New TT, New Fridge - Is the venting ok?

[bedpan]

Just bought a Starcraft 18BH. It comes with a Norcold N306R. It is vented out the side of the trailer.

Wife noticed the Countertop above the fridge gets quite warm so I opened up the vent to have a look. There is a 45 degree baffle setup to direct heat out the vent. That said the baffle is loose fitted, with gaps around it.


http://googledrive.com/host/0BwxcD2SubWa4OEphVWYzRzRTazQ/1.jpg


http://googledrive.com/host/0BwxcD2SubWa4OEphVWYzRzRTazQ/1.jpg

Any thoughts if I were to use some silver reflective tape to seal things up? This is my first TT so I am not sure how it should look in here. I would think in my little reading that the more heat I can get out the better the fridge will work. That said the fridge is working well so far without any issues.

Also any benefit to adding a fan in here to push the hot air out? Maybe I am just over thinking things. If the fridge is working fine, maybe I should just leave well enough alone...

Thoughts?

Many thanks in advance!

Mike

[bedpan]

Ok... Ordered these... http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-RV-Camper-Refrigerator-Universal-Cooling-Fan-Switch-Thermostat-DIY-Instruct-/121550796650?hash=item1c4cfdf76a

Should be in before my big trip... Have a project to play with on the road.

Cheers,
Mike

[bedpan]

Have not done anything yet.. Just had another weekend in the TT. Fridge worked fine. Was a cool weekend up here though with highs in the teens (Celsius - so about 65F).

Current plan is to insulate above the fridge and silver tape what I can to minimize heat leakage. I reviewed the installation manual that Red31 linked to (thanks). As far as I can tell its installed correctly other then the baffle not meeting the thresholds set (1/4" gap). Its about 1/2" around most of it.

I will throw a couple fans in my toolbox. If cooling becomes an issue I can wire them up in a few minutes as needed.

Thanks kindly folks. I appreciate all the feedback!

Mike

[otrfun]

pnichols wrote:
. . . less than ideal installation of their propane refrigerator by their RV's manufacturer.

beemerphile1 wrote:
. . . add a baffle between the outside wall and cooling fins so air will be directed through the fins rather than around them.

Ditto.

Our frig checked out during a PDI with ambient temps in the low 80's. Tried using it a week or so later when temps rose into the mid-90's and the frig had trouble staying below 50.

Gave the frig installation manual a close read. It specified that the baffle on the backside of the frig should be less than an inch away from the coils. There was no baffle on our unit---just the outside wall, which left about 3" of space. Fabricated a baffle out of 1/4" plywood, mounted it about 1/2" away from the rear coils and completely filled the space between the outside wall and plywood with fiberglass. This mod dropped the frig temps from 50 into the low 40's---much better, but not quite good enough.

We then installed two computer fans which finally dropped our frig temps from the low 40's down into the 30's with ambient temps approaching 100 degrees.

The beer went from tasting good to great 🙂

[red31]

http://www.thetford.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/N305-306-Installation-Manual.pdf

[beemerphile1]

Seal it.

Also add a baffle between the outside wall and cooling fins so air will be directed through the fins rather than around them.

[pnichols]

Ideally, the vent should be straight up and nicely sealed.

Your refrigerator may not cool as well in hot weather. If ever necessary, you might want to eventually install a small 12 volt vent fan within the baffle for more even cooling in a wider range of outside temperatures.

Just for what it's worth, I'll bet that a lot of RV'ers who give up on propane refrigerators and switch to residential type do it because of erratic cooling that, unbeknowns to them, is due to a less than ideal installation of their propane refrigerator by their RV's manufacturer.

[Old-Biscuit]

bedpan wrote:
Thanks folks...

I like the idea of stuffing some insulation in the cavity above. I will pull out the baffle and seal with some reflective tape. Not sure what the current baffle is made out of. If it is non-conductive I will cover it with tape as well.

Will look into adding some fans. Will have to look at some of the thermistor kits and see if I can get it to switch on and off automagicaly. Run it off the fridge circuit so it only can run when the fridge is on and the heat above a certain threshold.

Any off the shelf kits for doing this or do I get to jerryrig this myself?

Mike

Fan thermostat kit...........LINK

Goes on far right condenser fin (set of fins at upper vent)
12V + to t-stat then to fan(s)
You can put an On/Off switch in line.
Powers fan when condenser fin temp reaches 130*F.....opens when fin temp drops below 115*F

Install fan center line, mid position of fridge

Some wiring, switch, computer fan, t-stat kit......done

[mchero]

Mike

Check this fan out! It will VASTLY improve cooling inside. Keeps the fins from iceing up as well! I have the Norcold 4 door in our rig. I swapped out the colling unit (original was dead Jim!) I was very impressed with the build quality of BOTH the cooling unit and the internal fan.

http://rvcoolingunit.com/-Evaporator-Fan-Greater-inside-Cooling-Our-Standard-Model-wGrill-P3239956.a...

Slick fan setup for just $14.00. I installed the internal fan yesterday. I could not get a 12VDC power source internally so I ran the positive lead out the drain hole. The fins are grounded. The fan has these clips that clip onto the fins and it will gound the fans. It even has a small switch to manually turn off the fans.
All you need is a hot lead.

I swapped out the cooling unit last year with an Amish cooling unit. Been a year & still 100% functional.

Get that back side insulated & properly ventilated and you should be in good shape. Do the dollar bill test on the door seal to make sure you don't have any leaks.

Keep us posted on your progress.

[j-d]

I found that two "92-MM" computer case fans, zip-tied together end-to-end, wedge into part of the coils on our Norcold. Wired to run full time. If we don't want them I go out and unplug, but where we are, they run almost all the time. WalMart has a four-pack for about $8. Cheap but when the salt air kills one I just replace till I need another 4-pk. They run a couple years.

[bedpan]

Thanks folks...

I like the idea of stuffing some insulation in the cavity above. I will pull out the baffle and seal with some reflective tape. Not sure what the current baffle is made out of. If it is non-conductive I will cover it with tape as well.

Will look into adding some fans. Will have to look at some of the thermistor kits and see if I can get it to switch on and off automagicaly. Run it off the fridge circuit so it only can run when the fridge is on and the heat above a certain threshold.

Any off the shelf kits for doing this or do I get to jerryrig this myself?

Mike

[otrfun]

Consider yourself lucky. Many don't have this 45 deg baffle, including our unit.

FWIW, ours came from the factory with quite a bit of insulation installed between the frig and surrounding cabinet (sides & top).

We installed two, 3-speed computer fans in the top cavity opening to pull air out. Leave them on 24/7 (speed on med). Both fans only draw about .4 amps total (12v). When ambient temps get above 90-95 deg these fans significantly improve the frig's cooling ability (8-10 degree drop--low 40's to low 30's).

[Chris_Bryant]

Old-Biscuit wrote:
Remove baffle..
Add some insulation to that area above fridge and then SEAL the baffle when you reinstall it with foil tape.

Excellent idea!

[bgum]

Foil tape it up and install a fan kit. Anything to help with the heat. The frig will thank you.

[Old-Biscuit]

Dead air space is a killer when it comes to proper air flow and fridge cooling.

The baffle is a good start at helping to direct the air flow up/out but the gaps around baffle aren't helping.

Remove baffle..
Add some insulation to that area above fridge and then SEAL the baffle when you reinstall it with foil tape.

IF nothing else.............SEAL the edges of baffle