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roscofrmh's avatar
roscofrmh
Explorer
Nov 21, 2016

refrigerator does not cool while driving

we recently purchased our first motor home, a used 2015 Forrest River Forrester with 10,000 miles on it. We are learning about using it but so far the refrigerator does not cool while driving. It is a Dometic model 13 50 french door with an ice maker. When plugged into power, it works fine. Works fine on LP also, but we leave the automatic setting and it does not cool while driving. I thought if you left the setting on auto it would choose the source for cooling? Aren't RV refrigerators 3 way power?
Also, as far as winterizing the RV, I feel I know how to accomplish this except for the ice maker.
Any suggestions, personal experiences or suggestions would be appreciated

Thank you, J.T.
Class A

20 Replies

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  • usersmanual's avatar
    usersmanual
    Explorer
    Nov 21, 2016
    crasster wrote:
    RV fridges have caused so many problems for us that we went with a dorm fridge that only ran on A/C. They really do freeze ice and keep ice cream cold. They also have rock solid insulation. What works is to get several cold packs, freeze them solid, and when you drive just leave the cold packs around the fridge & freezer. When you get to your destination and plug in, it's cold again and will freeze the cold packs.

    This really only doesn't work if you plan to boondock.


    the op has no such problems just a misunderstanding of how it works
    cold packs LOL at that all one does is run on invert or run on lpg in the op situation and it will cool perfectly
    dorm fridges have almost zero insulations and are useless as a main fridge in any decent RV
  • crasster's avatar
    crasster
    Explorer II
    Nov 21, 2016
    RV fridges have caused so many problems for us that we went with a dorm fridge that only ran on A/C. They really do freeze ice and keep ice cream cold. They also have rock solid insulation. What works is to get several cold packs, freeze them solid, and when you drive just leave the cold packs around the fridge & freezer. When you get to your destination and plug in, it's cold again and will freeze the cold packs.

    This really only doesn't work if you plan to boondock.
  • 10forty2's avatar
    10forty2
    Explorer
    Nov 21, 2016
    The first few trips we took, I let the fridge run off of LP. After that, I decided to run the genset every time. It's good for the generator to run under load and it saves your LP for heating if it's needed.
  • usersmanual's avatar
    usersmanual
    Explorer
    Nov 21, 2016
    roscofrmh wrote:
    toedtoes wrote:
    I believe nowadays most RV fridges are 2-way. That means they only run off propane or electrical. If you are shutting off the propane when you drive, then the fridge has nothing to run on.


    Thank you for your responses. Yes, I was told not to leave the gas on while driving, so if it is a two way frige, it only makes sense it won't cool while going down the road. I will follow up with a dealer when I can and confirm this.


    If you had a decent sized inverter and had fridge plugged into it then it will cool while driving but as u have learned best to just use LPG for fridge while driving
  • Effy's avatar
    Effy
    Explorer II
    Nov 21, 2016
    roscofrmh wrote:
    toedtoes wrote:
    I believe nowadays most RV fridges are 2-way. That means they only run off propane or electrical. If you are shutting off the propane when you drive, then the fridge has nothing to run on.


    Thank you for your responses. Yes, I was told not to leave the gas on while driving, so if it is a two way frige, it only makes sense it won't cool while going down the road. I will follow up with a dealer when I can and confirm this.


    Well there ya go. No LP, no fridge - unless of course you run your genset. Who told you not to leave LP on when driving? Then you have no heat and you found out, no fridge either. If you are set on leaving LP off while driving, then run your generator to power the fridge, but as I stated, most of us leave the LP on. The systems are designed to operate while driving.
  • roscofrmh's avatar
    roscofrmh
    Explorer
    Nov 21, 2016
    toedtoes wrote:
    I believe nowadays most RV fridges are 2-way. That means they only run off propane or electrical. If you are shutting off the propane when you drive, then the fridge has nothing to run on.


    Thank you for your responses. Yes, I was told not to leave the gas on while driving, so if it is a two way frige, it only makes sense it won't cool while going down the road. I will follow up with a dealer when I can and confirm this.
  • AllegroD's avatar
    AllegroD
    Nomad
    Nov 21, 2016
    Dometic RM1350 is a good fridge. It does run "auto" on either 120v (default if available) or LP. Does it work when on shore power? Does gas stove work? If not,Check LP valve outside. If So, does 12v lights work, If not check batteries. Are they connected? Do you have a volt meter? Control board requires 12v to run fridge, no mater if running on 120v or LP.

    Operator's Manual

    service manual
  • toedtoes's avatar
    toedtoes
    Explorer III
    Nov 21, 2016
    I believe nowadays most RV fridges are 2-way. That means they only run off propane or electrical. If you are shutting off the propane when you drive, then the fridge has nothing to run on.
  • CA_Traveler's avatar
    CA_Traveler
    Explorer III
    Nov 21, 2016
    The Dometic 13 50 is a A/C. What is the correct model number?

    Doubtful that it is a 3 way. But most refers will automatically switch between AC and propane.

    Your post suggests that the refer doesn't have DC while driving. Have you checked for DC to the refer control board w/o gen or pedestal power?

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