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tyoungs's avatar
tyoungs
Explorer
Jul 13, 2016

Residential fridge - temp variation fridge - Update from OP

We have a 2011 Endeavor 43DFT with a Frigidaire Gallery side by side residential fridge. This is the 6th season with this rig and up until this year we have been very happy with the performance of the residential unit. This year we seem to be having a problem where the fridge portion will freeze some items on the top shelf and in one of the drawers. We installed a thermometer and found that some areas are almost freezing (with setting at 37 deg) while other areas of the fridge are quite a bit warmer (40 +).



Have a service guy coming out tomorrow to look at but wondered if anyone else has had and or solved the same problem (variation in temp through the fridge side of the unit).



As an aside - it also seems to be more difficult to keep a good seal on the door going down the road. Suspect that stuff bumps against door and cracks it open just a smidge which wreaks havoc on maintaining the temp. Know this because "someone" latched the latch improperly (against the locking bar rather than through the locking bar) and the fridge temp went up in the 50's while the freezer remained at -2. Once we moved the latch and shut the door properly, the fridge came back down to correct temp over a couple hour period.

So, if something bumps the door off the seal (even though the latch is latched properly) fridge temp goes up rather quickly. Thinking I may need to get the spring bars to go across shelves to make sure nothing can move and bump the door off the seal.



See my update post - 07/25/16

Tom
Class A
  • tyoungs's avatar
    tyoungs
    Explorer
    Jul 26, 2016
    Gator, don't want to start a p*ssing contest here but the design of this Fridgidaire side by side does not have the drip pan like the old ones. Mine has a pan at the bottom rear of the freezer that catches the defrost water, it also has a tube that drains the water from this catch pan down and outside the freezer compartment to a pan directly under the compressor. According to the tech, this allows the heat from the compressor to evaporate the water that drips down and by doing so, you never have to empty any pans. The catch pan inside the freezer is only accessible if you remove a cover panel and is not intended to be drained by the owner. When the tube from this pan gets plugged, my situation occurs - the water freezes in the pan, overflows, and then goes down under the bottom basket and freezes in a lump. The transfer heater the tech installed was a copper wire that hooked to the heating element and goes down through the drain tube to keep it from freezing and plugging up the works. Must be pretty common occurrence because the service was listed on their "standard" service items list.

    No issue with mine with any dust or dirt under or on the coils so that did not contribute to the problem.
  • gatorcq's avatar
    gatorcq
    Explorer
    Jul 25, 2016
    It is really called not cleaning the drip pan, coils and dust out the bottom. If you read your manual there are instructions in doing every month or so.
  • tyoungs's avatar
    tyoungs
    Explorer
    Jul 25, 2016
    Had the residential fridge service folks out and they found an issue with the freezer - the drip pan that catches the water from defrosting was full of ice and had run over the catch pan into bottom of freezer such that it too was full of ice. Tech said this is fairly common with these side-by-side fridges and the "fix" was to install a "transfer heater" in the drain line - sounds pretty sophisticated but the heater is actually a copper wire that they run from the heat/defrost coil down into the drain line. So, when the heater turns on to defrost, heat is transmitted via the copper wire down into the drain line. It's been 2 weeks roughly since the fix (clean out all the ice and install the transfer heater) and there is no ice build up in the freezer and the fridge portion seems to be keeping better overall temp (tech said too much ice in freezer can overcool the air going into fridge compartment) - maybe that was what was causing stuff to freeze up in fridge.




    Will let you know how next trip goes in a week or so.




    Tom 2011 Endeavor 43DFT
  • crasster's avatar
    crasster
    Explorer II
    Jul 14, 2016
    Sounds like a thermometer, thermostat, or circulation issue. It's got to be one of the three. Also is there any melted "junk" on the vents going between the fridge and freezer?
  • TNGW1500SE's avatar
    TNGW1500SE
    Explorer
    Jul 14, 2016
    I have a thermometer with a transmitter installed inside my residential style fridge so I can keep tabs on the temp from the dash while driving without opening the door. That way if it gets warm, I can start the generator. I often see a lot of variation in the temps even when plugged in at a campground. It might be 35 and then an hour later, it's 41 degrees. I think most people don't "watch" the fridge as close as I do and it's probably just normal and since I'm not refrigerating the cure for cancer, I don't worry about it much . In my old RV style fridge, I installed a 12 volt PC fan. That might help you "mix" the air and "balance" out the temps.

    I'd also try just taping the door shut to make sure that wasn't an issue while traveling.
  • MrWizard's avatar
    MrWizard
    Moderator
    Jul 13, 2016
    my child safety latches are TOO tight for the door to bump open

    we use the flex strap with 'buckle' type

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