Dometic Fridge in Scamp won't start on gas - Fiberglass RV
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Old 10-15-2018, 04:10 PM   #1
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Name: Bob
Trailer: Scamp
Montana
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Dometic Fridge in Scamp won't start on gas

On a recent trip the Dometic refrigerator in our 16' Scamp would not start. It is a 3-way refrigerator and the AC mode worked great; the 12v. sort of OK. Last week, I took it in for a technician to look at it and he confirmed there is a good strong spark and other parameters seemed right except that apparently there is no gas for the spark to ignite. He was at a loss and said he would have to contact Dometic on what might be wrong. Has anyone dealt with a like problem who might offer a lead to us? Thank you. - Bob...
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Old 10-15-2018, 04:39 PM   #2
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Kudos for telling us it is a Dometic.. now go the next step and report the model number.
Then look for the service manual.. here is one that might or might not be for your model:
https://www.fourwh.com/NewDometicRefrigeratorManual.pdf

Have you had a full check of your propane system? I don't know what you mean by "parameters seemed right." What parameters?
There should also be a test port on the fridge itself to check the gas pressure under different conditions using a manometer.
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Old 10-15-2018, 05:19 PM   #3
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Originally Posted by gordon2 View Post
Kudos for telling us it is a Dometic.. now go the next step and report the model number.
Then look for the service manual.. here is one that might or might not be for your model:
https://www.fourwh.com/NewDometicRefrigeratorManual.pdf

Have you had a full check of your propane system? I don't know what you mean by "parameters seemed right." What parameters?
There should also be a test port on the fridge itself to check the gas pressure under different conditions using a manometer.


Hi gordon2,

I quick gas flow check. Turn on the burner on your stove top. Is the flame a nice blue colour?

Is the flame dancing significantly up and down?

Did your service Techs do a manometer test on the propane system?

Flow rate should be 11 cm of water column or 0.4 psi.
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Old 10-15-2018, 05:27 PM   #4
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Model # RM 2410

Yep, should have posted model number: RM 2410. I may have overstated the parameters bit: I think good spark, correct gap is what he said. He did not do a pressure check. (Maybe that is what he'll learn to do, if he gets around to calling.) Burners work fine. I'll have to try out the furnace.
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Old 10-15-2018, 05:31 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Boler77 View Post
...
Flow rate should be 11 cm of water column or 0.4 psi.
Did you mean pressure rather than flow rate? And .4 psi would be 11 inches.
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Old 10-15-2018, 06:04 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by Bob Person View Post
Yep, should have posted model number: RM 2410. I may have overstated the parameters bit: I think good spark, correct gap is what he said. He did not do a pressure check. (Maybe that is what he'll learn to do, if he gets around to calling.) Burners work fine. I'll have to try out the furnace.
Ahh, the 2410.. Same as mine and IMHO you are lucky to have it. It runs just fine on propane with no electric or battery needed at all (when its working ) At least I know the 2 way 2410 does.. I assume the 3 way 2410 does also, but on propane and not on 12 volts of course.

I would start with a full propane system check (see the video I linked to). The fridge is more sensitive to out of spec regulators than the stove is, and you should have the check done annually anyway.

The orifice is often a problem, and needs to be cleaned at times, but if you get no gas at all then I would guess that is not the problem, or at least not the entire problem.

After the propane system is checked, I would go to the fridge service manual:
http://bryantrv.com/docs2/docs/rm2510_52.pdf
Note that the most common causes for your situation are listed in section 4 on page 2. Use of the test port for a pressure and thermostat check are on page 13 but now you are talking about something you likely want a authorized Dometic service dept to do.
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Old 10-15-2018, 06:34 PM   #7
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If you don’t have the right pressure on the manometer, then this could be a regulator problem or an obstruction in the lines(oil) or dirt. With out knowing if this is just related to the fridge is hard to know without knowing how the other appliances are being affected. This could be a blocked orifice even
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Old 10-15-2018, 08:17 PM   #8
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Is this fridge new to you and has it ever worked properly for you on propane?
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Old 10-17-2018, 10:18 AM   #9
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Thanks

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Originally Posted by gordon2 View Post
Ahh, the 2410.. Same as mine and IMHO you are lucky to have it. It runs just fine on propane with no electric or battery needed at all (when its working ) At least I know the 2 way 2410 does.. I assume the 3 way 2410 does also, but on propane and not on 12 volts of course.

I would start with a full propane system check (see the video I linked to). The fridge is more sensitive to out of spec regulators than the stove is, and you should have the check done annually anyway.

The orifice is often a problem, and needs to be cleaned at times, but if you get no gas at all then I would guess that is not the problem, or at least not the entire problem.

After the propane system is checked, I would go to the fridge service manual:
http://bryantrv.com/docs2/docs/rm2510_52.pdf
Note that the most common causes for your situation are listed in section 4 on page 2. Use of the test port for a pressure and thermostat check are on page 13 but now you are talking about something you likely want a authorized Dometic service dept to do.

Thanks for this info. I get from many comments that my tech didn't have a clue. He said he was going to check with Dometic and get back to me. So no pressure check was done. I'm willing to bet the cleaning is what is needed as when this happened I read my manual and recognized I had not done proper routine maintenance. All the info here will get me on the right track, I expect.
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Old 10-17-2018, 10:21 AM   #10
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More thanks

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Originally Posted by Boler77 View Post
If you don’t have the right pressure on the manometer, then this could be a regulator problem or an obstruction in the lines(oil) or dirt. With out knowing if this is just related to the fridge is hard to know without knowing how the other appliances are being affected. This could be a blocked orifice even
I think some obstruction is likely. I am disappointed I took it to a tech who didn't know to do that. Stove and furnace are fine. Thanks for your observations.
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Old 10-17-2018, 10:23 AM   #11
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Has worked great

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Originally Posted by stevebaz View Post
Is this fridge new to you and has it ever worked properly for you on propane?
Oh, yes indeed. For many years with great reliability. But as you may see in other notes, I have not attended to recommended maintenance, so it is quite likely the lines or port need cleaning. Too bad the tech I went to didn't know to check that.
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Old 10-17-2018, 11:28 AM   #12
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The orifice is fairly easy to clean. Now no sharp objects otherwise the orifice can be damaged. You can soak the orifice in rubbing alcohol and gently blow it with air. Wood alcohol is better if you can find it.
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Old 10-17-2018, 12:07 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by Boler77 View Post
The orifice is fairly easy to clean. Now no sharp objects otherwise the orifice can be damaged. You can soak the orifice in rubbing alcohol and gently blow it with air. Wood alcohol is better if you can find it.
If you want to do this yourself, this video is for the model 2852 but it matches the RM2410 pretty close.
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Old 10-17-2018, 01:20 PM   #14
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OK

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Originally Posted by gordon2 View Post
If you want to do this yourself, this video is for the model 2852 but it matches the RM2410 pretty close.
Looks easy enough. I'll read the manual another responder posted and then see what I can do.
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Old 10-17-2018, 02:06 PM   #15
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most likely problem, spiders.
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Old 10-17-2018, 02:13 PM   #16
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most likely problem, spiders.
spiders and flies for some reason really like the smell of propane, vacuumed up about a dozen dead spiders this spring and as many dead flies, I usually block off the upper and lower vents with some sheets of Scotbrite padding, I tried the wire screening and left it on for a few trips this spring, but found that the screens impeded the air flow too much, I can jst remove the Scotbrite pads
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Old 10-17-2018, 04:00 PM   #17
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spiders and flies for some reason really like the smell of propane, vacuumed up about a dozen dead spiders this spring and as many dead flies, I usually block off the upper and lower vents with some sheets of Scotbrite padding, I tried the wire screening and left it on for a few trips this spring, but found that the screens impeded the air flow too much, I can jst remove the Scotbrite pads

I found a long lasting spider spray(90 day). Respray about every 30 days to keep the spiders at bay. I had them build a nest one burner twice.



I spray the outside of the upper and lower vents along with the control/burner area. The trailer sits beside my house and the fridge is running on 120VAC which helps keep the insects out. I also spray around the cord port and the steel carport.
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Old 10-25-2018, 08:18 AM   #18
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Name: Aldrene
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Gas orofice

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob Person View Post
On a recent trip the Dometic refrigerator in our 16' Scamp would not start. It is a 3-way refrigerator and the AC mode worked great; the 12v. sort of OK. Last week, I took it in for a technician to look at it and he confirmed there is a good strong spark and other parameters seemed right except that apparently there is no gas for the spark to ignite. He was at a loss and said he would have to contact Dometic on what might be wrong. Has anyone dealt with a like problem who might offer a lead to us? Thank you. - Bob...
Bob:

Remove the part that goes into the burner tube and check the the the pilot tube to see if it is clogged. The gas regulator valve on the propane tank might be at fault. You will have to trace the flow of propane from the tank to the refer. Most likely the valve on the refer is clogged or stuck.

Ron
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Old 10-25-2018, 08:35 AM   #19
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Bob:

Remove the part that goes into the burner tube and check the the the pilot tube to see if it is clogged. The gas regulator valve on the propane tank might be at fault. You will have to trace the flow of propane from the tank to the refer. Most likely the valve on the refer is clogged or stuck.

Ron
Thanks. My next step is to obtain a 10 mm wrench to do this; looked all over and have no idea where mine has gone.
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