Electrical Dometic fridge not working??

[Roadhouse]

Hey all, going away tonight and plugged van into mains and put fridge on AC with thermostat on 4 last night and this morning it’s as if it isn’t on at all.

always worked perfectly previously.

mains are working so that’s not the issue but I guess can’t see the plug for the fridge to make sure plugged in still (presume behind the fridge somewhere?).

van isn’t perfectly level so that could be an issue but there is no sign of life on the fridge at all.

Any troubleshooting tips plz

 

[Roadhouse]

And re the level - prob sitting at 5 degrees so if that is the culprit, could I have damaged the fridge/compressor?

 

[Drover]

If you have the van at a level where the bubbles are inside the marks then all is good and no you shouldnt damage anything....... Feel the exhaust should feel some warmth or the pipes at the top they should be very warm, if not the element isnt working. Best test is first look inside a cupboard near fridge you should find a power point with the lead going thru wall next to fridge, make sure its on otherwise fire up on gas, either way it will take 12 hrs to get fridge cold.

 

[Roadhouse]

And doesn’t kick in on DC either.
Doesn’t appear to be any specific fuse for the fridge and in any event check all fuses in the setec STIII and all appear ok.

 

[poor but proud]

And re the level - prob sitting at 5 degrees so if that is the culprit, could I have damaged the fridge/compressor?

Are you sure you have 240v selected.maybe set for 12volt.

 

[Drover]

12v doesnt work off van battery only tug....

 

[Roadhouse]

12v doesnt work off van battery only tug....

For good reason I guess!

will try on gas to see if working ok on that.

No exhaust warmth etc, not a single noise coming from the fridge at all.

Found the plug and all plugged in and switched on. PowerPoint working too as tested it with something else.

 

[Roadhouse]

Are you sure you have 240v selected.maybe set for 12volt.

No def on AC on switch.

 

[Roadhouse]

Do they have a level switch or similar?

level is 5 degrees - @Drover - you said as long as bubbles within the marks - where is that? On the van somewhere or the fridge?

 

[Roadhouse]

Working on gas so that gives us something for the 2 week trip. Will try mains again when we get there

thanks all

 

[Drover]

Do they have a level switch or similar?

level is 5 degrees - @Drover - you said as long as bubbles within the marks - where is that? On the van somewhere or the fridge?

No they don't just using a small spirit level on draw bar sort of thing..............

Working on gas so that gives us something for the 2 week trip. Will try mains again when we get there

thanks all

Just don't drive with it on gas though, not legal and exceedingly dangerous...................

240v can be tested at back of fridge but better by a sparky.............. it could be the element is stuffed but again testing by a competent person is required.


The switch can fail as well and is not uncommon on some models it seems, usually the 240 bit that craps out............thats assuming your fridge is the manual operated jobby and not the auto one... Then again just a bad connection on switch or heating element, always best to start at the simple checks but starting to go away is not the time to be doing "Mongrel fridge Fix 101".............. works on gas then leave it.

If not sure then leave well enough alone.

An 8.5 kg bottle should give 11 to 14 days straight running of just the fridge, amount used varies depending on fridge size and ambient temps.

Have an enjoyable time away..................

 

[Roadhouse]

No they don't just using a small spirit level on draw bar sort of thing..............

Just don't drive with it on gas though, not legal and exceedingly dangerous...................

240v can be tested at back of fridge but better by a sparky.............. it could be the element is stuffed but again testing by a competent person is required.


The switch can fail as well and is not uncommon on some models it seems, usually the 240 bit that craps out............thats assuming your fridge is the manual operated jobby and not the auto one... Then again just a bad connection on switch or heating element, always best to start at the simple checks but starting to go away is not the time to be doing "Mongrel fridge Fix 101".............. works on gas then leave it.

If not sure then leave well enough alone.

An 8.5 kg bottle should give 11 to 14 days straight running of just the fridge, amount used varies depending on fridge size and ambient temps.

Have an enjoyable time away..................

Cheers. I use the bubble level on the phone and seems pretty good. 5 degs lean to side and 5 deg front to back At the moment on the front lawnWill try again when level at the park.
And note to self - test 2 weeks before going away, not night before!

 

[Drover]

And note to self - test 2 weeks before going away, not night before!

Something I try to do regularly and still the mongrel trailer plug will try something to upset me but I do fire up the fridge about 2 days before departure, day 1 to get the whole cabinet cold (putting bottles of water in helps) Day 2 start to load up and try to have everything in the night before departure so everything is chilled proper............... everything is cold or frozen when loading and loading fridge the day of departure makes the chill down a waste of time.

 

[jazzeddie1234]

It's been a while but I have a vague memory that my Thetford fridge had fuses on the control board which were a pain to access. For 12V check the fridge is seeing 12V on the fat supply cables and the D+/Engine Run wire that Jayco often tie into the main 12V feed cable. And i think the fridge needs a separate 12v feed from the van battery/setec to run the control board. So my 4 pin 12V plug behind the fridge needs 1x earth and 3x ~12v for it to work

 

[Boots in Action]

Cheers. I use the bubble level on the phone and seems pretty good. 5 degs lean to side and 5 deg front to back At the moment on the front lawnWill try again when level at the park.
And note to self - test 2 weeks before going away, not night before!

Hi @Roadhouse , sorry to hear about your fridge malfunction. Personally, I would like fridge to be closer to optimum and WITHIN plus or minus 3 degrees front to rear and closer to 5 degrees side to side for proper operation. Not being within, or close to these figures, means that the liquid ammonia is not able to flow around the tubes easily and may tend to fill up on one side and be too low on the other. Have a look again at the attached on how a heat exchange fridge works.

The Thetford fridge I have (93l single door) has a 25 amp fuse in the 240 volt line at the top near selector switch. Unfortunately, it is necessary to move fridge forward to gain access. The 240 volt heating element also requires that the fridge be moved out of enclosure if replacement needed. It could also just be a bad connection/corrosion in the selector switch terminals which is what occurred with another member on this forum.

How 3-Way Fridges Work / How 3-Way Fridges Work / Portable Fridges Portable Fridges Camping Fridges

Engel, Waeco, 12V, Portable, Compressor and 3-way fridges for your car, 4WD, caravan or motorhome.

www.portablefridgesonline.com.au

 

[Drover]

Its a Dometic fridge and by the sounds of it, its a manual operation not an auto.................... @Roadhouse if you Google your model number you will find the Dometic site has very good installation and operator manuals which details the location of the bits pertaining to your model and supply enough information for you to trouble shoot things if handy with a multi meter.

I don't know about degrees of angle but if the bubble is mostly inside the lines on a spirit level then it will work but in your case , the chimney didn't get hot so level has nothing to do with it, the element isn't cooking........... Kiss is the rule, no need to confuse the issue.

 

[Roadhouse]

Its a Dometic fridge and by the sounds of it, its a manual operation not an auto.................... @Roadhouse if you Google your model number you will find the Dometic site has very good installation and operator manuals which details the location of the bits pertaining to your model and supply enough information for you to trouble shoot things if handy with a multi meter.

I don't know about degrees of angle but if the bubble is mostly inside the lines on a spirit level then it will work but in your case , the chimney didn't get hot so level has nothing to do with it, the element isn't cooking........... Kiss is the rule, no need to confuse the issue.

Cheers mate - will google away upon arrival and see how we go. Just strange as it was working perfectly 6 weeks ago. I guess stuff breaks...

almost 5 years old but sheet happens...

 

[Drover]

I'd leave it to play with until you get back home or your fridge will be a food warmer....................

 

[Drover]

Today I fired up the fridge, AC, Sat Gear and all the other goodies on Big Mal (not the diesel heater though), your level by degrees @Roadhouse had me intrigued so using the Sat Gear inclinometer against my spirit level I would reckon anymore than 3 deg would be too much, in fact the bubble is more than I like at 2 degs............ the fridge on 240 I checked the flu at the bottom vent after 30 mins and it was warm.................. Happy to report all is working.............. at first I did think you had mozzed me....

 

[Boots in Action]

Today I fired up the fridge, AC, Sat Gear and all the other goodies on Big Mal (not the diesel heater though), your level by degrees @Roadhouse had me intrigued so using the Sat Gear inclinometer against my spirit level I would reckon anymore than 3 deg would be too much, in fact the bubble is more than I like at 2 degs............ the fridge on 240 I checked the flu at the bottom vent after 30 mins and it was warm.................. Happy to report all is working.............. at first I did think you had mozzed me....

Well, well @Drover , you certainly cannot beat the reading on an inclinometer (provided it is calibrated!). I believe that the wording on levelness of absorption fridges is "within a certain range" for operation, and obviously, the closer you are to perfect, the better the operation.

I concede that this has nothing to do with @Roadhouse and his "non heating problem on AC", but I was referring to his future travel on gas for optimum operation.

Incidentally, I do not like the idea of using a small spirit level attached (or even any readings) taken from draw bar. IMHO, the only ACCURATE way is to place a reasonably sized level ( 600mm or so long) on the frame of front of the fridge itself for front to rear (within 3 degrees of horizontal) . For side to side readings (within 6 degrees of vertical), the top of fridge or front side of fridge is preferable, otherwise across the floor immediately in front of fridge if others are too difficult to get to. In theory, that should be no different to draw bar readings, but distortions in the frame and floor mounting of fridge can be different as @Drover's inclinometer has shown. For some, this may be seen as too much trouble, but for refrigeration, I always go for the ultimate accuracy and optimum operation. @Drover, I guess you will now be using your sophisticated "inclinometer" to level your fridge.