Date: Thu, 17 Jul 2008 09:23:07 -0700
Reply-To: neil N <musomuso@GMAIL.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: neil N <musomuso@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Dometic won't light troubleshooting
In-Reply-To: <CCB76F7F-E181-4FDF-8846-0055AA9B742D@thomaskitts.com>
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Double check wiring to/from AC/DC panel switch (I see no reason why
these would be wrong..... unless the PO did something wrong) Confirm
if switch ok.
Are all the ground wire contacts clean? Are all the wires to the
plastic terminal block gooten tight and clean? On my 182B there is a
green wire from thermostat housing to multi point ground connector at
upper rear of fridge housing. Though I don't see it in the little
wiring diagram on fridge, I assume this wire is required. Is this
present and connected on yours'?
A thought. IIRC, the thermostat only works on AC and LP. My guess
would be that if you test it on 12V, this would eliminate the
thermostat as a problem.
Is the sensor (narrow tube) that slips into the slot on rear of
aluminum "cooling" unit contacting the metal of the "cooling" unit?
And is the little white piece of rubber (silicone?) present? A dental
mirror might help to suss this out. You don't want to pull the
"cooling" unit off. Removal *may* nessecitate renewal of the mastic
between the black cold tube and "cooling" unit. If you do remove the
"cooling" unit, make sure you install it correctly. i.e. DON'T have
the LH end of it slipped over the lip at end of cold tube. This unit
needs to make as much contact to cold tube as possible. Hence the
mastic. Proper minimal application of the mastic will fill the gaps
and provide better overall contact.
For the 12V side of things, you could connect wires to a 12V bulb to
check for presence of 12V. For 110 AC side, if you have one of those
residential wiring type "beepers" that may suffice to trace wires to
confirm that 110AC is present.
Can you feel if the 12V and 110AC heater elements start to get hot?
Compare them. Do they get to the same temp? (not sure how you would
measure this though..... IR gun?) I would imagine that these elements
get dang hot, so beware!
If the elements are heating up, then I would suspect a chemical
problem, the thermostat or the thermal sensor to/from thermostat and
"cooling" unit inside fridge.
Cheers,
Neil.
On Wed, Jul 16, 2008 at 11:50 PM, Thomas Jefferson Kitts
<thomas@thomaskitts.com> wrote:
> Well, took a few moments to take apart the burner assembly to see if there
> was anything obviously wrong.
>
> The piezo igniter was firing, sparking every time, though I tightened up the
> gap a little anyway.
>
> I unscrewed the gas nozzle from the box and it looks free and clear. Can see
> a little dot of light when I look inside and nothing seem clogged. The long
> thin tube it fits into, the burn chamber I guess, about the length of a
> cigarette with little slots on the rounded end did have a small spider
> cocoon in it but it was small and I cleaned it out. Couldn't see that
> blocking air or propane and preventing ignition.
>
> I blew air though the propane pipe leading into the burn chanmber and I
> could hear it flowing at the switch where I had previously disconnected it.
> So that part of the piping was free and clear too.
>
> The square assembly the burn assembly fits into looked pretty clean and
> soot-free so I don't think the failure to fire up on Propane has anything to
> do with the fridge not working.
>
> ---
>
> I then pulled off the heat shielding above the burner, where the 110 and 12
> volt wires go down into the so-called hot area. Pulled away the insulation.
> Again no visible breaks or disconnects there.
>
> I don't have the electrical tools to test circuits so I'm stumped.
>
> Can't run the Dometic on gas. Can't run it on electricity. So what now?
>
> Any ideas? . . .
>
> Thomas
>
