Hi, recently bought a 2010 Hawk. After reading forums and seeing all the ticks about fridge being level etc I'm still now sure if it's working the way it should be or not? Are these fridges just never really that cold or is it not working as it should. The freezer section cooled down in reasonable time and after a couple days I tried turning the fridge lower onto 5 and got soon coolness from the fridge area near steel element, but it's still just not a very impressive appliance. Is there a way of checking it's fully operable or should it just be replaced with something better?
Dometic fridge crap or broken?
- Thread starter Jamielee129
- Start date
Are you basing your coolness measurements on touch with your hand or placing items in the fridge like drinks etc. Try placing a thermometer with remote display for some more accurate readings. Also there are a tonne of info on this forum about improving a fridges performance or even checking it is installed correctly eg flue/exhaust installation etc.
The 3 way set up properly is pretty good, of course just like a small bar fridge every time you open the door all the cold falls out.
Have a look at FWD Super store and buy one of their WiFi fridge monitors, if its working properly the freezer should get down to -12 or more while the fridge section should be around 4 deg, which is the proper temp for a fridge........ Levelling isn't the biggy some make out, having your van at a nice level for living in is good for the fridge and good for you, so basically with the spirit level bubble within the lines is fine. Van shouldn't be stored much off level anyway, bad for suspension, tyres and frame stress.
As @MDS69 said have a look around here some detailed threads on them...
Have a look at FWD Super store and buy one of their WiFi fridge monitors, if its working properly the freezer should get down to -12 or more while the fridge section should be around 4 deg, which is the proper temp for a fridge........ Levelling isn't the biggy some make out, having your van at a nice level for living in is good for the fridge and good for you, so basically with the spirit level bubble within the lines is fine. Van shouldn't be stored much off level anyway, bad for suspension, tyres and frame stress.
As @MDS69 said have a look around here some detailed threads on them...
KISS rule of thumb,put a small tray of water in freezer box,close fridge,set on max, leave for the day water freezes ,fridge works,water does not freeze,fridge does not work KISS plan 2 try again on gas
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how did you go? with this type of three way fridge you do not get the instant result you see with a big home type fridge,they preform best when they are pre cooled for a couple of days ,then kept as full as possible with preferably precooled food and drinks ,with the ice box as full as possible ,we use small plastic containers filled with ice when we start to empty frozen food,if you use it as a beer fridge putting in hot beer and opening it all the time you may be disappointed with the preformance, and as drover said each time you open the door the cold air drops out,also the fact they are silent makes some people think they are not working, we have an older 3 way and we know its limitations, even our compressor freezer we are very aware whats in there and we only open it once a day at the coolest part of the day, this frozen food is then transferred to the van fridge to help it in hot weather, when we do restock we try to refill the fridge with small amounts to allow the food to chill and not hit it too hard, finally the cooling you get when driving will just help support the fridge not make it preform to its peak,this can be caused by voltage drop through plugs and thin wires and stoppages when the tug is turned off ,once you learn how to manage them they will give you faithful service
@Jamielee129, some important facts you need to consider with 3 way absorption fridges. As there are NO moving parts, the flow of liquid ammonia as refrigerant (previously just a hot gas and cooled by the condenser - those fins at the top) flows by gravity alone (mixed with hydrogen) in a sealed pressurized line through the freezer portion first and then what's left as liquid runs through evaporator for the fridge portion. The freezer part ALWAYS takes precedence and until temp in freezer is down to around minus 12C, no cooling will be noticeable for fridge section. So this takes time especially if you have "warm" (not pre-chilled) articles in freezer section. I have just been away where the ambient temp in the shade was 38C, but fridge was able to keep my ice-cream and other items in freezer at minus 18C during the day and minus 22C overnight. Ice-cream and items hard as a rock!!! The fridge section varied all day depending on minimum opening/time between 4C (morning) and 8C after opening fridge door for milk, butter, salads etc. Pull down in fridge section is slow, but freezer temp hardly alters at all. I have a two sensor thermometer to monitor fridge and freezer sections independently without opening door. The fridge is a Thetford 93L single door type with several modifications with computer fans inside and out. Here is the link for my wireless thermometer which I bought on Ebay for under $30.00. Peace of mind at all times with it - takes the guess work out of the equation. For improved operation, fan assistance is recommended.
w/2 Sensor LCD Wireless Digital Thermometer Fridge Freezer Alarm Indoor Outdoor | eBay
Suitable for indoor and outdoor use. The indoor temperature range is 0 °C ~ + 60 °C; the outdoor temperature range is -40 °C ~ + 60 °C. Install the remote sensor on the wall facing north. Before installing the wall, first place a screw, leave the screw head 5mm, and then install the outdoor...
www.ebay.com.au
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We have similar fridge and it has worked well on hot days, although as already pointed out, the temperature will vary with the weather. I usually have my fridge on number 3 and it keeps frozen stuff frozen and drinks in the fridge section nice and cold.
@KECL , with ambient temps of 38 IN THE SHADE, I would be running fridge on at least 4 plus. At the time, I was off grid and running on gas fortunately.