Electrical Dometic fridge not working??

mfexpanda

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Apr 1, 2011
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Have you actually plugged anything into it to see if there's real 240v ??? and I mean the actual power point on the wall, its part of Step 1 of trouble shooting and no one has mentioned it at all................... Something like a lamp or power tool ?? hate to think going to all the work of removing the thing only to find out that the power point itself was dodgy, plug uncoupled from rear or something...... it has happened many times before by folk who always go worst scenario.
i did
 

Boots in Action

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Mar 13, 2017
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I pulled cord off terminals of fridge and held together and tested pins and found a complete circuit through the neg and pos loop, indicating those wires are fine, so will pull earth off and try same.
Try a new lead and plug new lead into a different power point @Roadhouse. Remember safety again after you plug into 240 volts again. SAFETY SAFETY SAFETY. One assumes that other 240 volt outlets in van are all working??
 

Roadhouse

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Mar 12, 2019
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Ok this is embarrassing - always best to have tester on AC volts not DC volts... ;) Got 240 at the back of fridge now that the tester is in correct mode.

then turned selector to AC and tested element pins and shows 240 getting to the element.

Tested element the other day and it was showing correct resistance so appears it’s working too.

So all appears fine except not cooling.

At home van is still not perfectly level so might just try get it perfect and try again. Would be funny (as in it won’t be) if it is just the level.
 

Drover

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Nov 7, 2013
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If it runs on gas but not 240 its not the level, since the element tested okay run it on 240 and just feel the flu after 30 mins it should be warm but like running on gas it wont get cool in freezer for about 3 hrs, where you will notice it cold and until the freezer gets down to near 0 will the fridge even look like doing anything.....

It can often be the case that the terminals inside the selector switch need a bit of movement to get good contact, they loose their tension, get cruddy from lack of use, a myriad of things can happen, just you pushing and pulling stuff can do the job..... A few people have paid big $$ for a techo to do the same on .

of course it may not work but the fall back is if it works on gas then its not the level and its not the ammonia juice inside, so it must be somewhere from the element to the power point, visual inspection of the element will reveal if it has broken and then rejoined, shown by a lump usually, if it has replace it...but certainly follow Booties call for running a temp lead to another power point, leads and PP's can have intermittent faults which will send you nuts.
 
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Roadhouse

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If it runs on gas but not 240 its not the level, since the element tested okay run it on 240 and just feel the flu after 30 mins it should be warm but like running on gas it wont get cool in freezer for about 3 hrs, where you will notice it cold and until the freezer gets down to near 0 will the fridge even look like doing anything.....

It can often be the case that the terminals inside the selector switch need a bit of movement to get good contact, they loose their tension, get cruddy from lack of use, a myriad of things can happen, just you pushing and pulling stuff can do the job..... A few people have paid big $$ for a techo to do the same on .

of course it may not work but the fall back is if it works on gas then its not the level and its not the ammonia juice inside, so it must be somewhere from the element to the power point, visual inspection of the element will reveal if it has broken and then rejoined, shown by a lump usually, if it has replace it...but certainly follow Booties call for running a temp lead to another power point, leads and PP's can have intermittent faults which will send you nuts.
thanks mate. Ran lead from house to fridge and same results... will suss out element to see if broken etc. Will get to the bottom of this eventually!!
 

Boots in Action

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Mar 13, 2017
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Ok this is embarrassing - always best to have tester on AC volts not DC volts... ;) Got 240 at the back of fridge now that the tester is in correct mode.

then turned selector to AC and tested element pins and shows 240 getting to the element.

Tested element the other day and it was showing correct resistance so appears it’s working too.

So all appears fine except not cooling.

At home van is still not perfectly level so might just try get it perfect and try again. Would be funny (as in it won’t be) if it is just the level.
Yes @Roadhouse ....very embarrassing indeed. But you could still be facing an intermittent fault as @Drover said with bad connections at selector or at thermostat control. It is unlikely to be the heater element if it heats okay, but can break down internally after heating for a while although they normally go open circuit. We are all waiting with bated breath after this marathon exchange. There are not too many more possibilities other than "operator fault"!!...
 

Drover

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Always good to find your failings on a public forum!
If nothing else I’ve learnt a lot about how the fridge works (and the 2 different types of voltage on a tester!).
Stay tuned...
Wait till it melts in your hand thats an eye opener....
 

MDS69

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Jul 6, 2014
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Always good to find your failings on a public forum!
If nothing else I’ve learnt a lot about how the fridge works (and the 2 different types of voltage on a tester!).
Stay tuned...

could have just said the meter was faulty and we would be none the wiser
also surprised the meter didn’t release any smoke.
 
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Boots in Action

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could have just said the meter was faulty and we would be none the wiser
also surprised the meter didn’t release any smoke.
From what I remember in the technical way, 240 volts DC would be more lethal than 240 volts AC. I think that when meter was selected at 500v DC, the 240 volts AC current applied would be well covered. But not the other way around. If AC selected and same high voltage at DC applied, that would surely test out the electrical components inside and release the smoke and flame demons!!
 
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Roadhouse

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Hey all - just set the Mrs and kids up for two weeks at One Mile in the van and I was relaxing in the peace and tranquility back at home and just got a call saying she has bumped the bottom door shelf off with a bottle when closing the fridge door and can’t open door more than an inch. Must be stuck in the hinge area... tried everything but can’t move it.

assuming getting door off will resolve, but are the pins that hold the door onto the hinge just push pins or do they screw out?
 
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rags

Well-Known Member
I’m pretty sure the hinges are bolted/ screwed on and you need door open to access the screws.
worst case the shelf will be plastic and a good tug on the door should maybe bust the shelf but open the door. The sacrificial shelf. Might need to see if you can get a spare shelf before attempting such extreme measures.
 

Roadhouse

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I’m pretty sure the hinges are bolted/ screwed on and you need door open to access the screws.
worst case the shelf will be plastic and a good tug on the door should maybe bust the shelf but open the door. The sacrificial shelf. Might need to see if you can get a spare shelf before attempting such extreme measures.
The hinges have 2 screws to attach to fridge but there are pins that join the two hinge pieces together. They must come out somehow then door will just come off. Hopefully. Just don’t know if screwed in or pushed in or something else.