Dometic Fridge not working...again

I guess I'm also wondering if these issues are permanently solvable or every trip that I take will I have to take the vents off to move insulation or fix the fridge in some regard? I'm frustrated that we have lost 3 refrigerators worth of food to these issues too.

long story but the truck broke down this weekend and the camper is stuck out the mountains so no pics til later this week when the truck is fixed. the insulation was over the coils, which is what the dealer said they fixed last time. i'm wondering if it fell back over the coils. however, if it did i only drove a total of 30 miles which would be a bummer if it's going to keep happening.

Open the cover and get some pics of the coils and the chimney if you can.
The heater/burner needs to work but you also need good airflow to cool the rest of the coils. Air is pulled through with convection and needs to be drawn over the coils not just up the open space.

I had to add a baffle to redirect the airflow in my old pop-up. Very similar with a short chimney.

I had never used an RV fridge prior to this, no. I know they're not going to function as well as a residential fridge. I stocked it with cold food after letting it cool down on 110. When it got up to 68 it had been closed for 24 straight hours running on propane.

It's an Eagle Cap 960. Yes the fridge is in the wall slide. Vents out the side. I feel like Eagle Cap did a **** job installing so that would make sense. We almost exclusively boondock down awfully bumpy forest service roads and 4WD trails. I'm wondering if the insulation slipped back out of place. Is it unrealistic to think that everything will stay in place and the fridge will work in these conditions?

Thanks for the link, I'll read up.


***Edit to add: the freezer has worked fine, almost every time if not every time. I can't remember it ever failing even when the fridge did but I didn't check this last time.

It should be doing FAR better than what you're reporting. Have you had an RV fridge before? Compared to residential fridges, they take much longer to cool initially, take much longer to recover from warm food being put in them or the door left open while you figure out where something is, and don't freeze anywhere near as hard.

BUT, it should still be doing FAR better...

Are you able to look at how it's installed? In from the back vent on the side of your coach? Is the fridge in a slide? Or does it have a roof vent?

Installation is VERY critical!!! Our friend Chris Bryant is an RV tech and has a website with lots of information HERE! Take a look at Installation and Troubleshooting. It'll at least arm you with some understanding.

As I said, installation is critical. Insulation, baffling, and clearances all matter. If the fridge is in a slide, special attention is required. If air flow upward over its coils is restricted or there's too much back clearance it'll have trouble cooling. Same if a baffle above is required and missing. Again, in the slide is a special case.