mr_camera_man
Chicago area, IL
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Patient: New-to-me '95 Starcraft PUP with a Dometic 3-way fridge.
The stupid fridge doesn't get cold at all. I've tried it on 110 and propane, and the fins inside the fridge are still room-temperature after running for 20 minutes or so.
I know that the burner is working because I was in the shade and able to actually see the flame. I unplugged the unit while it was turned on and saw a small arc, so I know it's actually drawing something on 110 as well.
Where do I start troubleshooting this thing? Is there refrigerant somewhere that needs to be topped off? The exterior heat exchanger fins look clear through the exterior vent, but I'll probably take a closer look tomorrow to make sure.
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nfisherman
IL
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Joined: 04/17/2005
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These refrigerators don't get cold very fast. You may just not be giving it enough time. Generally the fridge cools best on propane, then 110v and then 12v. To give it a good test, start the fridge on propane and let it go overnight. If it's still not at least cool in the morning, you have a problem.
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mike4947
N. Syracuse, NY
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nd here's a link to a manual for your fridge: http://bryantrv.com/docs.html
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fairfaxjim
Fairfax, CA
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These small PUP fridges are rather different animals.
They don't have compressors - they use a burner (propane) or heater (12v and 120v) to impart energy to the refrigerant (amonia)
They (at least most PUP ones) don't have thermistats. The only control is a heater control - gas valve in propane, electrical setting in 120V, none in 12 volts.
They are pretty slow to cool down, but quick to warm up if you load them with warm beer (or other favorite beverage.)
Best, as stated above to pre-cool, either on propane or 120V the night before. Also good to load with pre-cooled goodies.
12V is pretty much not worth the trouble and dead batteries it can cause. Should only be used when connected to TV and driving, but too small of 12V wiring (often encountered) can fail to deliver enought juice. Result = run down PUP battery on arrival.
Since no thermostat, pretty constant cooling (translation - not much) but not much control. Expect about 20 degrees below outside temp. after cooled down, a little better if you have a condenser fan mod installed. If getting good cooling during day and expect night time temp. to drop to below 50, lettuce will freeze if you don't turn it down for the night. Don't forget to turn it up during the day - lettuce will wilt.
Most efficient is propane, then 120V, and then - aw you don't wanna mess with 12V.
For refrigeration when camping, we use Coleman, Igloo, and Dometic, in that order.
Jim & JoAnne
2007 Toyota Tundra Double Cab
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PattieAM
Maryland
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Joined: 08/03/2005
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Your PUP should be level side to side, front to rear for the ammonia compound to circulate properly and cool the unit.
It takes several hours for the absorbtion style refrigerator to cool - basically if you feel heat at the back (outside vents) it's cooling inside the box.
To speed things along, you can load your fridge with pre-cooled items (I usually have a frozen jug of ice I toss into the fridge along with the perishible items from the cooler).
Depending upon the ambient temperature, I will start my fridge on the propane setting, and switch it over to 120v in the morning (by then it's cool and the ice trays in the freezer compartment are frozen).
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mr_camera_man
Chicago area, IL
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Thanks... sounds like I just have to keep everything cleaned out and level, and hope for the best. I'll try to run it on propane through the night and see what happens.
Just how big of a draw will this be on the propane? It looked like a relatively small flame, so I'd imagine it wouldn't be too bad...
Also, what are your thoughts on leaving the propane burner lit while being towed? Do you all think it's risky, and does the flame tend to blow out?
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dodge guy
Chicago, western subs.
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Good advice so far. the other thing is there is no refrigerant to "top off". these are gas absorption fridges and use amonia for the refrigerant. when they go it`s time for a new fridge. and it sounds as if yours may be gone. but I hope i`m wrong!
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galexander
Omaha,Nebraska
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These fridges can be a real pain. Mine was bad from the factory when we bought the PUP two ago. Was replaced and has worked fine since. As for propane use, I'm still on my first bottle of propane after two seasons. They don't use much and work better on propane. We travel all the time with the fridge on propane and switch over to 120V at the C.G. When using the furnace you will use propane really fast so we use an electric ceramic heater or extra blankets when boondocking. We use those small blue freeze packs when camping to help keep things cooled and keep the liquid refreshments in a cooler and freeze meats before putting into fridge or a cooler. As time goes by and you go camping, you will find ways to make things work better for you. As said before, these fridges take at least eight hours to cool down and need to be pretty much level for the absorption process to work. Good Luck and Happy Camping.
2003 Chevy Silveraldo 2500HD 4x4 SB Ext.Cab 6.0L
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mr_camera_man
Chicago area, IL
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Good point re: the freezer packs, I was planning on picking up a few just for this.
When you say the furnace uses propane really fast, just how fast is fast? On a 50 degree night like we have coming up here, would it be safe to say a tank is 3 nights worth of gas or more like 10?
* This post was
edited 10/08/08 10:13am by mr_camera_man *
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red31
Bryan
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The fridge can run a month or so 24/7 on one 20 lb tank of propane.
The furnace uses about 1 lbof propane per hour of run time (depending on its BTU rating).
I set my therm at 55, so I could go many days (weeks) if the nights only get down to 50 at night! If electic is available, get a $15, 5000 BTU 120v heater or 2!
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