dometic refridge quits working when weather turns cold

We replaced the cooling unit in jan. 2010 while we were living/working in South Dakota. I was told by the tech. that replaced it, and we saw it on other rvs was the outside access covered, but not completely. We were told the cold causes the CU to work hotter and then cooks the CU. I guess I didn't make that clear about mine either. There still is air circulation. I know the fans work in the summer because I can here them running.34 here last night and fridge was working this morn. And dougrainer, it is in a slide and has 2 side access cover not a roof vent.

camperpaul wrote:

dougrainer wrote:
YOU have a few problems.
1. You NEVER/NEVER cover the outside access doors at all. You MUST have air circulation from the bottom back to the upper roof/side vent. Blocking off ventilation will ruin a cooling unit.
Doug

It is obvious you have never used an absorption refrigerator when the outdoor temperature is below 35°F.

It is absolutely necessary to keep the temperature in the rear of the refrigerator above 35°. If that means blocking vent holes, you block vent holes.

I have 34 years as an RV Tech and am Master Certified and have extensive refer factory training from both Norcold and Dometic and have had extensive consultations with both as it regards sub 32 degree operation. You have no idea what you are talking about. PERIOD. Doug

camperpaul wrote:

Chris Bryant wrote:
The heater is separate from the ice maker- it keeps the water line from freezing. It is the only temperature sensitive item I can think of, and it draws a small bit of current, which could make a bad connection show up.

The problem is common when the outside temperature drops below 28°F
and the "WEAK AMMONIA SOLUTION" freezes.

I'll use the graphic that I made over a decade ago-

from my page at http://bryantrv.com/reefer.html

BTW - I notice you are in DeLand Florida where "severe cold" is temperatures below 55°F. To those of us who 'winter' near the Cheddar Curtain, 40°F is a heat wave.

I am fully aware of how an absorption refrigerator works, and can assure you that 1, it is not "very common", and 2, the weak solution will not freeze at 28 degrees. I have over 15 years and 1/2 million miles of RVing experience, including Wisconsin in December.
This pic is from November 1988 in Chicago after driving in from Grand Rapids, Mi. From there we went north.
Amazingly, my refrigerator worked fine in below zero weather (I was going through a 40# cylinder every other day though).

Last- can you explain any possible way that a freezing "weak solution" can shut the power off?

dougrainer wrote:
YOU have a few problems.
1. You NEVER/NEVER cover the outside access doors at all. You MUST have air circulation from the bottom back to the upper roof/side vent. Blocking off ventilation will ruin a cooling unit.
Doug

It is obvious you have never used an absorption refrigerator when the outdoor temperature is below 35°F.

It is absolutely necessary to keep the temperature in the rear of the refrigerator above 35°. If that means blocking vent holes, you block vent holes.

Chris Bryant wrote:
The heater is separate from the ice maker- it keeps the water line from freezing. It is the only temperature sensitive item I can think of, and it draws a small bit of current, which could make a bad connection show up.

The problem is common when the outside temperature drops below 28°F
and the "WEAK AMMONIA SOLUTION" freezes.



BTW - I notice you are in DeLand Florida where "severe cold" is temperatures below 55°F. To those of us who 'winter' near the Cheddar Curtain, 40°F is a heat wave.

The heater is separate from the ice maker- it keeps the water line from freezing. It is the only temperature sensitive item I can think of, and it draws a small bit of current, which could make a bad connection show up.

1. The ONLY thing that I can think of that would turn the refer OFF and ON power wise is the safety thermal disc on the burner flue, but they do NOT auto reset themselves
2. The Refer will NOT freeze or have operational problems until the outside ambient drops BELOW 20 degrees, then will not cool well and once below 10 degrees will not cool at all. BUT NO DAMAGE to the cooling unit at all
3. Yes, using a 60 watt bulb will help cooling, but DO NOT use those Styrofoam panels to block the rear air circulation. YOU MUST HAVE REAR AIR CIRCULATION. As I stated, if the rear area overheats, you will "cook" the cooling unit and once that happens the CU is destroyed and useless.
4. Is this unit in a slide out and is the upper vent a side door or a roof top vent?
5. If you have blocked off the rear air circulation in the past, you may have partially destroyed the CU from optimum cooling performance.
6. Your model should also have the rear cooling fans and even in cold weather, those fans need to operate for optimal cooling performance, especially if the refer is in a slide room. Doug

Chris, the ice maker is disconnected due to poor water quality. I put 1" white Styrofoam behind to upper and lower outside access covers today. Only suppose to be 45 tonight but 30 by midweek. I have a thermo cube and 60 watt bulb that I'll add if I still have a problem. This just started last winter so I think I'm just masking the problem. Hard to get rv service to where we are located. Forums have helped me the past so thanks!

The only thing I can think if is a wiring problem that shows up when the heater for the ice maker line kicks in. All of the advice given so far really does not apply here- it is for extreme cold, where the controls keep working but cooling stops.
Check and tighten the 12 volt supply.

indicator lights go off and it stops cooling.