Dometic 3-way fridge not cooling on gas

[ZachO]

Great

[Silver]

I have a Dometic Refrig RM2201 which is not cooling except for the freezer on electric or gas. It has recently been in the shop and been cleaned and has a nice blue flame. It was working after coming out of the shop. I have now been told that it is unrepairable! Anybody have any suggestions beside eating freeze dried food and drinking warm beer.

[Raspy]

When someone said it was unrepairable, doesn't that mean they know what is wrong with it? How could they know it cannot be fixed, unless they know what is wrong? Do you have any more information?

Usually though, when someone says "it can't be done", it means they can't do it.

[greenghost45]

Originally Posted by Silver

I have a Dometic Refrig RM2201 which is not cooling except for the freezer on electric or gas. It has recently been in the shop and been cleaned and has a nice blue flame. It was working after coming out of the shop. I have now been told that it is unrepairable! Anybody have any suggestions beside eating freeze dried food and drinking warm beer.

You say that the fridge is not cooling, except for the freezer. I am assuming that the evaporator in the freezer compartment is cool, but not freezing? It should of course be freezing cold, if operating properly.

It sounds to me like you have been diagnosed with a problem in the boiler/condensor/evaporator system. If you have leak in that, then the fridge is likely not repairable for a price that makes sense.

If the problem is not a leak, but a blockage, I have heard of folks removing the fridge, and turning it upside down and shaking it gently, in the hope of dislodging the blockage. If that works, it may be a shortlived solution since a new blockage is likely to occur. Sorry I cannot be of more help. Best of luck!

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by Silver

I have a Dometic Refrig RM2201 which is not cooling except for the freezer on electric or gas. It has recently been in the shop and been cleaned and has a nice blue flame. It was working after coming out of the shop. I have now been told that it is unrepairable! Anybody have any suggestions beside eating freeze dried food and drinking warm beer.

This thread on another forum seems to support the idea that you may have a blockage which means either taking it out of the trailer and attempting to shift the blockage by physically rotating the fridge, installing new mechanical workings, or replacing the refrigerator altogether.

There's also some mention of repositioning the thermistor, but overall if you can't get the fridge to operate on 120VAC it's not a good sign as operation on shore power is much more reliable than operation on gas.

https://www.rv.net/forum/index.cfm/f...print/true.cfm

My latest crazy idea is to get a small 20-liter $200 portable 12VDC compressor fridge to freeze blue ice so we could use our absorption fridge as an "ice box", but I can't say yet that this is practical. 20 liters is less than 3/4 of a cubic foot.

The idea was inspired by a recent thread concerning limitations on high-altitude operation, so it's not something I'm looking at doing full time. I am however exploring it as a supplemental method to maintain operation as these absorption units can be so fussy.

By the way, the small units only have one compartment, which you have to operate as either a freezer or a fridge. So if you go this route, you might have to swap to drinking martinis or another low-volume chilled beverage option.

[thrifty bill]

When someone tells me something is not repairable, I assume they really mean it’s not repairable by THEM. My current home was “not repairable”.

Time to immerse yourself in YouTube and google to find out what options you may have. As a minimum, I would ask the “expert” exactly why the refrigerator cannot be repaired. Perhaps the expert is right.

[greenghost45]

Originally Posted by Silver

I have a Dometic Refrig RM2201 which is not cooling except for the freezer on electric or gas. It has recently been in the shop and been cleaned and has a nice blue flame. It was working after coming out of the shop. I have now been told that it is unrepairable! Anybody have any suggestions beside eating freeze dried food and drinking warm beer.

In the event that the fridge really is finished, I would consider replacing it with a 12 volt compressor type fridge like the Nova Kool or even one of the portable 12 compressor fridges. They are more reliable and less fiddly than an absoprtion 3 way fridge. We had a compressor 2 volt portable cooler in our sailboat and loved it for years of trouble free full time use including 2 years of cruising Mexico. Don't confuse this with the cheap Koolatron thermolectric coolers. They barely cooi and are power hogs. It must be a compressor system to be useful.

If you already have solar panels, you can boondock for days to weeks at a time with the compressor fridge. We had 2 panels totalling 160 watts on our boat and could anchor forever without running the engine to charge the batteries. You cannot do that with a propane absorption fridge; you will eventually run out of propane.

[Civilguy]

Originally Posted by greenghost45

In the event that the fridge really is finished, I would consider replacing it with a 12 volt compressor type fridge like the Nova Kool or even one of the portable 12 compressor fridges. They are more reliable and less fiddly than an absoprtion 3 way fridge. We had a compressor 2 volt portable cooler in our sailboat and loved it for years of trouble free full time use including 2 years of cruising Mexico. Don't confuse this with the cheap Koolatron thermolectric coolers. They barely cooi and are power hogs. It must be a compressor system to be useful.

If you already have solar panels, you can boondock for days to weeks at a time with the compressor fridge. We had 2 panels totalling 160 watts on our boat and could anchor forever without running the engine to charge the batteries. You cannot do that with a propane absorption fridge; you will eventually run out of propane.

"Less fiddly" is such a kind way to say it! And yes, the word on 12VDC compressor fridges is very good.

However, one thing that might be a significant factor for Vic is the locale. There's a lot less sun in the upper latitudes of BC than there is in Mexico. We've boondocked with a single 160 watt panel mounted horizontally on the roof of our Escape here in Washington and it was challenged to keep our dual 6-volt batteries charged during cloudy weather. It just kept up, but that was without the additional load which would be imposed by a compressor fridge.

[greenghost45]

Originally Posted by Civilguy

"Less fiddly" is such a kind way to say it! And yes, the word on 12VDC compressor fridges is very good.

However, one thing that might be a significant factor for Vic is the locale. There's a lot less sun in the upper latitudes of BC than there is in Mexico. We've boondocked with a single 160 watt panel mounted horizontally on the roof of our Escape here in Washington and it was challenged to keep our dual 6-volt batteries charged during cloudy weather. It just kept up, but that was without the additional load which would be imposed by a compressor fridge.

The key to solar panels is they MUST be in full sun, which is why roof mounts can be a big compromise. Shading as little as 10 or 15% kills the output of most panels. Portable panels are the solution, which can be moved into the sun. The sailboat was a great solar setup, since we were never in the shade. And the 160 watts of panels also worked well in BC too and powered everything; 2 laptops with home-schooled kids, all the lights etc.

[Silver]

Thanks for all the replies. The RM2201 is freezing in the freezing compartment and not cooling at all in the rest of the fridge on gas or electric. I am told that this is a blockage and parts are not available as this fridge is about 27 years old. The replacement fridge is a Dometic RM2193 at a cost of $1,092.96 Canadian plus tax and about 2 hours labor for removal and installation, total cost estimate $1,442.51. I am a little unsure of what to do? Without a working fridge in the Lil Bigfoot it diminishes its value substantially.

[ZachO]

What’s your goal? Resale value or your own camping comfort?

If it’s resale value you’ve already answered your own question. Replace the fridge.

If it’s camping comfort, do what’s comfortable and cost effective.

People have survived, even thrived car camping with coolers and ice for decades. Ice boxes were once standard in trailers. Fridges are sure nice. But all that’s necessary for real food and cold beer is ice and a cooler. From there it’s personal preference and no one here can tell you what to do.

[greenghost45]

Originally Posted by Silver

Thanks for all the replies. The RM2201 is freezing in the freezing compartment and not cooling at all in the rest of the fridge on gas or electric. I am told that this is a blockage and parts are not available as this fridge is about 27 years old. The replacement fridge is a Dometic RM2193 at a cost of $1,092.96 Canadian plus tax and about 2 hours labor for removal and installation, total cost estimate $1,442.51. I am a little unsure of what to do? Without a working fridge in the Lil Bigfoot it diminishes its value substantially.

Buy a bunch of the blue plastic chill packs. Rotate them from the freezer to fridge and back. Maybe not a perfect solution but might work until you find another solution. A good used fridge might be a possibility. RVs are being parted out all the time. Good luck!

[Joe Romas]

There are reconditioned cooling units available. I put one in my 1999 17" Casita SD. There are also new cooling units available. Both require some work to install but I did ours. Google is your friend. I typed refurbished dometic cooling unit and got many hits.

[greenghost45]

Originally Posted by Silver

Thanks for all the replies. The RM2201 is freezing in the freezing compartment and not cooling at all in the rest of the fridge on gas or electric. I am told that this is a blockage and parts are not available as this fridge is about 27 years old. The replacement fridge is a Dometic RM2193 at a cost of $1,092.96 Canadian plus tax and about 2 hours labor for removal and installation, total cost estimate $1,442.51. I am a little unsure of what to do? Without a working fridge in the Lil Bigfoot it diminishes its value substantially.

If you go the new route, I would pick a 12 volt DC fridge, perhaps this one, if it will fit the cutout. The install would be simple and you could almost certainly DIY.
https://www.stevestonmarine.com/nova...QaAp9HEALw_wcB

[Osos1]

Originally Posted by CalgaryEscape

Thanks to everyone for their great tips. I've discovered more about Dometic fridges than I'd ever imagine I could.

Good news: Mine is fixed, thanks to two very simple moves:

1. Took the orifice right out and cleaned it gently and thoroughly with alcohol. Inspected it to be sure there were no burrs or other impediments.

2. Didn't even bother trying to adjust the regulator. Just bought a good quality new one ($48 Cdn . . . what is that about $13 US? ) and replaced the old one.

The fridge fired up right away, and I could tell the flame was hotter. I'm pretty sure the problem was the regulator. Overnight, froze some food 'cause it was set a bit too high. Now, that's a change! All good. On to the next project.

Having had the exact same problem last March, my estimation is that it was the orifice that was cleared by soaking it in alcohol. I tried a lot of things, yet the wimpy flame stood out. I had previously changed our the OEM Fairview for a Marshall Excelsior when that was the "fix du jour" on the Escape Forum 4 years ago when having milder issues. Swapped back to it after resolving the orifice problem and it works fine. After removing the orifice and aiming at the sky I saw a small particle and knew that was it. And it was.