WilleyB wrote:
. . . A big question in my mind "Why such a low failure rate?" . . .
Hi Willis,
I suppose that depends upon what one calls a “failure.” I see at least two types:
Type 1 -- Dometic’s published rate of 0.01% is for the
risk of a fire, perhaps only those that have/will spread to the house. That is a low rate, thought the potential loss is quite serious for the unlucky few.
Type 2 -- A separate concern is the rate of failure of the unit where it
leaks its refrigerant mix without fire. I’m not sure anyone knows the true rate for this “failure.” This type is not life-threatening, and therefore not subject to a
safety recall.
Dometic’s recall, so far as I can tell, deals only with failure Type 1. Their “fix” will prevent the refrigerant mix from catching fire if/when it leaks.
Their “fix” will do nothing to prevent what appears to be an abysmally high rate of unit failure due to leakage. Am I wrong?
It appears that an essential element causing the failure is the too-hot electrical element.
Is this a design flaw? Poor testing/quality control? Other? I wager we will never know.
Whatever the cause of the too-hot element, I think it reflects very poorly upon Dometic that
1) this continued for so many years, and
2) their recall will do absolutely nothing to mitigate the likelihood of an early failure for those which have not yet caught fire.
It seems to me that at a minimum, Dometic should also replace the defective electrical heating elements as part of the recall, rather than letting hundreds of thousands of units risk a premature failure.
Wayne
