Gas smell from refrigerator - Page 4

tentcamper · 06-17-2015, 10:49 AM

+2

I figure 3 hours is our limit without it set to propane or battery with 80+ temps. After 3 hours in the 80's my fridge is in the low to mid 40's and ice cream is very soft.

gjmaker95 · 06-26-2015, 07:56 AM

on this trip we've been pushing the refrigerator pretty hard. We've gone from Georgia to Moab, Utah and ran the fridge on propane while driving. Initially the fridge held up pretty well through Tennessee Arkansas Oklahoma but since coming out to the desert it's had a very hard time staying cold at all regardless of what setting its on. Not too surprised since the temps in Moab were running 104. At the moment we're at Bryce Canyon sitting at 7000 feet with highs of about 87 degrees. I can't even get the thing to light on propane or cool on battery power. However the tank was pretty low so maybe the gas pressure wasn't high enough to drive the burner of the fridge though that's hard to believe since it's pretty much just a pilot Interestingly, we overnighted in an RV park on our way to Bryce Canyon and had the fridgerator on full electric. It worked just fine making ice in the freezer. Any ideas as to why it would work fine on shore power but not on propane or battery?

**Bill** · 06-26-2015, 09:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gjmaker95

Initially the fridge held up pretty well through Tennessee Arkansas Oklahoma but since coming out to the desert it's had a very hard time staying cold at all regardless of what setting its on. Not too surprised since the temps in Moab were running 104.

That is indeed tough on an absorption refrig. They don't have nearly the cold-producing capability of your compressor refrig at home. In addition, 104 degrees outside may translate to even higher temps inside a TM that is sitting in the sun.

Quote:

At the moment we're at Bryce Canyon sitting at 7000 feet with highs of about 87 degrees. I can't even get the thing to light on propane or cool on battery power.

These are two very different issues. At 7000 feet, the gas burner is going to struggle, simply because of lack of oxygen. I'm surprised that it won't light at all, but with low oxygen, the flame will be too rich (too much gas for the amount of air) and will be sooty. It is possible that the soot has accumulated to the point where it is obstructing the flame. The only way I have found to clean it is to get a small bottle brush, push it into the opening where the gas pipe goes into the burner, and swish it around.

As for failure to operate on DC, are you trying to run it on DC while you are plugged in to shore power? If not, try it. The converter will make plenty of power to run it, and you will be exercising the DC parts of the refrig, as opposed to the AC parts.

Quote:

However the tank was pretty low so maybe the gas pressure wasn't high enough to drive the burner of the fridge

Unlikely that this is the problem, assuming you have two propane tanks, both were turned on at the tank, at least one had some propane, and the automatic switchover regulator was operating.

Bill

gjmaker95 · 06-26-2015, 09:10 PM

Actually, I had disconnected one of the tanks to use as a supply for my portable gas grill. I took the low tank and had it filled, hooked it back up and the fridge fired right up. I have it cranked all the way up and will see how well it keeps cold over night. Your comment on effects of elevation make perfect sense also, and I'll keep an eye on the burner as the trip progresses. Interestingly, this afternoon I set the fridge on battery while we were out and about for a few hours. With the 300 watt solar array helping out, the fridge ran great, forming frost in the freezer while the array kept the battery bank steady at 66% capacity. Still need the propane for the long haul though, so fingers are crossed for a frosty freezer compartment tomorrow.

LoveToCamp · 06-27-2015, 12:32 PM

I don't think I have camped below 7000', and, most of the time, don't have a problem with the fridge staying lit. Last weekend we camped at 10,050' with no problem.

My water heater in my 2011 2417 didn't stay lit, until I opened the outside cover a couple inches (made a hardware cloth cover to keep the critters out). My 2014 2417 has a bigger water heater, and a different pilot/ignition/burner system, and it seems to do okay.

I went camping last weekend, and just for a test, I took the upper cover off behind my fridge. That let more of the heat out from the heat exchanger. My fridge and freezer worked very well, even with outdoor temps of about 80°. Granted, that is not 104°, but it stayed cooler than when I didn't take the cover off. I have run the ventilation fan for the fridge, but taking the cover off seems to be the most effective cooling. I will be taking the cover off regularly in the future. I will also put an auxiliary fan in at some point, but have not gotten around to that, yet.

scrubjaysnest · 06-28-2015, 06:40 AM

Ours is still not running as efficiently as lower down. I brush out the flue tube every time we change CG's as part of set up. Something has changed as we didn't use to have to do this. With the soot build up it acts like a bit of an insulator. Hope to pick up a slightly bigger bottle brush when we go into Cedar City, UT from Navajo Lk which we will be moving to today.

**commodor47** · 06-28-2015, 08:35 AM

You mentioned something must have changed to cause more frequent soot build up in your refrigerator stack. Have you had your propane pressure regulator checked? I had an issue with our furnace and it turned out to be low gas pressure. Once the regulator was adjusted to the correct range, the furnace issue was resolved.

Dick

gjmaker95 · 06-28-2015, 05:44 PM

All good things to check. At this point, Ix getting no love running this on propane. Woke up this morning at Bryce Canyon and it was room temperature in the box. I'll check the burner again and fish in there gently with a brush. Also, how does one adjust the regulator, and how do you know when it's the right pressure?

**commodor47** · 06-29-2015, 04:47 PM

Checking the propane pressure requires specialize equipment. Just about any RV dealer should have the ability to check (test) the pressure and adjust the regulator accordingly.

Dick

scrubjaysnest · 07-02-2015, 09:25 AM

Missed gjmaker95 @ Bryce when we went there for the day. Reefer is still a little fumie but is working much better; 30 deg's this morning. Air temps have been mid to upper 50's the last few days and only about 80ish during the day.

If I had a U tube manometer it would be easy to check the pressure but I don't carry one. We may be dealing with the left overs of not so good propane we got last winter. One bottle when filled had a bit of liquid hydrocarbons. Poor filtering at the supplier.