anybody know about RV refrigerators?
Hello everyone,
Well, my wife & I, along with our 3-1/2 year old son just bought our first RV. Vintage, but in excellent condition. It is a 23′ 1976 Cruise Air. Bought it from a family friend. Originally his grandparents’ RV, then his parents’, then his, now ours.
He said he did not think the original “Insta-matic” refrigerator was in working condition, but that they never really have used it since he got the RV from his dad in 2001.
I lit the propane late last night. I checked it this morning (the propane has been on about 8 hours). The samll freezer compartment is very cold, the frig. not very. My question is how long does it typically take for a refrig. to cool down? Especially one as old as this. The refrig. is completely empty. I’ve seen the recommendations for frozen milk jugs, etc., but I’m just trying to check to see if it is even worth keeping the existing refrigerator.
Any thoughts? Thanks.
“Preach the Gospel at all times; if necessary, use words.” – St. Francis of Assisi
Replies
How cold is 'very'?
Take a reading with a thermometer and let us know what the temps are in the
freezer compartmentand the fridge .
Normally if the freezer area is at 0- 10 degrees F, a sutable temperature in the fridge area would be approx 38-42 F
Let us know what temps you have. Leave the thermometer in for at least 30 minutes in each area (doors shut) before reading.
So far, so good.
I'll be picking up a thermometer today to check.
I put an icecube tray in the freezer compartment yesterday, and the cubes were frozen last night. Also, some pre-chilled cans of Guinness that I put in the refrigerator last night had frost on the outside of the cans today. Looks like maybe I'll need to adjust it down from the "coldest" setting.
Thanks to everyone for all of the their help and advice!
"Preach the Gospel at all times; if necessary, use words." - St. Francis of Assisi
I was very fortunate to be standing beside the access cover to my trailer fridge the day it caught fire .. like one of the poster's said, they get bounced around allot .. maybe best for a proffesional check up .. ps and check the fire extinguisher is still good!
It's been a long while, but I used to be an RV'er so my remarks may not apply to the new generation of fridges, but I know something about the era you're talking about. In my motorhome, the fridge needed about 1/2 an hour to be cold enough to take food that was already at the right temperature and maybe 2 hours before you could put warm into it. Check to make sure your bulls-eye is really on the level, and then make sure the fridge is close to level as it's cooling, even a sloped driveway can cut a fridge's output in half - same problem for trailers where the hitch is too high/low for the trailer to sit level and the fridge becomes semi-useless.
Somewhat like a home fridge, if you stick you hand into the empty fridge, it will not feel that cold: all the cold air spilled out when you opened the door and the plastic walls of an RV fridge do not radiate much cold. Many still work like the original Fridgidaire by putting all the cooling in the freezer and the cold radiating fron that cooled the rest of the fridge; some of the larger fridges do have wall cooling tubes (plainly seen on a humid day as they will collect condensation over them). So, you need to get some critical mass into the fridge to hold the cold - 2 litre bottles of pop or jugs of milk do this well.
But there can be mechanical problems. These systems take a lot of bouncing around and long periods of down-time: they need to have a long run every now and then to keep them flowing, and, eventually they bleed freon (if the fridge just never works, then you'll have to go to the RV store and have it fixed - ask in advance about the cost of a full replacement {new or used} vs repair first). Whoops, I should have asked first, is this 1, 2, or 3 fuel fridge ? If it's 3, is the 110 system a separate coil, the same coil as the 12V with a transformer, or is there a second cooling system with a compressor ? You can compare the cold output of the fuel systems to see if just one is weak. Second, check to see if you can inspect the cavity around the fridge for evidence of rodents, missing/worn/matted insulation, that sort of stuff.
Good luck.
Phill Giles
The Unionville Woodwright
Unionville, Ontario
Most RV refrigerators used amonia for refrigerent. they work by heating up one end of the mechanism and on a burp cycle , Any dirt, lint, bird or bug nest that restricts air flow will reduce efficiency. Check out the coils and stuff on the back and make sure the propane burner is clean
Steve,
Hube was right on the money with the thermometer Q. Those old RV's had absorption type refridgerators, so the the propane mode which you had it on was usually the most efficient. You need to make sure you are level, the burner is clear, you have a good clean flame and the exhaust is clear. It sounds like it is working fairly well, but it never hurts to check. Good luck and have lots of fun.
You will find good help (not that there isn't good help at BT!) in the forums at rv.net http://www.rv.net/forum/
Phill G's and others' comments were right on.
Have a 1970's NH4 absorption unit at the cabin, takes 8 hours ( or more!) to cool down on propane when it has not been run for a year. A good level an absolute neccessity. We take a block of ice along now to get it 'started'.
I have a Dometic fridge in an 1981 Boler. I light the propane when we arrive and the fridge is usually ice cold by morning.
Have a good day
Cliffy
your fridge should be to temp within an hour or so. Even though the lower section is not feeling cold, does not mean that it isn't. Buy a cheap thermometer and see. Spend 2 bucks before you spend 1K to replace it.