Dometic fridge doesn't stay cold when travelling

[Work2play]

I have a 2008 International with the dometic fridge. It works fine on electric and propane when I'm in the campground but when I travel on propane the fridge does not stay cold. My last trip was 3 hours and the temp went from 39 to 50F.
Any help would be appreciated as the nearest dealer is 8 hours away.
Jerry

[richinny]

try reading this for ideas.

http://www.airforums.com/forums/f425...ork-50502.html

[dlb435]

I never use my fridge while towing. First, you have to either have the gas on or the power system on while towing. Neither is a good idea, accidents do happen. If you have the 12vdc heater coil it might be OK. Next, the trailer must be in good trim to tow. The theory is that you will rock side to side and front to back in an equal amount. This will keep the fluids in the cooling system in balance. It also assumes that air flow over the coils will be adiquate.
In practice, long up or down hill runs will unbalance the system. So will long right or left hand curves. Also, persistent winds can hurt the air flow and cause the system to overheat and shutdown. It's only possible that the cooler will work when towing, it's not 100% assured.
I've worked with many types of cooling and power system for the last 35 years. I have more than just a passing knowledge of refridgeration systems, heat exchanges and the like. This system depends on a heat convection circuit to opperate. Circulation by heat convection is easily disturbed by motion.
Dometic has tried hard to engineer their system to work under conditions that are not fully compatable with the engineering principles that make an absorbtion chiller work. This is to allow users the option of running the unit while towing. As you have found out, this does not always work.
First, is your trailer level while towing?
Second, do you have a load leving system to keep the trailer level while towing?
Third, is the air flow good over the coils?
Fourth, will there be adverse wind condition on towing day?
Fifth, will you be towing up and down hills all day?
If you can say "yes" to the first three and "no" to the last two, your chiller should work.

[jcanavera]

First order of business is to check whether the gas burner is truly operating. Will it run and stay cold when you are parked? I know some trailers did have issues with the burner extinguishing while traveling. If it won't stay cold while parked, I'd have it checked out by your dealer.

While we have a lot of folks chiming in on whether it's safe or not, bottom line lots of us do tow with the gas on, and I'm yet to hear of any reports at this site of someone getting involved in a situation where this has been an issue.

Jack

[Silvertwinkie]

I have to disagree with the safety of towing while keeping the fridge on LP.

Been doing it for several decades, and although no system in life is totally foolproof, the folks at Dometic have said to me on the phone that the fridge is designed to be on LP when in transit. There are a number of new safety items to prevent ignition of the cooling contents, and you also have the special LP tanks that cut off gas if demand exceeds a certain threshold. All of my Dometics kept everything cold when standing still or in transit. Yes I have had a flame out of two, but it is rare and have been satisfied with the operation of the unit in all circumstances, including in transit.

For everything else, there's insurance.

In addition to the being level issue of absorption fridges, the fact is, unlike older models, these fridges will still work in less than optimum conditions (meaning not totally level).

With all that said, has your fridge been a part of the Dometic recall?

Does your unit have the "check" light lit after being in transit? This could mean that the flame has blown out and repeated attempts to light it were unsuccessful. Here I would take a look at the flame guard to make sure it's properly protecting the flame from blowout. If your Dometic was part of a recall, Dometic added additional shielding to the burner unit. Since your unit cools properly when static, it would seem that you have a flame out happening when in transit and a tell tale sign would be the "check" light coming on.

Since you should be under warranty, I would not do a whole lot to it besides adjusting the flame shielding to better protect it from wind blow out. After that, I'd take it to an authorized repair facility and let the pros handle it.

[dlb435]

I used to tow with the gas system on until I got a leak. Nothing blew up or caught fire, but it was a wake up call. The problem was not any of the appliances, it was a broken gas line. The fitting had given way on the road. It was easy to repair and the only loss was a half tank of gas.
Still, my tanks are off before I hit the road.

[Gene]

Jerry, there have been a few threads lately (one is linked above in post #2) about recent model fridges going out when traveling, so try the search function (sometimes it actually works). I agree with Silbertwinlkie. We've never had a problem with ours, also a 2008 model.

Until you can get to a dealer, you can freeze some gel packs when the fridge is working, and then put some in the refrigerator to keep the temp down.

Gene

[Work2play]

Thanks everyone, all sage advice. The fridge does work when stopped. This is my 4th trailer and I have never had this issue before. I always travel with the fridge going.
In addition to your posts here's what my research today turned up:
I called the service dept. at Bates RV (where i purchased trailer) and they were aware of these issues and said to contact a local RV dealer that handled Dometic and ask for the Dometic wind deflection kit. Well I phoned a couple of dealers and they had not heard of such a thing but had all kinds of other ideas. I then phoned Airstream and they suggested that when traveling I was forcing air down the warm air roof vent, for the fridge, and was trapping in the warm air and heating up the fridge. They suggested a wind deflector around the pipe on the roof to see if that resolves the issue. Could be possible, but I decided to call one more dealer to see about the wind deflection kit. When I got through to parts the young lady said she would call Dometic and ask them. I received a call back in 15 minutes and yes Dometic has this kit and it is available at no charge. It is now ordered and I should get it in a couple of days. I should be able to install myself. If that doesn't work I guess I'll try the roof vent deflection idea.
Thanks again for the quick responses.

[jcanavera]

Here's a picture of the deflector that Dometic recommend for the flame out problems in those trailers built in the early 2000's. For me, it stopped the problem.
http://www.airforums.com/forums/show...75&postcount=7

Jack

[Work2play]

Thxs for the picture. They say it's going to be 2 weeks to get my kit. I may get a deflector fabricated in the interim. Looks like a piece of tin cut to spec. I'll check out my fridge when I go to the storage lot tonight and get some measurements.
Jerry