Dometic Fridge Temps Warming Up

[CampyTime]

Hi Everyone,

Although this may be a basic topic, I need educating. I set up on Saturday and leveled trailer with bubble level in fridge. Absolutely spot on. Set fridge at 3 to start up using electric, and have noticed after a couple days of campng temps warm up. At first it hovered between 36 and 41 degrees. Then starting yesterday 44 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

No change overnight so I turned fridge up to number 4 this morning. Down to 42 now. It is cool at my site with plenty of shade, breezy. Today a bit warmer. Been about 78 to 80 degrees.

I put one of those fridge fans in yesterday that run on batteries but doesn't seem to be helping. Would someone please let me know if I'm doing something wrong? Seal on door is right and I keep it locked.

I could use some learning here. I have a 2012 Scamp 13 standard. Thanks for all help.

Sincerely,
Wendy

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[jon carpenter]

Not sure about which unit you have in your Scamp, but I have found on our Dometic on our Casita, if we switch on the fan which blows more air across the coils on the back side of the frig, the inside frig/freezer will stay a more consistent temperature. Also, when we put food in the frig we try to make sure it is pre-cooled or pre-frozen. Others with more experience will surely have better explanation.
jon

[Talia]

Originally Posted by CampyTime

Hi Everyone,

Although this may be a basic topic, I need educating. I set up on Saturday and leveled trailer with bubble level in fridge. Absolutely spot on. Set fridge at 3 to start up using electric, and have noticed after a couple days of campng temps warm up. At first it hovered between 36 and 41 degrees. Then starting yesterday 44 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit.

No change overnight so I turned fridge up to number 4 this morning. Down to 42 now. It is cool at my site with plenty of shade, breezy. Today a bit warmer. Been about 78 to 80 degrees.

I put one of those fridge fans in yesterday that run on batteries but doesn't seem to be helping. Would someone please let me know if I'm doing something wrong? Seal on door is right and I keep it locked.

I could use some learning here. I have a 2012 Scamp 13 standard. Thanks for all help.

Sincerely,
Wendy

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Is there ice on the cooling fins inside the fridge? If your fridge started out fine, and then gradually got warmer, then I bet you're getting ice on the cooling fins. When they start icing up, which they can do surprisingly fast under certain conditions, then your cooling efficiency will quickly drop.

Are you opening and closing the fridge frequently, or adding new items to it? That will also reduce the cooling efficiency.

Also, if your thermistor is clipped to the cooling fins, it may need to be moved to a different position. Just Google for "adjust thermistor" to see what I mean.

[stevebaz]

How long have you had this trailer and has it always worked to the performance you desire.

How long has it been since the last time you used the fridge working properly and now that the fridge isnt working properly.

Is setting 4 all the way up? If not turn it all the way up and work your way down. Make sure your vents behind the fridge are clear. Fridge won't work properly if you don't get the heat out on the back side of the fridge.

Have you run the fridge on propane?

I park my trailer outside all year long in the So Cal weather. My fridge has yearly spider issues. itsy bitsy spiders seem to like to crawl inside the burner of my fridge and make a silk like nest there. The burner will light but not heat up properly. Then I know that I have to disassemble the burner down to the gas orifice to effect the proper cleaning. This is not easy to do given the space for which I have to work.

My 3 way fridge doesn't have any electronics to go bad so it always is either you don't have enough heat from the propane or you are unable to get the heat out of the fridge compartment so the fridge can work properly.

If this trailer is new to you and never worked properly since you got it then there could be a dozen things that could be amiss.

[CampyTime]

I have never used the fridge on propane. Trailer is a 2012 and has always seemed to have to work a bit to stay cool. Has been better since I learned more about using fridges leveling point.

I have setting 4 on fully and since I turned it up to 4 this morning it is now hovering between 40 and 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Trailer has been 81 inside. Perhaps I just needed to turn it up?

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[Wayne Collins]

Originally Posted by CampyTime

I have never used the fridge on propane. Trailer is a 2012 and has always seemed to have to work a bit to stay cool. Has been better since I learned more about using fridges leveling point.

I have setting 4 on fully and since I turned it up to 4 this morning it is now hovering between 40 and 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Trailer has been 81 inside. Perhaps I just needed to turn it up?

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These units are susceptible to outside temperatures. They provide a "Delta T" or differential temperature. As the ambient temp goes up, the inside temp goes up.

[CampyTime]

Ok thank you that makes sense

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[crowwing]

In the past six summers I have never run mine any less than six. Stays one degree above freezing. Even the freezer section works great.
John

[CampyTime]

I honestly just set it at 3 as I read somewhere that's a good setting overall. It makes more sense to me that these fridges are subject to various temp changes from sort of being outside and ammonia type so as long as I know it's level I'll adjust as necessary. Seems to take a good day though before it goes down. Its 38 this morning but much cooler outside. I read that your fridge should hover between 37 and 41 degrees. I have no freezer in this unit.

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[stevebaz]

It just depends on how much your temperature swings during the day and night. When we camp in the desert in the spring and fall some days there can be an outside temperature swing 50 to 60 degrees. I have had to raise the setting by day and back it off at night or risk freezing lettuce and stuff like that by early morning. It got more manageable when I put a fan for the waste heat on the backside grill and ran it through a thermostatic switch so once the outside temperature dropped below 70 outside the muffin fan didn't run.

[CampyTime]

Ok Steve. This is all good information for me. Thank you. Now seems like I'm dealing with normal. Won't be overly concerned with adjustments anymore so long as it appears to be working properly and is reasonably level. Thank you to all who replied!

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[Byron Kinnaman]

Originally Posted by stevebaz

How long have you had this trailer and has it always worked to the performance you desire.

How long has it been since the last time you used the fridge working properly and now that the fridge isnt working properly.

Is setting 4 all the way up? If not turn it all the way up and work your way down. Make sure your vents behind the fridge are clear. Fridge won't work properly if you don't get the heat out on the back side of the fridge.

Have you run the fridge on propane?

I park my trailer outside all year long in the So Cal weather. My fridge has yearly spider issues. itsy bitsy spiders seem to like to crawl inside the burner of my fridge and make a silk like nest there. The burner will light but not heat up properly. Then I know that I have to disassemble the burner down to the gas orifice to effect the proper cleaning. This is not easy to do given the space for which I have to work.

My 3 way fridge doesn't have any electronics to go bad so it always is either you don't have enough heat from the propane or you are unable to get the heat out of the fridge compartment so the fridge can work properly.

If this trailer is new to you and never worked properly since you got it then there could be a dozen things that could be amiss.

I'm going to sidetrack this subject just a bit and talk about spiders in the fridge burner. I've some problem with that and here how I keep the spiders out.
1. I keep the fridge on and running all the time. When home it's plugged in, when camping it on propane.
2. I found a insect spray that's supposed to keep spiders out for 3 months, I spray the control area with it about every 30 days.

These two things have worked quite well for the past 6 years.
Hope some of you find this helpful.

[cmartin748]

If the freezer is freezing and it stays below 44 in the fridge, it sounds like it is working normally.

[stevebaz]

Thank you for the response. Running the fridge on electric year round is a bit like okill since we infrequently use the trailer. Unfortunately this year the only time we have taken it out was january when we went to Quartzsite. We are scheduled to go to the Lake Casitas run in October. We would have usually had an extra 2 weeks in June but we had to fly into the east coast for family commitments. That little electric element in the fridge would have been cooking the whole time. I've never had to replace one of those. I will have to look into that and see how challenging that is.

I will start trying to be more proactive with the spray though. It takes me about an hour to deal with the embedded spider webb. But the contortions and straining to fit 2 hands, a flashlight and your head into a one hand hole 2 feet off the ground leaves me suffering for the next 2 days and I am supposed to be on vacation. Still working and trying to find play time sucks.

[CampyTime]

Hi Byron,

Might you share the name of your bug spray?

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[Byron Kinnaman]

Originally Posted by CampyTime

Hi Byron,

Might you share the name of your bug spray?

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Sure. It's "TERRO" "Spider Killler" it's in an orange can, I get at ACE Hardware.

Steve... I understand. However, there's no reason for the heating element to burn out. The first 5 years of trailer ownership I kept it on all the time when at home, while I was working. The difference is we were out about once a month all year around. Now we're retired about 3 months are spent int the SW and short 1 to 2 weeks for several trips summer and fall. My trailer get used a lot. Good Luck with the spiders the TERRO should help.

[MyronL]

Here's my experience:

Fridge refuses to cool when on propane. This is new. Just returned from trip and it was working great, on shore power. Once home I decided to test it but using propane. Trailer level, plenty of gas, Piezo flame is present, all Dometic RM8551 front display lights are working. July 21, 2016. On, 5 dots, overnight. No joy in the morning.

Drove to Tom’s RV in ABQ in search of answers or at least, to gain perspective, on how to deal with this (sic) no-go-pro-paine problem. I don’t want to pull the fridge out, nor do I want to hitch up and drive 28 miles, drop off the trailer and then wait 48 to 72+ hours, for maybe a seven minute fix.

Tom’s refrigerator guy in ABQ was happy to help. It’s a very busy shop. He suggested first cleaning out the flue. Things get in there. Then, he said use a manometer to check the pressure in the system. Maybe the pilot light isn’t right. A manometer measures pressure in units of water column inches. He said, propane appliances in the RV are designed to operate at 10.5 to 11” of water column. My eyes began to water.

Clean the um, flue, you say? He took me to the shop floor. A Dometic fridge pulled from some big rig was sitting there. The flue is a ¾” pipe in back running vertically up from the Piezo ignition. I got it. I could do that. I’ll try cleaning the flue.

Back at home. Access to the flue for cleaning becomes less simple then I thought. One screw removed the plate shielding the Piezo ignition but how do I get a brush up past the Piezo and up the flue pipe? I feared mis-aligning these parts. But then, another screw removed and the Piezo dropped down clearing a way to shove a hose up the flue. Hose was attached to my little airbrush compressor. I worked the hose all the way up and down, then for good measure did it again but attached to a shop vac. Biggest disappointment was no bug bodies mouse eggs or web nets came out. Have no clue what blocked the flue.

Flue job done by 2 PM. Fridge now turned on, to 5 dots on propane, and it is 76°F in there. Bob also showed me what they used in the shop to monitor fridge temperature. Real high tech. They get a $6 A/CPRO test thermometer at AutoZone, used for auto air conditioning, drill a 5/16th hole for its stem in a small water bottle cap, fill it with water and seal the thermometer in the plastic bottle. I used a 12 oz. Aquafina because the plastic seemed extra sturdy. Lay it on a shelf. It works, no batteries needed.

Just checked fridge temperature. At 4 PM fridge is 60°F and trailer is 88°F. At 6 PM fridge is 54°F and trailer is 90°F. At 9 AM next day fridge is 33°F and trailer is 75°. All seems good. (?)

[gordon2]

I expect you will give "Tom’s refrigerator guy in ABQ" as much business as you can.. that is an amazing level of service.

And yes, it seems to be performing as it should.

[CampyTime]

Wonderful! Congrats and kudos to your RV guy for his time and expertise

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