DOMETIC FRIDGE PROBLEM

[ARCHER]

My neighbor in Texas park has a fridge problem. Model RM 2852 Dometic. Stopped working during the night while connected to A/C. Switched over manually to LP and waiting to see if it will cool. The flue above the LP flame where the heater element is for 110 is really hot to the touch, but the cooling tubes are really cool on back of fridge.
Any ideas as to what to check? We checked the fuses and they seem to be ok. Lights on control panel seem to be working ok. Lp came on and no check light came on.
Fridge is 3 years old.
Guidance is needed quickest. Tks in advance.

 

[Grandview Trailer Sa]

DOMETIC FRIDGE PROBLEM

Your neighbor should call a Dometic dealer near you. His refer. has a 3 year warranty. Dometic is good to work with. In the 3rd year, they will give parts, but not pay labor. If you are just out of time they may still help.

If you are not smelling ammonia, you either have a bad board or Thermister. That is the white plastic part clipped on the fins inside the refer. It acts like a thermostat. IF you are smelling ammonia, you have a bad cooling unit.

 

[ARCHER]

DOMETIC FRIDGE PROBLEM

Hey, Grandview, thanks for replying so quickly. Made me think of a couple questions for followup.
1. How do you check the THERMISTER? Do you just unplug it from the board and see if the unit will cool then? Instructions?
2. How do you check to see if the board is bad? My friend is a retired electrical person so has the right tools to check electrical ohms, volts, fuses, etc. Instructions?
What was really bad is when I arrived in Texas for the winter my fridge stopped working and I had it replaced. It was 7 going on 8 years old. I think the people who did the work just unplugged the Thermister and we left it in ac overnight and it did not cool. They also checked the board (I guess they checked it correctly) and said it was ok (it was only two years old). Basically, they said my cooling unit was bad, even though I did not smell any ammonia smell. Do you have to smell that to determine the cooling unit is bad? They said it was probably plugged up with rust on the inside of the cooling unit. Said I could take the unit out, turn it upside down, etc. and it might start working again but was only buying me time. It was darn near as much to replace the cooling unit as it was to replace the entire fridge so we opted to replace it and boy was that expensive.
Anyway, thanks again for the comments/guidance and I hope you read this soon so we can do the other two checks before he decides to maybe replace it.

 

[Grandview Trailer Sa]

DOMETIC FRIDGE PROBLEM

Again, the Thermister is basicly a thermostat. If I remember right the 2852 does not have temp controls on the face. You can slide the thermister up and down on the fin to change the cooling a few degrees. Up will raise the temp. in the refer. and down will lower it. Simply, you are moving closer or farther away from the freezer. We had a refer a couple of months ago that was freezing everything and that was the culprit. The thermister switch was closed and not cutting off the circuit. If it is stuck open, it will not cool.
As far as the board, switch to elec. and test the pins that go to the heating element. You should have 120v. My guess is you will, since you said the chimney was hot to the touch. Sorry I don't have a manual to tell you all the 12v voltages and where to test, but call 800-216-5115 for tech services at Dometic. They can talk you through it.
Turning a cooling unit over, or "burping" is at best, a temporary solution. Dometic will tell you not to waste your time. You will smell ammonia if there is a hole in the cooling unit. You will also see yellow powder in the back of the refer behind the outside vent. Usually, the cooling unit is ok if you don't have smell or yellow powder.
Hope this helps.

 

[John Harrelson]

DOMETIC FRIDGE PROBLEM

I don't know about the newer models of Dometic brand refrigerators being "Burped"...

BUT, I can tell you that the old models were notorious for getting air bubbles in the system.. and burping the unit was the easiest way to correct the problem.

I had a 1970 (?) model from one of my first travel trailers that would not work when I bought the trailer.. Took it to a dealer in Reno and picked it up next day.. Cost me $50 and was told how to "Burp" an "Absorption" type fridge so I could save money in future..

I kept that old fridge for over 25 years and it worked perfect sitting in my workshop as a place to keep my beer. Later I turned the thermostat down to it's lowest setting and used it as a freezer for meats and ice cream.. kept the temperature at minus zero with no problem.. That fridge would hold almost 100 pounds of meat when packed full..

Finally sold it to a guy for truck load of paneling and other wood to use in my wood working business.

What a fridge that Dometic is... Wow !

best wishes,
John

 

[Grandview Trailer Sa]

DOMETIC FRIDGE PROBLEM

In older models it worked well. I burped a newer one a couple of years ago and it only lasted a week afterward. That is when I talked to Dometic about it and the guy almost laughed. He said in the newer models, it did not do much good and called it a waste of time. He told me it might gain you a few days to a few months. I also realize he wants to sell product.