High altitude Dometic fridge problems

[markdoane]

Originally Posted by nrgtrakr

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Altitude.org | Altitude air pressure calculator

Sorry. I meant to say at 9000 ft there is 27% less oxygen than at sea level.

[Bajaexplorer]

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

Adjust the LPG pressure to 13 inches of water column.

All you need is a ruler and a clear small plastic hose, in order to make the gauge.

You might be surprised how easy that is.

Airstream has nothing to do with the design of out sourced appliances.

Airstream has always strived to make the majority happy, not the minority. Using a reefer on LPG at high altitudes is an absolute minority.

Andy

Airstream can give specs to Dometic for what they want and to any supplier. Additionally, Dometic could easily provide an adapter kit. This minority is not all that small. Also, it is responsability of Aistream to have the higest quality control and requirements from third part manufacturers and test their equipment in all type of enviroments before releasing their products to the market. When it comes to propane fixes, I strongly believe that owners should not be messing around with propane lines, regulator fixes and so on.

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by Flyingsilver

Airstream can give specs to Dometic for what they want and to any supplier. Additionally, Dometic could easily provide an adapter kit. This minority is not all that small. Also, it is responsability of Aistream to have the higest quality control and requirements from third part manufacturers and test their equipment in all type of enviroments before releasing their products to the market. When it comes to propane fixes, I strongly believe that owners should not be messing around with propane lines, regulator fixes and so on.

Perhaps if several owners who visit or live in high altitudes would "all" write or contact Airstream, a solution could possinly be made.

I personally disagree with the 5000 foot answer. To me, that was an answer to avoid possible liability.

Andy

[Inland RV Center, In]

Originally Posted by VickieB68

Really, ANDY..I've been called many things in my lifetime, but this is the first being called a "minority". Most the state of Colorado, where I live, is above 5500 feet. All the places I dry camp are above 5500. Everybody I know in Colorado, Utah, & New Mexico is above 5500 feet. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that a "fix" could be manufactured for fridges that spend their life above 5500 feet.

I've had camp trailers for years, and never had a problem with propane appliances until the new model of appliances. Would you explain to me how 50 years of working correctly has now become "does not work above 5500 feet" and that NOT being a problem with the manufacturers? Not everyone camping is doing so in Florida or California.

Everyone selects knowingly or not, the group of people they wish to belong to.

There is no harm, at least in my humble opinion, to belong to what ever group a person may choose. Illegal excepted.

Some might agree and some might disagree.

Look what happened to Henry Ford's idea for having "black colored cars only".

Andy

[ghaynes755]

If you are at high altitude and having issues, no gauge handy, simply try to start the appliance, adjust the regulator until you have success. Then ch ck to see if you other items still work correctly.

If it works worry about measuring later. Most regulators increase the pressure by turning the adjustment screw clockwise. I have a replacement Marshall auto unit. With that one you need a fair sized hex key. Not sure about the standard AS supplied

[SSquared]

I'm another Colorado person who has had no problems running my fridge on propane at higher altitudes. I have a 2013 trailer with the Dometic RM 3762 fridge. I have looked hard in the owners manual and the service manual, and have found no statements regarding high altitude operation.

FYI, the service manual for the RM 3762 and RM 3962 models is at http://www.dometic.com/QBank/EPiServ...nual_17605.pdf

[Hoonanea]

Just found this thread after doing some research on a possible replacement for my gas absorption Dometic refrigerator -- RM 2554, I believe. I found a Norcold model with nearly identical dimensions that has a Danfoss BD micro compressor. The model is DC558. It has a little bit more interior space but all of the outside dimensions are a little bit smaller than the Dometic. I figure I could use some oak 1x1 or similar stained or painted black to trim out the existing opening so give a tight fit for the Norcold.

One thing I've not seen addressed here is how long it takes the Danfoss compressor refrigerators to cool down from initial startup. The gas absorption, of course, takes quite a while. I do not dry camp but I will typically turn the refrigerator on using LP the night before so that it is cold in the morning when I pack the food for the trip. Will the compressor refrigerator cool considerably faster? I do not have power to my trailer in the location where it is stored so I would not want to start the refrigerator the night before as I do now if it was going to run entirely off of the batteries.

Also, in the installation manual for the Norcold, it advises having a separate dedicated 12v power source for the refrigerator and specifically recommends not running it off of the trailer's 12v converter system because the DC voltage isn't consistent enough for stable or reliable performance. I'm paraphrasing here, but this was the take-away opinion I had after reading the manual. I hope I'm misunderstanding something.

I realize there are often differences between recommendations and reality. Is anyone running one of these Danfoss compressor refrigerators off of the existing 12v supply from the trailer's converter? Has it been effective? Are the possible fluctuations in the 12v potentially damaging to the equipment?

[Beach Bum]

Originally Posted by Hoonanea

Just found this thread after doing some research on a possible replacement for my gas absorption Dometic refrigerator -- RM 2554, I believe. I found a Norcold model with nearly identical dimensions that has a Danfoss BD micro compressor. The model is DC558. It has a little bit more interior space but all of the outside dimensions are a little bit smaller than the Dometic. I figure I could use some oak 1x1 or similar stained or painted black to trim out the existing opening so give a tight fit for the Norcold.

One thing I've not seen addressed here is how long it takes the Danfoss compressor refrigerators to cool down from initial startup. The gas absorption, of course, takes quite a while. I do not dry camp but I will typically turn the refrigerator on using LP the night before so that it is cold in the morning when I pack the food for the trip. Will the compressor refrigerator cool considerably faster? I do not have power to my trailer in the location where it is stored so I would not want to start the refrigerator the night before as I do now if it was going to run entirely off of the batteries.

Also, in the installation manual for the Norcold, it advises having a separate dedicated 12v power source for the refrigerator and specifically recommends not running it off of the trailer's 12v converter system because the DC voltage isn't consistent enough for stable or reliable performance. I'm paraphrasing here, but this was the take-away opinion I had after reading the manual. I hope I'm misunderstanding something.

I realize there are often differences between recommendations and reality. Is anyone running one of these Danfoss compressor refrigerators off of the existing 12v supply from the trailer's converter? Has it been effective? Are the possible fluctuations in the 12v potentially damaging to the equipment?

I let mine cool for about 30 minutes before I load it and go. If most of your stuff is at room temp I would increase to 60-90 minutes to get it to temperature before loading.

I have run my Danfoss Dometic and Isotherm fridges from the trailer 12v dc buss for years with no problem.

YMMV
Benn

[Hoonanea]

Thanks for your feedback, Benn. Was your Danfoss compressor refrigerator a retrofit from a gas absorption unit?

Glad to know your 12v connection has worked well.

[Hoonanea]

My apologies -- I see from an earlier post it was a retrofit. And nicely done, too!

[dbj216]

Very interesting thread and applicable to my problem. I have a new Dominec 2510 that I purchased and installed in Minnesota. It worked as expected.

Then we moved to Conifer' Colorado' at 8400 feet and I'm having difficulty getting it to ignite. I will gage and then adjust my regulator to 13" water column to provide a bit more propane fuel. And I like the idea of getting the boiler warm on 115 VAC in the yard first, then trying to switch it to gas.

My new water heater, new furnace, and new cooktop all seem to ignite normally.

David

[eubank]

Am I all bass-ackwards on this, or what? My thought is that what's lacking at altitude is not propane, but air. So adjusting so that you get more propane will not help the problem.

We also live at 8400 feet and have seen few serious problems with fridges and water heaters that making provision for more air doesn't help.

But I've had precious little coffee this morning, and that does tend to interfere with clear thinking.


Lynn

Originally Posted by dbj216

Very interesting thread and applicable to my problem. I have a new Dominec 2510 that I purchased and installed in Minnesota. It worked as expected.

Then we moved to Conifer' Colorado' at 8400 feet and I'm having difficulty getting it to ignite. I will gage and then adjust my regulator to 13" water column to provide a bit more propane fuel. And I like the idea of getting the boiler warm on 115 VAC in the yard first, then trying to switch it to gas.

My new water heater, new furnace, and new cooktop all seem to ignite normally.

David

[cabinetmaker]

There is a air gap between the burner tube and the propane orfice. When you remove the metal cover to the burner you will see this air gap. The burner is to the right and is snot attached in anyway to tne propane orfice.

You see the potential problem? There are two for sure.

1. Not enough distance (or too much distance) between. Air gap not correct.

2. The burner tube does not line up correctly to the propane orfice to the left. I have had this many times. The propane is skipping by the burner tube just so slightly as to mess things up. This alignment has to be exact! Be careful as the metals are very thin on the case that holds the burner and orfice but you can lossen screws and adjust the burner tube ever so slightly and what a difference!

Takes a little trial and error but the results are amazing! What you are actually doing is getting the air mixture correct. Just a little tweak makes all the difference. Give it a try!

Good luck on your hunt. That Elk meat is some good stuff!

[dbj216]

Thanks cabinetmaker. I have not had the burner cover off yet. Heck, it's brand new. The air is thinner up here, so I would expect I need more air to get a good flame.

I notice my new water heater tends to roar more up here than on the flatlands. Maybe it needs adjusted too.

And it might be that the thin air and lower atmospheric pressure does affect the propane delivery pressure, normally set to 11 inches of water. So maybe it can't deliver the normal amount of propane to the burner, thus the recommendation to increase the delivery pressure.

David

[Zeema]

Has anyone found a solution to the Dometic refrigerator not working above 5,500 on propane?? We have bought a 2016 trailer, live at 7,000 ft and camp up to 10,000 ft. We were never told before purchasing it would not work higher than 5500 on the gas !!!!

[dznf0g]

All gas appliances need some adjustments at altitude, as probably does the regulator at the bottles

[dznf0g]

Also remember that the 11 Inch spec is with all gas appliances running. Static pressure will be closer to 14 inches.

[VickieB68]

Zeema: I had this problem with my water heater. I contacted a local dealer, did not like his "solution", so I contacted the water heater manufacturer. They have a "high altitude orifice" that was not expensive and fairly easy to install. Problem solved.

[dznf0g]

All I can share is my experience. A couple years ago, I was camped right at the entrance to RMNP (around 7800 feet) and the water heater didn't work well. Lazy yellow flame in it as well as the stove. I don't recall issues with the fridge though. I fiddled with the mixture at the water heater tube and got some improvement for that stay. When I got home, I bough the gauge and found the static pressure of my regulator was only a bit over 10" and the dynamic pressure was a hair below 9". After proper adjusting, everything worked better at home ( 600 feet elevation). I haven't had the AS at significant elevation since, but the improvement at low elevation tells me that more was off than just mixture at the H2O heater orifice.

[wulfraat]

We live on the front range and camp in RMNP often. Have never had any issues with our appliances running on gas (fridge, water heater, range/stove top or furnace).