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yukon billy · 10-20-2011, 10:39 AM

Hello! I purchased my 1971 Overlander to travel in on my trip to Alaska five years ago. We went about every where. Now i am living in it in Oklahoma. My Dometic refrigerator gave up the ghost when i reached Cincinnati on my return trip. it worked great prior to that on both gas & electric. it just quit period. i would like to fix it myself or remove it and put in some shelves for storage space. Any Ideas?

Thanks Yukon

**DKB_SATX** · 10-20-2011, 11:04 AM

Did it quit with a smell of ammonia in the outer refrigerator locker, and possibly some yellow stains on/near the tubes back there? If so, it needs a new cooling unit. These are available, but there's some disagreement on whether or not it's worth the cost and effort. I list that as the most likely option, since if it's the original '71 unit, if it cools on both gas and electric one day, and won't cool on either heat source the next, it's probably the absorption unit. If you're living in it parked in a fixed location, the cheapest solution is an electric-only "dorm fridge" that fits in the space. New RV fridges are on the high side of $1k.

Belegedhel · 10-20-2011, 12:03 PM

Was this the original refrigerator, or a replacement unit? Got a model number? I would guess that if it is old (original), and simple (no circuit boards), then you might try to run it on gas, verify that the flame is burning well, and if it never gets cool, then it is likely cooling unit. The prices I have seen for new cooling units are so high that you might as well buy a new fridge--or shelve it out if that is the direction you want to go.