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MrRetired821's avatar
MrRetired821
Explorer
Jan 11, 2023

burbing fridge

My 2013 dometic 1350 quit cooling on a trip. Mobil repair tech found a blockage in the cooling unit. He suggested we removed the fridge and turn it upside down to burp the cooling unit. We did that and turned it right side up after a few minutes. The fridge started working like normal. My question is and which the tech couldn't answer, is this a permanent fix or will the blockage show up in the cooling unit somewhere else.
Anyone had this done to their fridge and did it fix the problem long term?
thanks
  • MrRetired821 wrote:
    Thanks for the responses. I guess I'm trying to convince myself to gamble with the burp thing. However, my better half says get a new cooling unit. BTW the fridge is still working like it should, but it's parked at the house.


    You haven't stated HOW MUCH you DEPEND on your RV for the necessities of life. IMO, if it's a vehicle that you occasionally use to venture into the wild blue yonder and you have many options available to you, I wouldn't hesitate to take a chance on it. (It's not that hard to fix if/when it breaks, it's just $$$) But if you (and others) deeply boondock regularly and ALL your favorite perishable foods are stored there, . . . . well, I would replace it tomorrow. (at least the cooling unit if there's no other physical damage)

    Chum lee
  • Thanks for the responses. I guess I'm trying to convince myself to gamble with the burp thing. However, my better half says get a new cooling unit. BTW the fridge is still working like it should, but it's parked at the house.
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    There is no such thing as a permanent Fix. Sooner or later either A: it will happen again or B: something else will fail.

    NOTE: This statement also applies to replacing the cooling unit (Or the entire fridge) Sooner or later the new unit will also fail.. Unlelss it gets lucky and some nice semi driver totals the RV as happend to me (The new cooling unit did NOT fail..) (Note.. it really turned out to be a good thing as other thins were about to fail..but did not.. quite.. due to the insurance payment.. .I can't believe the issues I found during cleanout).
  • I've found that the average life for Dometic RV two/three way absorption refrigerators to be around 9 to 14 years depending on the use/abuse cycle. Living in the RV full time or not using it at all, parking way off level, failing to keep the burner can/vents clean, operating in extremely hot/cold temperatures, and a lot of off road use (bouncing around), tend to reduce the life. Some units make it over twenty years without major repairs, . . . . but, not many. Do you feel lucky?

    Chum lee
  • Like many things in life, some are luckier than others. It may only work properly for a short time, or if you are lucky, it may work for a long time. Only you can decide, should I just replace the cooling unit now, while convenient, or wait till it quits again, at a time I really need it.

    Another thought, is why did it have blockage? Most times from operating off level. In the future, try to keep the trailer closer to level, while running the fridge.

    Jerry
  • MrRetired821 wrote:
    My 2013 dometic 1350 quit cooling on a trip. Mobil repair tech found a blockage in the cooling unit. He suggested we removed the fridge and turn it upside down to burp the cooling unit. We did that and turned it right side up after a few minutes. The fridge started working like normal. My question is and which the tech couldn't answer, is this a permanent fix or will the blockage show up in the cooling unit somewhere else.
    Anyone had this done to their fridge and did it fix the problem long term?
    thanks


    temporary at best. just moving the blockage so it can show up some where else or the same place later. best be is to just replace the cooling unit on the back of the fridge if you want it to be real reliable.

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