Re: Dometic Refrigerator Cooling Problem
Reply #3 –
Kim,
Not to dispute what anyone else has said, but it sounds like the propane flame is not on when 120 v electric is unavailable. You can check this by turning off shore power and/or generator. Go outside and make sure the valve on the propane tank is open. Next remove the air inlet cover behind the refrigerator. Now you should be looking at the back of refrig. There should be a little round cover that can be moved so that you can see a blue flame. Be careful it could be hot. There may be a manual shutoff valve for the propane. If so it should be open. There may also be a small metal box around the burner that can be removed for cleaning the burner. Sometimes rust and dirt fall on the burner and short the ignitor which provides an electric spark to ignite the flame. If there is dirt on the burner remove it with a vacuum. Have someone inside the coach turn the refrigerator on and look and listen for a spark and burner ignition. If there is a strong odor of gas don't don't do this until the leak is fixed. If there is a spark, but the burner does not ignite the control board will stop trying to ignite after a few seconds. You have to turn off the refrig and turn it back on for another attempt. If the propane has not been used for awhile there could be air in the line instead of propane. 3 or 4 start attempts should clear out any air in the line.
The absorption type of refrigerator is slow to cool down and recover as compared to compressor type refrigerators. The freezer cools down first then the refrigerator. Generally takes overnight to do this. It works best when it is mostly full of cold food or drinks, but it should not be so full that air cannot circulate freely around the cooling fins and through the shelves. Try not to keep the door open very long or open it frequently. There may be a heater around the door. It should be turned off unless high humidty causes a lot of condensation there. If the burner is working properly there should be no difference in cooling with gas vs. electric. It is possible but not probable that air flow over the back of the refrig can be disrupted while traveling. Outside air for cooling the coils flows in at the bottom of the refrig, up the back side of the refrig and out through an opening on the roof. Any blockage will cause a problem for both gas and electric. If you can not get the gas to work and electric does, you can run the generator while traveling to provide 120 volt ac.
Jerry Whiteaker
96 U270
Topic: Dometic Refrigerator Cooling Problem