RE: Refrigerator question

[mrflinders]

 
I have some questions regarding the Dometic refridgerator that most of us have in our pop-ups.  We were on a 2 week road trip during which the Fridge pretty much stopped working.  The food got so warm inside that we had to throw the food away.  I tried running it is all 3 modes (LP,12V,115V), with no luck.  The ambient temperature outside was about 105 degrees.  
 
 When I got back, I took the trailer to the dealer to have the fridge fixed under warantty.  The dealer ran the fridge over the course of 48 hours in all three modes and it worked fine.  He told me that those fridges are only good for about 40 degrees below the ambient temp.  Let s see, 105 degrees - 40 degrees = 65 degrees.  Not cold enough to stop my milk from going bad.  :-(
 
 My questions are:  Do other people see the same performance from their fridge in hot weather?  Do the battery powered fans help?  At what ambient temp does the fridge stop cooling effectively?
 
 Another Popupper told me that I may have had a " Vapor Lock"  condition, where all of the ammonia gets trapped in one spot and the fridge will stop cooling?  Has anyone ever experienced this?  What causes it, and what can you do about it?
 
 Any insight would be appreciated.  I d hate to lose another fridge load of food.
 
 Cheers!
 
 - Randy

[tlhdoc]

 mrflinders
Having a fan in the outside of the unit blowing the hot air out of the fridge compartment will help a lot.  You can buy a kit to do this, use a computer fan and do it yourself or do what I do.  I have a small plastic folding desk top fan that runs on 4 D batteries.  It folds in half when not in use.  I open it all the way (it still has a bend in it) and then place it in the bottom of my fridge compartment, so that it blows the hot air out the top of the compartment.  Works very well and I didn t have to do any wiring.[]

[mike4947]

 mrflinders
Randy, just sitting there all by itself in the normal halfassed installation provided by most factories and dealers, yes, 40 degrees is about all you can expect.
 Problems with most fridge installations include:
 The fridge requires correct baffling to route the air over the coil not around it.
 Inadaquite insulation around the fridge (they especially forget the top. resulting in a hugh hot spot on the counter above it.
 Mounting of the upper vent below the top of the compartment behind the fridge, again creates a trapped volume of hot air.
 
 Here s a couple of sites with manuals, correct baffle locations, and FAQ s on fridges. The assembly instructions show what you need.
 As for the exterior fams, both makers provide DIY kits for the inexperience novice and are well worth $25.
 http://www.gasrefrigeration.net/
 http://www.rvmobile.com/Welcome.htm
 http://www.bryantrv.com/docs.html
 
 I ve installed and reinstalled a lot of them and I can say with the correct installation I ve yet to find one that at 100 + degrees couldn t hold 40 degrees.
 Now put that side in direct sun at those temps and all bets are off, it can be time to add a pan and some ice.

[Camping Coxes]

 mrflinders
Randy --
 
 We had the exact same thing happen this last vacation in Tahoe.  Paul could not get it to run on propane, which was our only option.  It just would not stay lit.  We took it to the dealer the day after our return, who of course said it ran just fine.  The heater did the same thing when we took it in.  It s like when you take your child to the pediatrician after they ve been up all night sick, and at the doctor they re running around acting just fine.
 
 It keeps coming down to gunk accumulating in the pilot light area.  They recommended a bottle of canned air so you can blow it out real well.
 
 We ve never really relied on the fridge anyway.  It s a convenience, but if it s not working, we can deal with having coolers.  It s just less stressful that way.

[mrflinders]

 mrflinders

Randy --
 
 We had the exact same thing happen this last vacation in Tahoe. Paul could not get it to run on propane, which was our only option. It just would not stay lit. We took it to the dealer the day after our return, who of course said it ran just fine. The heater did the same thing when we took it in. It s like when you take your child to the pediatrician after they ve been up all night sick, and at the doctor they re running around acting just fine.
 
 It keeps coming down to gunk accumulating in the pilot light area. They recommended a bottle of canned air so you can blow it out real well.
 
 We ve never really relied on the fridge anyway. It s a convenience, but if it s not working, we can deal with having coolers. It s just less stressful that way.
 

 Well, ours was not a burner issue.  It was hot , but we were in the shade, no I am not quite sure why we had such bad performance with it.  The dealer cleaned everything out while it was in the shop, so if there was a blockage its probably gone now.  There is no problem with it staying lit.  And the cooling fins were nice and hot, so I know that the burner was functioning. It just didn t seem to get cold in the fridge.  But, it was over 100 degrees every day, so that may be why.
 
 - Randy
 
 I think I am going to install a fan in the fridge compartment to move the hot air out, and I might buy one of those battery powered fans for inside the fridge.