On our last trip the refrig. refused to light on propane. An inspection of the burner revealed a piece of carbon about 1" x 1/2" and 1/8" thick leaning on the burner. After removing it and brushing the burner slots with a tooth brush the refrig. came to life.I assume the piece of carbon fell down from the flue. The owner's manual suggests cleaning the flue as part of periodic maintenance and that requires the removal of the refrig. That sounds like a lot of work. Has anyone cleaned the flue and how hard was it?

If you have a top vent, remove it and you can reach down (when cool), and grab the wire that is hanging over the edge of the tube. You should find an S shaped piece of metal. I like to use a shotgun cleaning rod to clean the tube.

YC 1 wrote:If you have a top vent, remove it and you can reach down (when cool), and grab the wire that is hanging over the edge of the tube. You should find an S shaped piece of metal. I like to use a shotgun cleaning rod to clean the tube.I am a little confused, not unusual. The top vent is about 5' above the burner area. So, help me identify the tube and the S shaped piece of metal.Thanks.

This may be of help. It does say that the fridge must be removed to clean the flue.

Several years ago I was having trouble with my fridge keeping cold enough. This was my first RV and I wasn't sure what to do about it so I took it to my local RV dealer. All he did was take his air hose and blow the heck out of the whole area around the heating components. It worked great after that.Now I carry one of those cans of air (computer duster) and occasionally give the fridge a few bursts of air. Haven't had a problem since. It blows off the stuff that gets into the area where the flame is. I also helped a camping buddy when his fridge wasn't keeping cold enough too. He now carries a can of air.

I just have piece of "rubber" tubing that fitsinside the burner tube.Just stick it into the burner tube, give a couple of puffs,problem solved!

Refrigerater flue cleaning? | Good Sam Community

15 Replies

Mocoondo
Explorer II
Jun 24, 2013
wgriswold wrote:

The trailer is 13years old and the flue has probably never been cleaned and that might be the reason for the carbon build up. I need to look at the flame to see if it is burning rich. I will remove the burner and inspect it when cleaning the flue. If the burn slots are degraded and enlarged that would cause a rich flame and carbon build up.

Thanks for bringing that up.

Observe the flame while it is burning. It should be steady blue. An occasional flicker of orange is ok. If it is mostly orange, or frequently orange, then you have a problem.

At 13 years of age, I would suggest replacing the burner orifice as that would follow the "cheapest part first" rule.
wgriswold
Explorer
Jun 24, 2013
Mocoondo wrote:
Use high pressure compressed air and be sure to close your eyes. The amount of junk that comes out will amaze you.

The real issue, however, is why you are getting so much carbon buildup. You really should only get some soot. If you are getting that much carbon, something else is wrong. Is your burner heavily worn?

The trailer is 13years old and the flue has probably never been cleaned and that might be the reason for the carbon build up. I need to look at the flame to see if it is burning rich. I will remove the burner and inspect it when cleaning the flue. If the burn slots are degraded and enlarged that would cause a rich flame and carbon build up.

Thanks for bringing that up.
Mocoondo
Explorer II
Jun 24, 2013
Use high pressure compressed air and be sure to close your eyes. The amount of junk that comes out will amaze you.

The real issue, however, is why you are getting so much carbon buildup. You really should only get some soot. If you are getting that much carbon, something else is wrong. Is your burner heavily worn?
noe-place
Explorer
Jun 24, 2013
Only if you're Hindu!:B
karead7
Explorer
Jun 23, 2013
Seriously? You can't say "crap" here? Holy cow...

You can say "holy cow", can't you??!
karead7
Explorer
Jun 23, 2013
If you haven't actually removed the burner, there will also be a pile of******inside the burner tube itself. We are hardly ever plugged in to electricity so we use our fridge on gas most of the time. I remove the burner tube and clean it out as well as knocking the******out of the flue as much as possible. You can kind of get an idea here...

http://www.travelwithkevinandruth.com/2012/11/sherman-fired-right-up.html
wgriswold
Explorer
Jun 23, 2013
Thanks for your help. I think I will cover the burner slots with aluminum foil and use the hammer method, vacuum the fallen debris and then use the air compressor method followed by another vacuuming.
robatthelake
Explorer
Jun 23, 2013
Shop Vac at Bottom of Flue,rap the pipe a couple of times to dislodge the crud and suck it up.Repeat annually!
YC_1
Nomad
Jun 23, 2013
wgriswold wrote:
YC 1 wrote:
If you have a top vent, remove it and you can reach down (when cool), and grab the wire that is hanging over the edge of the tube. You should find an S shaped piece of metal. I like to use a shotgun cleaning rod to clean the tube.

I am a little confused, not unusual. The top vent is about 5' above the burner area. So, help me identify the tube and the S shaped piece of metal.

Thanks.

If you look at the "chimney" where the flame goes up the tube extends up close to the top. You may not be able to see it visually from the top. Take the top vent off and feel around and find the tube. Feel for a small wire hanging over the edge. Gently lift it out and the S piece should be attached.
noe-place
Explorer
Jun 23, 2013
I take the lazy man's way out and periodically take our MH to local service center and have them clean everything that needs cleaning or adjusting. That way I have someone to blame if anything goes wrong.:W