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08-06-2022, 08:52 PM
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#1
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
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Gas Absorption Fridge Question
For those of you who have the gas absorption fridges in your fivers ... what freezer and fridge temperatures are you seeing this summer with temps in excess of 100F day after day? I'm just curious as even with 2 cooling fans in the back of the fridge cavity that we've always had and an exterior fan sitting on a table outside the slide out blowing extra air in the lower vent ... we're seeing 41 in the box and 5 in the freezer by late afternoon. By morning it is -5F in the freezer and 34F in the box. I've added insulation as needed around the box a few years back and made sure the baffling is per installation specs from Dometic. Also a few years back, I even made an extra baffle atop the fridge to guide the air out of the upper vent so there wouldn't be a dead air space right above the fridge box. This is the first year we've had what I call elevated temps in our fridge. Maybe it's just the HEAT as at 7AM it's already 79 out here the past several days. Humidity is terrible as well.
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08-07-2022, 05:50 AM
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#2
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Montana Master
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Kansas City, Missouri
Posts: 2,707
M.O.C. #7992
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dieselguy, I'm getting pretty similar to what you are. The CPRR was a pretty good test for the fridge this year with heat and humidity similar to what you are having. My fridge is not in a slide, so the roof vent does a pretty good job of letting heat escape. I run no fans behind my unit. Electric or gas makes no difference. Temps stay about the same. My big issue is running down the road in these temps with the fridge on gas. It struggles. I need to take the burner out and clean it and see if that helps.
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2006 3000RK
2009 Ram 2500
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08-07-2022, 09:42 AM
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#3
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Montana Master
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Sebring
Posts: 3,659
M.O.C. #9969
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We had the 4 door NeverCold in our last unit. The fridge section would freeze things if set much higher than mid range, BUT the freezer would never get below mid-teens, so always soft serve ice cream.
Now with a residential no problem fridge 34/freezer 0
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Michelle & Ann
2018 Chevy 3500HD High Country DRW 4X4 Crew Cab w/Duramax/Allison, Formally 2010 Montana 2955RL, Now Loaded 2016 SOB, Mor/ryde IS, Disc Brakes & Pin Box, Comfort Ride Hitch, Sailun 17.5 Tires.
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08-07-2022, 10:16 AM
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#4
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Site Team
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Wilsey
Posts: 18,799
M.O.C. #11455
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We're getting about the same performace as you are. We're sitting in full sun and just a couple of hundred miles north of you.
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Dick, Joyce, Diego, Picatso and Gustav
2017 3720 RL, and 2013 HC 343RL
Pullrite Hitch, IS, Disk Brakes, 3rd AC, Winegard Traveler, Bathroom door mod, Dometic 320, couch for desk swap, replaced chairs, sun screens, added awnings, etc.
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08-07-2022, 03:26 PM
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#5
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Site Team
Join Date: Apr 2017
Location: Colorado Rockies
Posts: 1,922
M.O.C. #19755
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Your temps are normal. I see about the same numbers when it is hot. Last trip we maintained 28-34 in the box, 8-15 in the freezer. Outside temps were 80 in the day, 60 at night. Our control is set on 4.
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Scott & Alta
2017 Montana 3160RL, Legacy, Onan 5.5Kw, Solar
2022 F-450 Lariat Ultimate
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08-08-2022, 06:24 AM
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#6
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Lake Gaston
Posts: 8,773
M.O.C. #12156
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In that amount of heat, our frig runs about the same.
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Mike and Lorraine
2002 3655 FL, 2005 3650RK
2010 3665RE, 2015 3910FB
F350 crew cab dually 6.7
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08-08-2022, 09:08 AM
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#7
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Montana Master
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Full Timer In Naples, Florida
Posts: 1,049
M.O.C. #15731
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mhs4771
We had the 4 door NeverCold in our last unit. The fridge section would freeze things if set much higher than mid range, BUT the freezer would never get below mid-teens, so always soft serve ice cream.
Now with a residential no problem fridge 34/freezer 0
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We live in Florida and the rv fridges just do not do the job as its way to hot. No amount of fans are going to help. Out it went and in came a fridgidare.
__________________
2017, 3500 Ram Big Horn, 4x4, Crew Cab, DRW, Aisin Transmission, 4:10. Curt Q20, 2014 Mountaineer 331 RLT, Sailun's on the rv and truck.
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08-08-2022, 10:25 AM
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#8
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Site Team
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: Oro Valley
Posts: 3,933
M.O.C. #20477
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Ours does fine even in AZ. We have an ARP with multiple fans. Freezer stays at 15 and fridge runs 35-40.
__________________
Zack and Donna plus Millie and Ranger
2018 3160RL
"Life is too short to stay indoors, enjoy the ride!"
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08-08-2022, 11:57 AM
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#9
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
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Thanks for the replies so far. I guess I'll just chalk it up to a really hot summer for an extended period of time. I too have the arp controller and it does help. We've always had gas absorption refrigerators since the late 90s and this is the first spell that we had a bit of an issue. We don't full-time so we're not the market for a stick house sized refrigerator that has to be accompanied by an inverter as seen in about any camper on the dealer lots nowadays. I will say I have considered going to the 12 volt DC compressor freon kits that are available. It doesn't look that tough to swap it over from the gas absorption style.
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08-09-2022, 07:13 AM
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#10
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Established Member
Join Date: Jun 2022
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 30
M.O.C. #31128
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Hopefully the OP doesn’t mind if I piggyback on this thread. We’ve had a stretch of warm weather here and I cannot get our fridge to cool properly (at least to what I feel is acceptable). It was 90 degrees during the day yesterday and 70 or so at night and humid. The fridge is a 4 door norcold set at 9 (max) and I cannot get it below 40-41 degrees in the fridge and 18-19 degrees in the freezer. I checked under the exterior access panels for obstructions and everything seems clean and functional. I ran it in lp mode overnight with no change.
I did note that yesterday evening the cooling fins inside the fridge were frosted over, this morning they were clear. The thermistor had made a small amount of corrosion under it on the fins so I moved it to a clean spot lower on the fin. I couldn’t feel any leaks around the door gaskets.
Are these temps as good as it gets for this fridge? If not, what can I try next? I’m not opposed to moving to a residential fridge if that’s the best option long term as I do not plan on being without shore power. (I saw some people saying to remove the white baffle at the top access panel to reduce internal temps?)
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08-09-2022, 07:57 AM
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#11
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Montana Master
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Kansas City, Missouri
Posts: 2,707
M.O.C. #7992
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Don't remove the baffle. It is there for a purpose. Aids in convection moving air up over the cooling unit on the back of the fridge. Fins frosting over aren't a bad thing as long as it doesn't completely ice up. The frost being gone the next morning shows your unit is going into defrost mode successfully. Mine is an older two door unit. It iced up during periods of high humidity. I installed a computer fan inside the refrigerator continuous blowing over the fins. Ice up problem eliminated.
__________________
2006 3000RK
2009 Ram 2500
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08-09-2022, 08:56 AM
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#12
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Established Member
Join Date: Jun 2022
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 30
M.O.C. #31128
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Thanks for the info on the baffle. I have a small fan inside the fridge to move air but the fins still iced over. This is my first rv fridge experience so I don’t have much to compare it to, unfortunately. Everything I have seen indicates that the fridge is operating normally but the temperatures are not acceptable.
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08-09-2022, 10:35 AM
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#13
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Site Team
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Carmichael - CA
Posts: 7,370
M.O.C. #4831
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Columbo
...The thermistor had made a small amount of corrosion under it on the fins so I moved it to a clean spot lower on the fin....
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Moving the thermistor down increases the temperature. You want it up at the top for the coldest settings. Remember "up north is colder than down south".
__________________
Carl (n Susan)
There is more to life than fuel mileage.
2012 Montana 3700RL Big Sky Package towed by a 2015 Ford F350 6.7L PSD 4WD CC LWB
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08-09-2022, 11:45 AM
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#14
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Established Member
Join Date: Jun 2022
Location: New Hampshire
Posts: 30
M.O.C. #31128
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Interesting, I did not know that! I’ll clean the thermistor and relocate it higher on the fin. Thank you!
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08-09-2022, 01:38 PM
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#15
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Montana Master
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Haysville
Posts: 4,261
M.O.C. #3085
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Make sure the cooling fan behind the fridge located between the upper and lower vent is working, you'll hear a high pitch whine if so. It doesn't hurt to add a fan or two up in there. They're just 12 volt computer fans. With my recent 100 plus degree days, I've removed the lower vent and placed a floor fan blowing air into that vent similar to the picture shown except I have my fan on a plastic milk carton box. You want as much air movement as possible. Also the flapper that seals the doors on the Norcold fridges are notorious for leaking air. There is an adjustment on the door hinge that fixes this. Just Google it for more info. It involves placing a washer on the bottom hinge.
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