Date: Thu, 1 Sep 2011 21:46:05 -0600
Reply-To: Richard A Jones <Jones@COLORADO.EDU>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Richard A Jones <Jones@COLORADO.EDU>
Subject: Re: Refrigerator lighting
In-Reply-To: <201109020159.ALW68405@Colorado.EDU>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
When this thread started I thought it was about the
interior light in the Vitris!
Some observations:
1) I don't recall any mentions of failure of the thermostat,
but that might explain his original problems. If the
flame is always "pilot" and never full on, staying "on"
might be difficult. To get a Dometic going, you want
the full flame. Maybe thermostats never fail--or almost
never. He might have the exception.
2) I had a Dometic that worked very well. I did have
to replace the thermocouple a couple of times and clean
the burner box sometimes. But I never could keep those
ice cream sandwiches frozen in the freezer compartment--
which I can with the Vitri.
The one thing that would blow out my Dometic was a semi
going the other way when there was a cross wind. The
beautifully tuned intake/exhaust system could handle almost
everything--except a blast that popped your ear drums.
Hwy 191 N of Moab was a typical spot for this. Strong
wind out of the west and lots of semis going against you.
3) And I can find those ice cream sandwiches and other
things in the dark 'cause when I open the door there is a light!
4) In the 'merican west, temps inside a Westy can go to
125+ (F) very easily in the afternoons. No hope for
a Dometic. Volume goes by the cube, surface by the square.
So if you increase the size of a fridge, you gain in
efficiency. So the Class A RVs have Dometics with
double doors, working freezer compartments, etc, etc.
Same with big Servels we used to have in cabins in the
backwoods of Colorado in the 50s.
The trouble with the Westy fridge is that it is too
small! A 3-way that is twice as big internally will
be a better fridge. A Vitri that is twice as big is
good, too. And better for the ice cream sandwiches.
5) I loved my Dometic. I loved that I could light it and
go on a multi-week trip and (almost) never have to worry about
it. I have two propane tanks, so I was good-to-go. But
I love my Vitri more--I don't worry about the temps at all,
no matter how hot. If I don't park more that 48-60 hours,
I don't worry about my aux battery voltage. If I weren't
so cheap and bought some solar panels, I wouldn't worry
about that either. I love the drawer below my Vitri that
wasn't there with the Dometic, too.
6) The fact that one can make a Dometic work well after
~25 years is almost a miracle. Well, our Vanagon are miracles,
too. Both Dometics and Vanagons were top-notch products.
The closer your camping environment comes to N Europe, the
better your Dometic works for you. Think Oregon and not
Moab.
7) Anybody want some Barbie ice cube trays? I have two
like-new ones--still in the plastic bag with the German
stickers on it. P-mail me. ;-)
I just came back from 17 days to the California coast--Syncro
Safari '11. 3170 miles. Pictures at the top link of
http://jones.colorado.edu There were Engels, Vitris and
Dometics--and ice coolers. We *all* had a great time!
That's one more thing I like about my Vitri--I can go camping
instead of pulling the fridge to clean the burner box, or....
Keep your cool!!
Richard