I have a 2007 Fleetwood E2 Popup Travel Trailer. The fridge will not get cold at all. The pilot light works fine and heats the unit in the back, but fridge does not get cold. Will not get cold hooked up to 110 either. Has anyone ever replaced the fridge and where do you get them? Or if you might know what I can do to try and fix it?
New Fridge
- Thread starter Rod Dines
- Start date
NLB
Active Member
To Replace: EBay, Amazon, etc.
But First: let’s have some details about temps of the boiler/fins in the rear and interior temp after 12 or 24 hours of it operating.
You need to hit YouTube for some video of what to look for regarding flame appearance and the electric heating coil.
So:
Age of unit, rust corrosion?
110v or 12v?
Did fridge work in the past, or is unit new to you.
Lastly, how handy are ya, and how much time do you want to invest in fixing vs replacing?
But First: let’s have some details about temps of the boiler/fins in the rear and interior temp after 12 or 24 hours of it operating.
You need to hit YouTube for some video of what to look for regarding flame appearance and the electric heating coil.
So:
Age of unit, rust corrosion?
110v or 12v?
Did fridge work in the past, or is unit new to you.
Lastly, how handy are ya, and how much time do you want to invest in fixing vs replacing?
davido
Super Active Member
- Jul 17, 2014
- 1,509
If it's getting a flame, the only way you wouldn't get cold inside after 24 hours would be if all the ammonia had either leaked out, dried up, or crystalized. Or somehow the free-flow has become blocked inside the fridge's fluid system.
If that's happened, probably just replace it. Otherwise, wait longer, or install a vent fan in back.
An RV shop could probably help you locate a source.
If that's happened, probably just replace it. Otherwise, wait longer, or install a vent fan in back.
An RV shop could probably help you locate a source.
I have ran the flame for 12-24 hours without the inside of fridge cooling. It is a 3 way fridge, gas, 12v and 110 have tried all sources and still does not cool. It is the original fridge so 2007. Well how handy am I? You will get two different answers on that depending who you ask, me or my wife. I would say pretty handy. And yes fridge did work when we bought the trailer used.
NLB
Active Member
Lol, same answers at my house.
So, leakage in the system will usually show up as a yellow residue somewhere on the pipes, but it’s an old unit so
.I have a 2006 original 3 way and if all three heat sources didn’t function I would replace the unit.
If you normally camp with 110v hookup or have a generator, consider a compressor type unit. (Cheaper, and more efficient).
But if you camp off the grid look on EBay or check local RV dealer.
I would not buy a used unit unless I could see it in action.
Removing the old one is fairly simple. (Wires and propane hookups to be secured, and a couple screws, then it slides into the galley).
One thing you might try first is a trip on a bumpy road for a few miles to shake any sediment loose in the pipes and then power it up.
Likely it has come to the end of its lifetime, and you will need to consider how much you want to spend to replace it. Reach out if you have other questions; there’s lots of help on this site.
JiffyPopJunkie
Active Member
Before replacing, I suggest burping it. If you had it for a while now and never saw a yellow powder anywhere on the back of it, burping is your next step. It does require removing it but but its relatively easy. I have an 05 Fleetwood and didnt use the fridge for years and went to use it last year and got nothing. After lots of YT education I tried the burping thing and it works perfect now. I do want to do the fan mod bc it worked much better on my bench vs in the camper. Its all about the air flow
How do you burp it?
I have tried to run it for 24 hours on gas, 24 on 12v and 24 on 110 with no cooling.
JiffyPopJunkie
Active Member
1st you need to remove it. Once its out you roll it to one side, wait a few moments then upside down, wait a few more moments and keep going all the way around. Youll hear it gurgle as you tip it each time. Theres YT videos on it. I was skeptical when doing it but after I did it I let it rest for about 1/2 hr i think, plugged it in and it was down to 33° in 2hrs.
Grandpa Don
Super Active Member
You might also cleaning the Flue and the burner. Just a suggestion.
NLB
Active Member
Try the bumpy road first. It accomplishes the same thing.
Good idea. I considered replacing the Dometic fridge in our pup until I started shopping and saw the price tag. We ended up buying a bar fridge for less than $100. It had to be plugged in but that wasn't a problem since we normally camp where there's electric and water.
tfh715
Member
- Apr 15, 2013
- 15
Take the fridge out and burp it. My Dad and his buddy used to go around our camp in Canada and do maintained each. Every now and again you’d see a fridge on a picnic table and know they had been there. When you rotate it around you’ll hear the liquid inside. If you don’t it may have leaked out. Bumpy road is a crap shoot and doesn’t give you the opportunity to get a good look at it. some units take forever to do an initial cool on gas so you may want to try 110 first then maintain with gas.
F. Jake Glotz
Member
Is the flue hot? This should happen with all sources. I didn’t think mine was working either, but used a digital thermometer that showed the high and low temperature and I saw a split developing. I cleaned the fins inside and out and improved the cooling. When camping, I have a solar battery bank that I plug a small fan into to move the air on the backside which really improves cooling. My frig works best on propane, but I usually precool before an outing on AC power for 2 days in the driveway. During travel, I rarely use 12V since the draw on the battery is more than the TV supply. I just put a frozen gallon of water inside and use it for drinking water at the camp site. Clean it up, Plug it in, select one source (AC) , and be patient. If there is no temperature change at all, the bumpy road or burp.
Cape Cod Mountain Man
Go confidently in the direction of your dreams
- Apr 23, 2010
- 15
So glad you asked this question. As someone who has been over every possible fix over a period of 800 days of off-the-grid camping, please heed my advice.
Get a cooler.
Those fridges are so fussy and erratic that they cannot be depended upon to protect your food, what little can fit into that little thing. The cost in food, and health (spoilage), not to mention time (which I guess I just did mention) are not worth it. I have never successfully run the fridge on battery. Draws too much power and then does not have enough juice to be effective. On gas, it would work for a while and then crap out along with all the food in it.
The easiest, cost free, and effective fix had been to take out and COMPLETELY ream out the jet holes in the burner. Soak in vinegar or coke. If restricted at all, the flame will heat the unit but not enough to produce the cooling effect effectively.
We ended up using the fridge to stow open groceries to protect them from mice. Get a nice cooler that fits into the space at the top of your steps for stowing during travel. First thing after arriving, pull out the cooler, pop open a beer and think about all the time you saved by not having to light the infernal fridge.
sseebart
Member
I had the same issue as you—25 year old fridge would simply not get cold. Like you, I got tons of suggestions on how to fix, all with the same sort of these-things-never-stop-working-and-can-always-be-fixed vibe.
In the end, nothing worked to get it going again, so I bought a direct replacement. (Same brand, same model. In fact, I think the ad copy hasn't even changed in 50 years.) What a difference! The new fridge gets cold within a few hours (on propane) and if I'm not careful, it gets right down below freezing in 24 hours.
I didn't want to spend the money, either, but found that it was well worth it.
In the end, nothing worked to get it going again, so I bought a direct replacement. (Same brand, same model. In fact, I think the ad copy hasn't even changed in 50 years.) What a difference! The new fridge gets cold within a few hours (on propane) and if I'm not careful, it gets right down below freezing in 24 hours.
I didn't want to spend the money, either, but found that it was well worth it.
Grandpa Don
Super Active Member
My 3-way fridge is a 2003 model. I've never really had a problem with in since I've had the camper. But I know its limitations. As a rule there is a 35-40 degree split between the inside temperature and the outside temperature. Three weeks ago I ran a test on it in my driveway. The outside temperature was averaging around 40 degrees at night and about 60 during the day. At night the fridge got down to 19 degrees inside. And went up to about 35 or so during the day. The best i could get it to do during last summer when the outside temperature was near 100 degrees was about 55-60. Not good! I have done all of the modifications to the fridge such as Fans, insulation, cleaning the Flue and burner, which I think really improved the way it works.
I understand its limitations and consider my Fridge to be working properly. However, I don't trust it with my temperature sensitive food on hot months. Last year I bought an Alpicool C40 12 volt compressor Fridge to keep most stuff cold. It runs on 12 volts from the camper battery and takes very little power to run. I keep the battery charged with a 100 watt solar panel. I have yet to completely drain the battery while running it 24 hours per day on camping trips. There are may other brands of compressor Fridges out there. Some more expensive, and some less.
I understand its limitations and consider my Fridge to be working properly. However, I don't trust it with my temperature sensitive food on hot months. Last year I bought an Alpicool C40 12 volt compressor Fridge to keep most stuff cold. It runs on 12 volts from the camper battery and takes very little power to run. I keep the battery charged with a 100 watt solar panel. I have yet to completely drain the battery while running it 24 hours per day on camping trips. There are may other brands of compressor Fridges out there. Some more expensive, and some less.
If you take apart the gas system to clean the jet be careful. The jet hole is delicate and if you damage it you will need a new one.
If it is toast and you almost 100% camp with hook up a small frig is not expensive. If you dry camp a lot consider a compressor frig like the one in the link. You can get cheaper if you get a cooler style 12v compressor frig. 12v compressor frigs cold great and only pull .5-1 amp/hour at 12v to stay cold. I've got an Alpicool that I am very happy with. My 2001 3-way still works, but it is nice to have more cooler space. The 3-way has some trouble during the TX summers. I installed a 12v fan and that helps some.
www.recpro.com
If it is toast and you almost 100% camp with hook up a small frig is not expensive. If you dry camp a lot consider a compressor frig like the one in the link. You can get cheaper if you get a cooler style 12v compressor frig. 12v compressor frigs cold great and only pull .5-1 amp/hour at 12v to stay cold. I've got an Alpicool that I am very happy with. My 2001 3-way still works, but it is nice to have more cooler space. The 3-way has some trouble during the TX summers. I installed a 12v fan and that helps some.
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