Date:         Mon, 23 Apr 2001 11:41:35 EDT
Reply-To:     Tewinot@aol.com
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Philip Jones <Tewinot@aol.com>
Subject:      Re: Fridge Don't Fire Up...
Content-Type:  text/plain; charset="US-ASCII"

Carl,

    Have you ever lit this fridge before?  If so, how long ago?  If it has
been sometime ago, your propane line could have become clogged (by spiders
and such).  Or perhaps you're getting propane to the burner, but no oxygen,
in which case your flue might be clogged. (I've never experienced this.)  Did
your fridge catch temporarily, only to "flame out" a few seconds later?  This
is where running the fridge on electricity and pre-heating the flue helps.
Also, I noticed on my '82 that it was easier to light with the thermostat all
the way open, where as my '91 has recently made it clear that the thermostat
must be set on "MIN" or else it will flame out.  Continuing to use the
airpump for a minute or so after lighting will also help.

Is your fridge ignitor manual or automatic?  My '82 was manual (a 3-way
rocker switch selects between DC, AC, and propane), and my '91 is automatic
(3 separate buttons).  To make the manual type spark, the airpump knob must
be pushed *all the way in*--it pumps air for most of the instroke, then the
last 1/4" or so actuates the ignitor, causing a spark.  With the automatic
type, simply selecting the propane option causes the ignitor to
(automatically) spark every 1/2 second or so, until a flame is detected.  In
either setup, you should be able to hear the ignitor functioning--you can't
miss it.  Or you could visually check thru the glass peephole in the lower
left back corner of the fridge.  If you have the automatic type and do not
hear or see the sparking, check the 8 amp fuse behind the driver's seat.

Good luck!

Philip