turn it on and it starts but only the freezer compartment is getting cold is getting down to 10 /20 deg below in freezer compartment on max but frig barely gets cool
all level so don't think that's a cause , when i reinstalled it i added extra insulation to outside top and two sides leaving lots of space around back for ventilation could this be the problem ? sides aren't cooling down ?
works on all sources gas 12v mains thou have not tried it on all to see if frig gets cold
we had the same problem with ours in our 6 yr van and were quoted $1300 for parts plus labour - or $3000 for a new fridge. So went down the path of 240v fridge, inverter and extra battery $1500 all up.
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Jenny and Barry
2009 Roma Elegance / 2013 Colorado. Permanent travellers 2011-2015 now just travel for 4-6 mths
I would try it on 240v for 3 or 4 hours. If that works, (if the fridge compartment gets cold), the problem is likely to be your gas jet partially blocked.
I had the same problem with mine, you could light it ok and the little needle on the gauge would go up to the normal operating range.
Check the flame and make sure it is a nice blue, and not yellow/blue.
I blew mine out with compressor and all was good again.
Funny thing . Up here north of Broom . My 3 way started defrosting . Ahh didn't turn it over to gas or 240v. Yes it wasn't perfectly level fora while ! Our 3 way is the older model where settings are done manually. If you forget ! Miss an overnight cooling spell . It takes a long time to recover . I checked the gas jet .. Just used one strand of copper wire to check & clean . Blew out mixer tube or whatever it's called in case debri had fullen into it, cleaned the igniter contacts . Any way whatever I did it works. But it takes over night to cool properly with door SHUT !! I also have thin plastic sheep across lower section of fridge to keep cold air in fridge ., I see to replace my 3 way I have to remove one of the Windows as the RV door is too narrow !! Why I'm persisting with 3 way ., yes much slower to respond or recover compared to compressor fridge .
sorry havent explained well works for days on 240 v freezer down to freezing but cabinet is just barely getting cool door seems to be fitting well all most like no air circulation into cabinet from freezer
Some people install a small computer fan facing the cooling fins under the freezer section. It can be powered off the internal light if there is one or via wires run thru the drain hose & picking up 12v from the rear of the fridge or a wire run back to the power supply.
If the door seal is suspect, run a smear of vaseline around it to improve the adhesion to the body.
A temperature reading thermo gun might detect leakages.
As others have mentioned, absorption eg 3 way fridges, take forever to cool down compared with compressor ones.
A recent failure of mine was found to be caused by the top of the chimney flue (the bend) becoming detached & the hot air from the heaters was not being expelled. My fault. I was careless when refitted the vent after having a look at the rear of the unit.
-- Edited by Cupie on Friday 10th of June 2016 07:00:22 PM
If it is a 3 way Dometic, the cabinet clearance specs for sides, top and bottom are 0mm and back from cooling fins 25mm so all air enters from lower vent, along back of cabinet through cooling fins and out top vent. The cabinet must not have any gaps whereby air can enter the van interior, or exhaust the air from van interior. To help this air circulation, some vanners fit fans at top vent to exhaust air faster. Well, it is not possible in current installations to have 0mm top clearance, otherwise you could not remove fridge from front (although there is a smart way around this). Also, if the internal plastic drip tube is broken at the rear of the fridge and not facing down in the collector bowl, outside air can enter the fridge and slow the fridge compartment cooling. From an ambient temp condition, the fridge on 240v and set on lowest thermostat position will take 24hrs to reach 4C. And have a small bowl of water in the freezer and a couple of small bottles in the fridge to absorb the cold.
I will soon be posting my fridge improvements which has greatly increased cooling efficiency.
Hope this helps.
Richard
-- Edited by Dick0 on Saturday 11th of June 2016 09:09:52 PM
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Cheers, Richard (Dick0)
"Home is where the Den is parked, Designer Orchid Special towed by Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited"
"4x250W solar panels, Epever 80A charger and 3x135Ah Voltax Prismatic LiFePO4 Batteries".
I have two fans just above bottom vent . A solar type fan on top of Demetic plastic cover on roof . Also an external digital temp gauge . In fridge compartment. It varies from 6 to 18* . Depending on yours truely setting it up right as in motorhome LEVEL and on correct power supply !! Like the sat dish, TV areal, 240v leads, water supply, auto step switch .12/240 on portable freezer ..Ahh ! Mrs aboard ?? Tyres.. . Plus a few other things to keep an eye on ..
-- Edited by Aus-Kiwi on Saturday 11th of June 2016 09:22:39 PM
Aus-kiwi, I am interested in the thin plastic sheep, what do you feed them, does that have to be thin plastic too? Plastic wool would be the go for me.... could knit it into shopping bags and make a fortune....
Do these 3 way fridges have a flap on the drip tray which has to be folded the right way to allow the cool air from the freezer to drop into the fridge (used to way back when I had one)
18 months agao I replaced the 150 litre. 3 way Dometic with a 146 litre .12 volt compressor Evakool fridge/freezer .
No matter what the outside temp. is, the Evakool temp. just remains on what ever it was " set" on. It has taken all of the frustration and problems out of caravan refrigeration.
As sarge mentioned need to make sure that the cold air from the freezer is getting into the fridge proper, freezer is where the cooling happens then that cold air cools the fridge!
Brian
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Brian & Nada retired and > "Ready to live the Dream" Live in the Shire!
76 series V8 Landcrab with Jayco Starcraft Outback Poptop
