. The thing was working a year ago. I have 12 volts to it. I have gas to it and this is evident at a 90 degree bend with a purge valve that hisses when I squeeze it open. I keep trying to light it with matches as well as hoping it will spark auto, but no flame. Gas but no flame. It's as though the control solenoid is 6not allowing gas to flow past it . I'll try to put 12 volts straight to the solenoid to see if that opens the flow.
The solenoid should make some noice you can hear or feel and can be jumpered with 12v. I do not know however of any sort of squeeze gas valve. Unless I misunderstand you, that sounds wrong. There is a rubber drain for the icebox but I don't see how that could hiss. Your gas valve will have to be by law a brass lever or screw valve, nothing more.
+NelsonStudios It's a90 degree bend with a valve to turn on or off and it's spring loaded so that when squeezed , gas definitely hisses out of the thing. I thought it was purge.
Interesting, so you could purge all the air out of the lines to light the fridge quickly after the trailer had been in storage? I know on mine I will turn all the stove burners on for 30 seconds or so before any of them will light. I wish I could see a picture. If you have gas for sure to the solenoid and you can feel the solenoid open/close then you might have a plugged jet. It will be a little brass nut at the end of the line facing the burner. Carefully remove it and clean. I use a single strand from a wire brush to slip in there. Vacuum out the fitting before screwing it back in. If that fails to fix it then I bet you have either a shutoff or solenoid that has failed.
+NelsonStudios Can I post a pic here? Got an Email address and I'll send you a pic of the thing.
what would cause the gas not to cut in when the shore power is disconnected .
What should the gap be between the igniter and the burner?? On the Dometic RM660 in my 1979 Dodge Diplomat, the gap is about 1/4 inch between the burner turbe and igniter (firing tip) , and also about 1/4 inch between the thermocouple (feeler point). I have the original Installation and Operating Instructions, but these gaps are not specified ...
I know it has to have a gap to suck a proper air mixture for ignition. I didn't think they were even adjustable but maybe back that old they were. Is it not firing properly even after blowing out the burner? Maybe something is in the orifice, can you unscrew that and peep through it?
Worked for me- thanks!
So simple that I could not believe it worked.Takes very little time.and worth a try. Tapped the chimney, cleaned the orface & blew away the rust-dust. Works like new. Had to turn down(or up) the stat to low, Entire box was 20 degrees F.
I have an OLD 1979 Airstream with a Dometic fridge that uses EITHER gas or electric. The pilot for the gas works but the fridge doesn't do anything. When set to electric also... nothing. I have followed the directions to start the fridge... plug it in... turn to electric... turn up thermostat.
Check that you have power behind the fridge. I would imagine that a 79 would have all manual gas stuff with a pilot light but it could still have electric solenoids. That the pilot is working would lead me to think the gas side might be fine. Check the back of the fridge for any signs of a green or yellow powder, you might have lost all the ammonia. If still nothing I would try removing it from the mounting hole and turning it upside down for several hours. Put your ear to the tubing and listen for gurgling, gurgling is good. If crap has blocked the lines that might mix it up a bit. If it works, and it probably wont, then you are on borrowed time but it might get you by for a while. What you describe is what my fridge did when it lost the ammonia. I found an Amish place that rebuilt them and they sent me a new ammonia side. Been working ever since but might be better to just measure the hole and find a more modern one that will fit in.
NelsonStudios
When we talk about turning "it" upside down, what exactly, are we referring to? I apologize if it was mentioned already.
Thanks in advance!
@@jasonledbetter4372 It means removing the unit and turning the fridge upside down..overnight. Then upright again,...wait a few hours and try it
I have the same set up as yours in a 89 coachmen catlina , my question is ,how do you light it? Just with a lighter? Nothing to turn from 12volt to propane? I can't find. Owners manuel for this anywhere
We have a 2003 Fleetwood pace arrow. We started fridge for our trip. Fridge freezer worked fine. Drove bout 5 hours. The fridge would no longer work on electric.Switched it to gas. Both worked for awhile. First the fridge stopped working. The freezer worked overnight. Now neither work on power or gas. We've only used RV 2 times. Not sure of its history. We think maybe needs freeon filled. Help!!!
Beth Bennett You can try taking it out and turning it upside down for a few hours then righting it for a few. These fridges use ammonia most of the time not freon.
have a 2008 jayco camper the refridgerator when it runs for about 2 days it starts frosting up and freezes everything it is on a permenant site so it does not get moved
Too cold? Now that is not something you hear often. Not to be a jerk but are you sure the temp setting isn't too low? Maybe the thermostat is bad and always calling for cool.
Great video! Thanks!
thanks it was easy how long will it take frige to cool on lp
i had a similar problem, how ever your video is awesome we are forgetting one thing as I learned tonight. There is actually a fourth thing that can go wrong as I learned tonight myself. The main house fuse box. There is a 20 amp fuse that controls some of the lights in the back half of the RV. For me I have a 94 fleetwood bounder class A. My fridge had no power, no lights, no nothing. I even ordered a dinosaur circuit board to replace the old one. turns out, I have 120v to the circuit board but nothing coming back out to charge the fridge via gas or electric. I jerry rigged my heating element to my actual home to run 120v from my house to the RV to begin cooling the fridge until what I thought was a bad circuit board. When i went back in the RV tonight to check to cooling, I noticed my ceiling lights were not working. i found that odd and tried other lights in the back of the RV.. They also were not working. After triple checking the circuit board fuses, I never checked the main circuit board fuses to the RV and sure enough a 20amp was blown. replaced it and the fridge popped on at first with gas but then I changed it back to the house plug in and 120v kicked on and now is working 100%. hope this helps in your next video or somebody that reads this as it wasted 4 hours of my day thinking it was the circuit board when it was the RV house 20 amp fuse that was need to run the circuit board and ignite the propane and run the electrical.
Great tips thanks
cleaned the burner and get a nice blue flame for about 15 to 20 min then it quits and check light on control panel on frig comes on . Turn frig off and the back onto gas and burner lights and burns for another 15 to 20 min and shuts off. What do I check now?
Check that the flue isn't plugged with wasp nests. Check that the flame sensor is close to the flames.
Hi Nelson, I have a 1994 southwind with a 2 way dometic fridge. It works great when on AC but the "check" light goes on and stays on when in Auto mode, and coach is not hooked to shore or AC power. From my reading I think this means it is not igniting. Can you tell me, or give me a link showing how to get the igniter to light? Thanks and thanks for this great vid.
+Old Fart New Start Take the cover down on the furnace and have turn it on while you stand next to it. The igniter makes a snapping noise. If you hear that check that it is snapping in the burner and not some place else. If no noise check the fuses are ok and the control box has power. If it has power but not sparking you might need to replace the control board in the fridge or the igniter itself. Sort of flip a coin and see there. If it is snapping properly make sure the second gas valve in the furnace itself isn't turned off and the tanks are full of propane. Make sure the tanks are on. Turn on a stove burner and burn some gas, check that the flame is blue. If all of that checks out then your electric gas valve is bad or the orifice is plugged. In that case follow what I did here.
Gear tips. You said you do this everyone the fridge starts to warm up. If you went out there every other month with an air compressor and blew out the tube fairly well, do you think that would save having to take it apart? Or would that not do the trick?
That would help as long as the air didn't blow it back into the burner. That would not wreck the burner but it would mean that it would have to be taken apart. It seems to me that this only happens on old refrigerators, mine is 20 years old this year, when the trailers are moving. The bouncing knocks the crud off.
Questions dose the Pilot stay on all the time? Or dose it shut off at a sirten degree depending on the coldness of frig.. p.s wats the plug to the left side was I unplug it pilot turns on plug it in pilot turns off
Some of the fridges will turn the pilot off when connected to wall power and then light once more off 12v when disconnected. Google the model number of your fridge to find an operating manual.
Thanx
None of the old refers had a pilot light. They regulated the temperature in the refer with a high and low flame. Maybe some of the new refers shut their flame off and relight electronically but the first electronic ones lit automatically but also had the high-low flame feature. Me, I'll take the pre-electronic Dometic RM100 from the 1970's any day. When the electronically lit refers and furnaces came out they were terrible problem ridden piles of junk and made my life as an RV mechanic miserable.
Very helpful. Thank you.
how long does it take to cool refrigerator with gas - the frezze cold in 2 hours frige takes 6 hours ?
While looking at this video and when you see the burner it doesnt look like the copper propane line is connected to it it looks open ???Also on the copper tubing that carries the propane there is a bolt that looks like its a cap for something to the right of the relay and left of the burner ???
Imbyteme It has a gap so the gas can mix with the air. That is normal.
i replaced this part and our fridge still doesnt get very cold, it only dropped a few degrees and the freezer didnt freeze ice blocks... any other suggestions ? Thanks !!
If you don't smell ammonia try cleaning a second time. You want blue not yellow flames.
What if we run the fridge with electricity only? We have a 1995 Prowler and the fridge stop cooling period. The light are working but it defrosted everything. We are currently living in the trailer and need help ASAP :(
The light in your fridge is 12v I think, the fridge off power is 120v. On mine (1993) there is an actual outlet the the fridge plugs into. I think you will have that also. Unplug the fridge from that outlet and plug something else in. If it works then your issue is from the cord forward. Check for corrosion in all the contacts at the fridge. If the outlet isn't working then you have probably blown a 120v breaker in the trailer. Check for that. Still might have an issue because it popped the breaker but that could be lots of things. feel free to contact me at acme66[at]yahoo.com if this isn't making sense or if you still can't find an issue. If you don't smell ammonia or see green/yellow ooze behind the fridge then likely you can fix it.
Great video, I have a older RV that I got a couple years ago. Had no idea if the Dometic RM 2807 even worked. It lite on LP but just made some "gurgling" sounds from the back side (outside). Not sure of the color of flame as we haven't used it since we got it, but are going to be next month. Do you know if that is normal? It didn't seem to be getting cool inside, but I did notice that someone had replaced a couple things back there and there is one wire that isn't connected to anything. I have yet to try it on A/C to see if it gets cool that way. I did get a schematic from Dometic and am going to try to figure out where that unattached wire belongs, along with the procedure here in your video. Thanks for sharing, and any help with diagnosing my fridge would be appreciated.
Steve Foster Sorry for wait, yes they gurgle some times. Not 'normal' but not abnormal either.
Thank you, turns out it was shot. Replace the coil and it worked great in the cooler weather, but not so much when it got hot. On high it did ok. Not sure if I got the new one in as far as it should have been. The steel angle along the sides were bent a bit when it arrived, but carefully straighten them out. Will pull it out again in the fall and make sure it's in properly. I replaced it while we were on a trip.
Maybe I’m crazy but if somebody gets hurt because they’re doing this, you shouldn’t be liable anyway, it’s their own damn fault for not fucking shutting off the gas or they just aren’t using their common sense they need to just stop putting warning labels on shit so we can get rid of some of the idiotic morons in our population
5:25 if you see any of that stuff, you have a dirty burner.
Hi,I bought a camper van and can't get 3-way fridge going in any of the 3-ways?Is there a switch somewhere...I can't seem to find one?Of course,past owner claimed fridge to be fine. Thanks
Brian Montague 3 way? Not sure what that is. I would check that you have 12v to the power box at the back. If it will not run, even when the van is plugged into house power I would check to see that you have that 12v. Someplace in the van will be a fuse or breaker panel, in a camper or trailer they are normally near the furnace not sure where to look in a van. Try googling "fuse box in (your model of camper).
A friend gave me a camper yesterday. The kind that goes on the back of a pickup with a section that goes over the cab. Among other things, it has a propane/electronic refrigerator. I don't have electricity, so my only option is propane. The freezer portion seems to be cooling very well, the fridge portion doesn't seem to be getting cold at all. Any ideas on what could be happening?
Clean your burner first. When mine gets dirty the first thing that happens is the fridge stops cooling, eventually the freezer will also start to warm.
just bought a zero freezer don't now how to connect the gas site of it and operate
On electric my freezer works, but not the fridge. Is it shot? And also the propane won't light for the fridge. Thanks!
On the propane check to make sure you have any gas at all, solenoid might not be opening. If however on electric it still only cools the freezer, especially if the freezer will not go below freezing that is a sign that the ammonia in the lines might be going bad or leaking.
How close does igniter need to be to gas tube.....it was clicking but not lighting, I cleaned out tube it lit. Now igniter will not click, is it a part that goes bad? I can light with lighter and will stay lit.
Try moving it closer and make sure the clamp holding it is snug and the wires leading to it are connected.
We have a Norcold fridge that has developed a rounded bottom on the inside. This is making it impossible to open the produce drawers. Anyone know why this would happen, or how to fix?
I bet the drain is plugged with mud/gunk and the water inside is freezing and bowing out the bottom is my guess. Put everything in a cooler and let it thaw out for a full day and open the back cover to make sure the rubber drain line is in place and not plugged with junk.
in my rv the fridge thawed out when the shore power was cut off.what reasons did the gas cut in on the fridge
Did you have battery backup? Unless there is a 12v backup the gas side can't light.
What happens if ur bottles run out of propane ?
Fire goes out.
how do you adjust the temperature on RM 2652
What about when I'm on 110 or like now, am out of LP? My 8 year old Dometic gets fairly cold but only about 18 in freezer during day and 40+ in the fridge.
Dan Zeeff On a hot day that might be all you get out of it. Check that the bugs or birds haven't blocked the vent above the fridge on the roof. It needs proper ventilation to work. That said on a very hot day or when the camper is very hot inside it isn't going to get as cold.
NelsonStudios Thanks. I'm going to do the cleaning that you show here, and see what we get. Checked out the roof vent this am and one dauber nest but nothing blocked. I'll let you know.
Any advice for situation where fridge starts ok, gets cold but keeps turning off?
Jerome Corry First try cleaning it like the video.
Thanks for the video. How about the chimney? Doesn't it ever need cleaning? If so, could anyone redirect me to a video showing how?
I can't imagine it ever would with a propane fridge. There should not be any soot. You can inspect with a mirror from the bottom to be sure.
I have a Dometic gas electric refrigerator in my 5th wheel. I have been told there is an ammonia leak and that it doesn't work. And to keep the door shut ( it smells like ammonia ) that the fumes could be fatal. Does anyone know anything about this or what I should do, other than keep the door shut?
You can have the ammonia side replaced by some of the Amish companies that specialize in this sort of work. That or replace the unit, it isn't an easy fix.
Hello,
great video!
I belive the issue with my fridge is it leaked out the nh3 refrigerant. I've looked around in my area and can't find anyone who will repair or recharge the unit. is their a way the Amish could repair/recharge mine? maybe have it shipped to them somehow? not the whole fridge just the cooling unit. or is their enyone who won't charge an arm and a leg for this sevice? I hope you could guide me in a promising direction .
eny info helps
I searched the internet and found a guy for mine I bet you can find a core for yours
EBay has complete cooling coil replacements with liquid inside.
on my refrigerator
Nelson Studios, Good video and thanks for trying to help other RVers. You can find other DIY tips on the RV refrigerator at FRVTS. GBYAY
Great Video Man!!! any idea what could be the problem if it isn't working with the gas or electric (shore power). power to it is good, fuses are good, it just isn't coming on.
SorryI saw this late. If the burner is lit and still no cold then probably the fluid inside the machine itself is gone or bad.
hi.
i have a old 1990 hymer, and am having trouble with the fridge. i have cleaned it all out and it now lights off gas, the only problem is i can not see the flame through the ignition window. i pulled the window out and the tube it was attached too, i have cleaned this out and fed it back through. Still no visable flame. The problem now is that after feeding it back in, the tube is just hanging down the back of the fridge, Where is it supposed to go?????? i am worried it will touch something hot and melt . Any help would be great. thank you
Could you see it at night? A clean blue flame can be nearly invisible in the daylight. You might try googling the model number of your fridge and looking for places that sell replacement parts. They will normally have a parts schematic you can look at.
NelsonStudios
NelsonStudios nelsonstudios
can I use my fridge without gas.... ac current only .
MrSemilla123 yes you can.
Whether my fridge is on AC or Propane it shuts off after a day or so. Any idea what causes both to shut down?
Might be overheat, try cleaning the flue.
NelsonStudios I cleaned the flue and now it is colder and has stayed on since I posted last! Thank you!