Refrigerator not working on propane

[Leveille]

Any suggestions how I might troubleshoot? I have a factory installed dc/propane refrigerator and it has quit cooling in the propane mode. Yes I have propane in my tanks[emoji16]

[richard5933]

Have you checked to see if the propane system is trying to light? Do you hear any clicking sounds when the fridge is turned on?

[Leveille]

Originally Posted by richard5933

Have you checked to see if the propane system is trying to light? Do you hear any clicking sounds when the fridge is turned on?

I’ll check.

[s1000pre]

If you only attempted turning on and off a couple times, you have might need to try again. If for any reason your propane lines cleared, you need to bleed them. light all the stovetop burners and allow to run for a minute or so. Then try turning on the fridge, and yes...listen for the clicking.

[GCinSC2]

I'd listen closely for 2 types of clicks. First the solenoid has to open CLICK then the ignitor starts clicking . Option if hearing the solenoid is difficult put your finger on it and feel for the click.

If you detect both clicks and still not lighting if you're handy shut down the propane. On mine pretty sure I can remove some of the sheet metal and remove the orifice to clean it out. If not easy to access on yours disconnect the propane to the solenoid and carefully remove the solenoid assy from the burner. Now remove the orifice. The orifice hole is TINY. Use caution to clean it. No high pressure air, soak in alcohol, inspect and reinstall.

Gary

[cazual6]

This has happened to me, here are some of the steps I did:

1. Turned on the Stove for a few seconds, less than 30.

2. Turn on Propane Water Heater for a few minutes, less than 5.

3. Checked the back of the fridge, if there was anything obvious that could cause it. I have limited knowledge of the inner workings.

4. Attempted again, with a few minutes between attempts.

[eubank]

After you've run the various checks that others have mentioned, you might want to check the flame on the fridge. The flame that runs it is very small, about the size of a flame from a simple cigarette lighter. Propane for the flame passes through a very small orifice to the burn area. And that little orifice can get partially or even fully blocked by dust, debris, a spider, whatever.

It's fairly simple to check. Peek in there while the fridge is on propane. If you can see a flame, but it's really small -- or if you smell propane -- then it may just need some cleaning. (Compressed air for cameras works pretty well.)


Lynn

[jcanavera]

Is the pilot light lit? Obviously if it isn't the main burner will not light either. If the pilot lights successfully but the flame for the burner doesn't ignite, you either have a burner valve issue or a problem in the control board.

Let the folks in this thread know whether the pilot lights or is lit. Typically you will have an error light or fault indicator if the pilot fails to light. If it doesn't, verify you have gas flow from the gas regulator in the trailer. Try to see if the stove lights. If it does, go back and try the fridge again. If it still doesn't light you may have a spider web in the oriface of the pilot light. Spiders love the smell of the chemical in propane that gives it its order. While I've never had a web in the fridge area, I have found webs in gas water heaters causing the burners not to light or to smoke .

[Mike1997]

Your original post did not say how old your unit is. If its an older model and all your other propane appliances (stove and water heater) are working.....odds are its a bad control module on the frig.

Mine is a Dometic 3 way (propane, 12v, and 110). With lack of use and age, the module will stop working correctly and only repair is to replace it. So far I have also replaced modules on my water heater and furnace due to same problem.

Its an easy plug and play switch to install new module from exterior.

[Fungus]

Leveille - update your profile with your trailer model and year so that folks know some particulars re the equipment on your trailer.

Is the trailer relatively level?

Check for flame as previously mentioned. The shroud around the flame comes off pretty easily. Flame is right there. Previous posts mention cleaning the orifice. Also easy to remove and clean. That flame is below a chimney. Bang on the chimney to dislodge any corrosion.

There are quite a few YouTube videos that describe how these fridges work and how to troubleshoot them.

[1590Denny]

Go to myrvworks.com.
Darren has posted youtube videos on repairing just about any appliance or system on your rv. On his website, Darren has posted technical bulletins and repair manuals on all systems on the rv's.

[travelux1969]

no matter what control you have or what vintage fridge it is, the flame needs to be blue in colour. no orange anywhere or completely orange. an orange flame indicates a dirty burner or a partial plugged orifice.
you can do a quick and dirty clean on the orifice by using a non-chlorinated brake cleaner, eg alcohol based. they come with a small tube with the aerosol can so you can direct the stream of cleaner where you want. turn off the propane at the fridge, direct a stream of brake cleaner at the orifice for a second or two, pause repeat a few times and then turn on the propane a relight. put the tube of the cleaner right at the nozzle opening when doing so. you want a full BLUE flame good luck

[lento]

I had a problem with my fridge too.

1 Turn it off and wait about 15 seconds. Have someone turn it on gas while you are standing by the Accra grill on the outside.

- Do you hear the igniter ticking?

- If not then you have found the problem. Probably a bad igniter/thermistor. They are combined into one assembly.

- You heard the igniter ticking but did not hear the “whoosh” when the flame ignited. Your problem is with the solenoid valve. If you are not comfortable removing it and cleaning it take it to a dealer. Probably should do that anyway.

- If the flame ignites but goes out after a few minutes then you are back to the igniter/thermistor being the problem.

The latter is what I found on my unit. I removed the tin plate where the gas line entered the heat column. It’s at the bottom. I discovered that the thermistor was in the flame just far enough to sense ignition but not far enough to sense a continuous flame. If it doesn’t get hot enough it will think the flame went out and close the solenoid valve.

Hope that helps you.

BTW - the dealer couldn’t find the problem because all they checked for was ignition. 😟

[Farmer Dan]

My fridge is giving me a problem. In April I installed a new Dometic RMD 10.5XT. It's working fine on Battery and 110V. I tried to switch it to propane over the weekend. My tanks are full and valve open. Apparently there was air in the line and the fridge didn't light. Now the propane mode and warning triangle symbol flash and beep. How do I reset this function? The manual hasn't been helpful. The fridge still works on the other electric modes. There isn't many of this model Dometic in use in Airstreams. Thanks.

Dan

[emelaich01]

On propane, our fridge seemed to take forever to light. We'd purge the gas line, make 6 - 7 attempts and finally it would light. This month, it seemed to be even worse but one morning while leaving early, my wife opened the outside service panel and noticed that while trying to ignite, a single spark was arcing from the igniter lead to a sheet metal component. A piece of electrical tape over the spot where the spark was coming from stopped the arcing and it lit right away. That got us on the road. When we returned, I pulled the igniter, removed the plastic body from the connecting lug and sleeved the length of the wire with heat shrink tubing; then another layer 'just because' was installed to reduce the chance of mechanical injury to the igniter lead, then, replaced the plastic plug piece. Now instead of an annoying "tic-tic-tic-tic", it lights on the first "tic", every time. If you've having ignition problems, observe the length of your igniter wire in semi-darkness to make sure the spark isn't being grounded out due to chafing on sheet metal or other parts.

[waninae39]

be sure the trailer is level also

[OrangeCrush]

Originally Posted by Farmer Dan

My fridge is giving me a problem. In April I installed a new Dometic RMD 10.5XT. It's working fine on Battery and 110V. I tried to switch it to propane over the weekend. My tanks are full and valve open. Apparently there was air in the line and the fridge didn't light. Now the propane mode and warning triangle symbol flash and beep. How do I reset this function? The manual hasn't been helpful. The fridge still works on the other electric modes. There isn't many of this model Dometic in use in Airstreams. Thanks.

Dan

Turn it off then back on to reset the fault. Manual says you may have to do this several times if there is air in the line.

[Farmer Dan]

I have no spark, apparently. Can't hear the tic-tic-tic of it. I will look behind the shields for a bad wire or some other problem in that area. Thanks for the responses.

Dan

[CruizinDux]

Dan a number of years ago we had a problem with the furnace. Under warranty the dealer pointed to a failed igniter. they also replaced the sail switch while they were there. Maybe a meter to the lead and ground would give some insight.

I also recollect some furnace post that the ground wire connection to the tin had failed andsimply moving the ground end to a different location was the solution. Seems what the wire was connected to had come loose, and so no continuity?
good luck!

[Farmer Dan]

Well, on the problem of my new fridge not lighting on propane, I got lucky!!! At the International in Rock Springs, Dometic had a vendor / service booth. I was second in line opening day to see if they could help. They came Tuesday morning to inspect. No loose wires, bad fuses or other problems. The tech did some research and he and another tech came back Wednesday. They had found how to reset the control panel. It was a new method to them. Push power button until unit is off. Then push power button for 2 seconds and that's the reset!!. For the life of me - why doesn't the book say that ?? I read the included manual as well as all the online manuals and read what the Dometic hotline emailed. Now the fridge is working as it was before. I'll turn the gas on 2 days ahead of lighting next time!!!

Dan