Dometic RM2820 Not Getting Cold

[kcny]

So of course I waited till the last minute to check my fridge (first camping trip tomorrow)....

Last night at 8pm I turned on the fridge, set the temp button to #4 and pressed the Auto button. I am plugged into shore power and the fridge correctly chose AC as the source. I also check that the heating strip between the doors worked and so I turned that switch off and left the fridge start to cool for the night --- which would be the first time i have used the fridge.

This morning before leaving for work (some 10 hours later), the fridge/freezer is not cold AT ALL.

I grabbed the manual and read the electrical diagram - I have 12V and 120V coming in at the right spots, circuit breaker is on and both fuses on the control module are good. I can also switch to gas and hear the pilot try to lite (I have my tank off so didn't let the fridge run on gas).

Then I get to the part of the manual about the RV must be level. I have had the RV parked for a good few weeks in my driveway, which is in fact mildly sloped. Is it really "that simple"?

I can temporarily move my RV to the end of my lawn where it is level to test - how long should it take to know if this is the issue? Does parking on an unlevel surface cause any permanent damage? Should I hear any noise indicating the cooling part is working (I ask because I hear absolutely nothing now and just turned the fridge off before coming to work).

Any help/tips on how to diagnose would be appreciated, otherwise I will bring a cooler with ice for the weekend to store my perishables.

[capterik]

New heating element arrived, checked it with ohm meter, installed it and fridge is fixed, working properly

[capterik]

I will post my results when I know. Here is a good link to help.
http://www.fourwheelcampers.com/newdometicrefrigeratormanual.pdf

Update, my heating element is bad no ohm reading, hopefully that is it, I will update when new one installed

[dougrainer]

homer1951 wrote:
Did you make sure that the element is working? (Is the burner tube hot to the touch)If not, try it on propane for a few hours and see what happens. If it is hot then the cooling unit could be blocked from sitting over the winter. If you can't take the fridge out and "burp" it to stir things up, sometimes just taking it for a long ride on a bumpy road will be enough to get it circulating again. If that still doesn't work, the cooling unit might have to be replaced

Cooling units cannot get blocked or fail from just sitting. It takes circulation of the Ammonia mixture at an off level or blocked ventilation to block or ruin a cooling unit. Doug

[kcny]

capterik - let us know how you make out with your unit. I am packing the RV now for a weekend trip and doing the "snip-the-tip" to change out my thermistor (since I seemed to have issues on gas with maintaining a cool enough temperature). I also bought a fridge thermometer.

[capterik]

I am having a similar problem right now as I pull my unit out of mothballs. I think that if it cools just fine under gas, but not when on AC, and the fuses look fine, then it is either the AC heating element is bad, (if you look it up, it will tell you how to check it), or the board has gone bad. I will be checking my element this weekend, both parts are available for my unit from adventurerv.net for a total of around $135.

[kcny]

It is clipped on the far right fin. I actually just ordered a "clip the tip thermostat" and a fridge thermometer - thinking they would be something cheap cost-wise to try.

[enblethen]

Where is the thermistor set? It is a white unit that attaches to the funs in the refridgerator section. Move it up on the fins to cool more.
Could be circuit board failing.

[kcny]

Thanks for all the help guys. In my driveway, the RV is on a 6 degree slope. I moved it into the (more level) street and also used air to blow out dust from the flue and back of fridge on Saturday morning - and after an hour on gas, the fridge was getting cold. After a couple hours of loading up stuff for our trip and the drive to the weekend camp site, there was a layer of frost in the freezer when using the coldest setting.

Saturday night I had turned the coldness setting to a 4 and when I got up on Sunday, the fridge was definitely not cold enough to store food.

I put the fridge back on the coldest setting and after getting home two hours later, the freezer had frost again. So it appears that it is not properly cooling via the button setting or it didn't get cold enough just sitting there on a level surface, but was getting cold enough to frost the freezer when I was driving around?

I will also try again on electrical power when level and buy a heating element if need be.

And thoughts on this? Also, is either method more efficient (gas or AC)?

[dougrainer]

Turn the refer OFF for at least 12 hours. That allows the Ammonia solution to migrate back to where it should be. Then restart level, you should not have any problems then. Doug

[Bonefish]

Unless it has been running off level for sometime it is probably undamaged. In the freezer when you first turn it on feel the bottom and in about an hour you should be able to feel it is noticeably cooler to the touch just as a quick check. As above to fully cool around 4 hours. Also we always stock ours when leaving out with pre-cold or frozen food.

Worse case scenario is if you see some bright orange/yellow powder around the burner/heater area.

[Sloop_Smitten]

I ran my refrigerator overnight while parked in my "mildly sloping driveway" and had the same results. No cooling. I moved it to the level street and it was cooling normally in about 4 hours. That was a couple of years ago. I think severe damage occurs if you are constantly using the refrigerator on a slope over a longer period of time than overnight but it probably is dependent on other factors such as the age and overall condition of the refrigerator. Here's hoping you have the same results I did.

[ScottG]

I'm sorry to say that if you have operated so far out of level that it wont work and it's been that way for many hours then you have either damaged or severely impacted the performance of the cooling unit.

[kginder]

I just went through the exact same thing with my Norcold. My Class C was not level in my driveway. I drove the front wheels up on ramps which brought it to just about level. All is good.

[kcny]

Thanks for all the input gang, i'll let you know how it goes when I get home from work.

First thing I will try is leveling the RV and switching to propane for a couple hours. If that works, then I know that at least the cooling unit is good right?