Date: Tue, 18 Jun 2002 15:44:51 -0400
Reply-To: David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: David Beierl <dbeierl@ATTGLOBAL.NET>
Subject: Re: Fridge madness 201 (average temperature)
In-Reply-To: <vanagon%2002061814320818@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
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At 02:32 PM 6/18/2002, Ben huot wrote:
>1- what is your average temp after the fridge as been ON for 2-3 hours on
>AC or 12V. I got about 3-5C(39-41F) in the bottom part of the fridge. About
>7C(44F)on propane) cool enough for me.
Dometic rates the unit as able to achieve 45F below ambient -- probably not
in two hours.
>2- If I start the newly installed inside-fan, the ice melt but the fridge
>keep it temperature of 5C(41F), if I stop the fan the ice goes solid again
>(1hour). Basically when air is moving all around inside, the cooling
>element gets wet and ice is melting. Is it because the cool air is
>dispersed? Condensation? Or alien abduction of my freezing air?
You're pulling more heat out of the evaporator and spreading it around the
fridge. The fan you put in is much larger than typical, so it may be that
you're blowing some air out a door seal that wouldn't otherwise; or more
likely that you're getting better heat transfer to the walls from the
moving air and losing heat that way. Typical internal fridge fan is so
gentle that they come in battery versions that will run for a month
continuously on one pair of alkaline D-cells.
>3-I did those test in a 48hours period, never heard the fan in the back of
>the fridge (I was not there all the time and it's still cold up here-65F),
>do all Dometic 182B have fan in the back, if the fan or thermo sensor is
>dead, what is the consequence associate with that malfunctions. Is there
>any danger or just a poorer fridge operation? (overheating=less cooled
>air?) I am hitching to remove the fridge but it's working fine! I guest
>there is no easy way to test the fan (in the back) without removing the
>fridge.
Fan should come on when the tubing at the top of the fridge gets hot. I
think it's 140F turn on, 125F turn off. You can test it by carefully
heating the little thermo-switch attached to the fins -- access by removing
top grill (outboard of stove/sink). Heat with hot-air gun with pinpoint
attachment, tiny torch, soldering iron...maybe even hair dryer.
If the fan doesn't work the fridge won't cool as well. I do not promise,
but I strongly believe there will be no actual damage.
>I really don't like to play with the old propane connection behind this
>one. When I was young a family of 4 died in a camper-trailer when the
>propane system/tank exploded 4 spot from our camping place. I am a bit
>traumatize today.
Understandable. Remember that the pressure in this system downstream of
the regulator is about 1/3 psi. Tighten your connections *reasonably* --
not as hard as you can go -- and test for leaks with soap bubbles or gas
leak fluid. Any leak will be very slow because of the low pressure, and
will make a noticeable smell because they put quite a lot of stink-stoffe
into propane.
david
--
David Beierl - Providence, RI
http://pws.prserv.net/synergy/Vanagon/
'84 Westy "Dutiful Passage"
'85 GL "Poor Relation"
