Dometic

[Audrey & John]

Looks like the problem is the sensor on the fins. Must be some kind of short. Fridge reads and works fine as long as that sensor is not touching metal.

Audrey

[EngineerMike]

Sounds like a thermistor, a resistor that changes resistance w/temperature. My last fridge wouldn't hold a steady temp; the thermistor (clipped to fins) had a part time short in the twisted pair cable to the control board. The short happened when the fridge changed temp (which fridges are supposed to do, I think) & wires changed length. I installed a new thermistor & voila- fridge acted like a new fridge.

[Sully]

Forgot to report that Dometic had Central Valley RV Service replace our refer. We discovered a pin hole in the cooling tube under the insulation. Almost two weeks and we seem to be OK.

Thanks to WRV for thier help and Dometic for standing behind thier product.

Sully

[Audrey & John]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by EngineerMike:
Sounds like a thermistor, a resistor that changes resistance w/temperature. My last fridge wouldn't hold a steady temp; the thermistor (clipped to fins) had a part time short in the twisted pair cable to the control board. The short happened when the fridge changed temp (which fridges are supposed to do, I think) & wires changed length. I installed a new thermistor & voila- fridge acted like a new fridge. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I'm pretty sure our sensor (a thermistor I suppose) has a short to the exterior metal can containing the sensor. Otherwise why would it malfunction when attached to metal?

Was replacing that sensor a big deal? John has some concerns that it might not be easy to replace. The local RV guy here will figure out what needs to be done of course. It just didn't look like an easy job to John.

Audrey

[EngineerMike]

When I localized the problem to the sensor, I posted the model # & the problem to the Trailer Life tech problem forum. There's an RV fridge tech w/a few decades of experience that chimed back something to the effect of "look to the right & just be low the fins for a 1/8" dimple in the plastic liner of the fridge; drill a 1/4" hole there for fishing the new thermistor wire to the back of the fridge (that's what the dimple is there for)." Worked like a charm. The original wire pair was molded into the back insulation as the method of routing; couldn't back-pull it to repull the new one. Dometic probably has a similar process for the newer zig-zag fridges. Once the hole was drilled, you could fish a second, third,... thermistor as needed.