Arcticold
Explorer
Joined 12 years ago
User Profile
User Widgets
All Activity
Re: Dumb question? Fridge brand quality? Which one?
BobsYourUncle wrote: OK, I have never had to consider a full fridge replacement before. My fridge has bitten the big green weenie and decided to roll over and die.... Seems that Bob expected it to survive in -33C with wind chills of -40's..... It didn't. I bought this rig last May, in favor of replacing my old rotting Sportsmen. Another story there.... Anyhow, I'm working in stupidly cold freezing temperatures and my fridge is toast. Or so it seems. I could buy an Amish cooling unit and fix the thing, but I really don't like this fridge. Dometic Americana. No model number on it but I think it is RM 2652. I have never liked this thing, it has no temperature control whatsoever. It is on, or it is off. Period, no more. I hate it. Eyebrow panel - on/off/ auto/ gas. Thats it. Anyhow, looks like I have to put a new one in. Several different brands out there, Dometic, Norcold and a few others. Bewilderment sets in, as I have never needed to compare brands before. But I need to know. If I'm going to buy a fridge, may as well get something better than this thing. Is this the old Ford vs Chevy vs Dodge deal? Or is one brand of RV fridge better than the other? I am looking at options for fridge replacement. I don't have 2G to shell out but need a fridge. I salvaged most of my stuff from the freezer, cooked it all up and put it in my pickup where it promptly froze, but ate like an oink the past 2 nights trying not to throw stuff out. Think I'll barf if I stuff any more in the piehole.... I hate wasting food. And no, I am not interested in putting a 110 only unit in. I boondock a lot and I need a proper RV fridge. Is there any difference in quality of Norcold, Dometic and others? If your RM2652 cooling unit has leaked, you will more then likely be able to see the yellow/green residue around the burner area on the rear of the fridge. Looking through the side vent on the rv it is on the right hand side just below the duct work. In most cases it is visually obvious when the weld lets go due to the yellow/green staining. You mentioned that it is extremely cold out. Your cooling unit will not operate when it is extremely cold out. This is because the ammonia in you cooling unit must reach a certain temperature to boil. As previously noted a light bulb in the rear of the fridge does help. Also if that alone does not work, you can place a piece of insulation (Non combustible) over a portion of the rear vent to help hold the heat in. This will also help, but remember to remove it when the outside temperature starts to rise. Also if you do not like how your refrigerator does not have a controllable thermostat, there is an option. It is a thermistor adjuster made by Dinosaur Electronics. It is a product that allows you to adjust the temperature of the fixed temperature Dometic refrigerators such as your. It will simply hook up to your existing thermistor. Your local dealer will be able to order it for you.336Views0likes0CommentsRe: Leave on Fridge?
It honestly depends on the model of refrigerator. Anything newer then 1998 I would recommend shutting them down when not in use. The new systems by both big manufactures have issues with the boiler area of the cooling unit. They switched to a thiner walled tubing and will eventually break open the weld at the bottom of the boiler tube or just above that where the heating element tubes are welded on to the boiler. By shutting the newer refrigerators down when not in use it will prolong the lifespan of the fridge. The pre 1998 fridges, for the most part do not have the same issues. In the case of the older fridges it is going to be a corrosion issue on the evaporator head that causes failure. This is caused from the frost that builds up on the evaporator head during operation then melts when turned off, leaving water that is trapped on the steel tubes which causes corrosion. In the case of the older model refrigerators, it is best to leave the refrigerator on as much as possible as frost on the steel is better then pools of trapped water. As someone mentioned above, it is very critical that in all cases the refrigerator is level when stationary and in operation. I hope this information helps.410Views0likes0Comments
Groups
Motorhome Group
Join in here to discuss all things motorhomes.Mar 09, 202538,709 Posts
