Hello! Log in or Register   |  Help  |  Donate  |  Buy Shirts See all banner ads | Advertise on TheSamba.com  
TheSamba.com
 
Who uses the fridge? Concerned about temps
Page: Previous  1, 2
Forum Index -> Vanagon Share: Facebook Twitter
Reply to topic
Print View
Quick sort: Show newest posts on top | Show oldest posts on top View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
buspor63
Samba Member


Joined: February 17, 2005
Posts: 1179
Location: Knoxville,TN Where America stops for gas
buspor63 is offline 

PostPosted: Sat Jun 10, 2006 10:03 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I was at the Target the other day looking for "Fillmore the Bus" toy's, none yet-none left?? Anyway, I looked at the wireless thermometers they had and wasnt taken with any of them. All the senders looked to be about the size of a deck of cards, is that normal?...reason-battery size? Was $15-$20 about right for price?

Fathers day is coming up, I might accessorize.
_________________
Imagine that, theres not an "h" in either Westfalia or Syncro?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
detter
Samba Member


Joined: September 22, 2005
Posts: 33
Location: Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada
detter is offline 

PostPosted: Tue Jun 13, 2006 7:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I have just finished my yearly cleaning of the 'firebox' and although the box was relatively clean, the jet was 50% plugged. I believe that operating in very damp conditions can cause sooting. I used a small toothbrush sytle soft steel wire brush as a prod, working one of the bristles back and forth to get the stubborn soot removed. Once done the fridge worked great once more.
For cooling, I bought 2x 4 inch computer muffin fans for the rear fins and mounted them side by side (for an easy mount e-mail me for pics). Cost me about 8 bucks each plus a 2" muffin fan inside and a wired thermometer stuck in the fins. Mounting the thermometer in the fins may give an optimistic reading but also gives a much quicker answer as to how the fridge is responding to various circumstances. The frozen milk tells me the rest of the fridge is doing well.
To boost the efficiency of the fridge I removed the fibreglass body insulation and replaced all my insulation with a home designed (cheaper) high tech closed cell plus reflective film combo. I also will use both propane and 12 volt or 120 for ten to fifteen minutes. After that the increased resultant heat seems to be counter productive. I.M.H.O. I do find that my 120 watt solar panel will both run the fridge (12 volt or 120) and charge my spare battery at the same time. This saves propane at times of boondocking. ([email protected])
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Classifieds Feedback
Mulcheese
Samba Member


Joined: September 19, 2004
Posts: 548
Location: Maple Grove, Mn
Mulcheese is offline 

PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2006 5:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

This weekend was the maiden voyage using the fridge.
I preheated/cooled it the night before and in the morning it was down to 27* when we headed out that day. All food was cold when it was put in. On the way there I used 12v power and when we hit camp I turned it to propane which lit first try. The fridge maintaned 40*-48* fluctuating Im sure from all the times that It was opened. It then spiked to above 50* and I didnt realize why until I saw that my wife, not knowing that these fridges are not like that one at home, had put our daughters large jug of warm juice in.
The ambient temps were about 80*so I feel that the inside temp was fairly good.
I know that the coils were producing as they should considering the amount of ice that would collect on them until I would turn on the inside fan mounted above the coils. This fan may have given me a few degrees overall but not much. It would defrost the coils though so Im sure some of that cold was circulated.
The one thing that I was not sure of is that the fan in back, which I just installed run the whole time. It never shut off even at night.

A question for you is does your fan run all the time? The fan I used is out of my old computer. It has almost exactly the same dimensions as the Gowesty fan people have purchased but not sure if it is the same watts. I am wondering exactly how much cooling it does on the fins?
_________________
82 Westy: Air is cool!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
detter
Samba Member


Joined: September 22, 2005
Posts: 33
Location: Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada
detter is offline 

PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2006 9:19 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You are one of the lucky few if your 12 volt heating element works well enough to keep the fridge cool. I found that before I installed my Solar panel, the 12 volt setting was almost useless and I had to resort to using 120 volts via my 400 watt inverter; it always worked wonders. The trouble arose when I stopped for more than 15 minutes the inverter would shut off as the voltage dropped below 10.5 volts. That was in the old days before I had a spare battery and a new main battery. I also find that the 120 Watt Solar panel requires bright sun and really only works from 10:00 am to about 6:00 pm unless I am camping and raise my roof to point in the direction of the sun.
In answer to your question, my fans rarely ever come on unless I am sitting in 100 degree weather with the fridge side exposed to the sun. I replaced the original fan with two x 4" muffin fans like yours but I installed a by-pass switch to enable me to run the fans whenever I felt the need. I still retained the fin mounted thermocouple switch for self-actuation. But, ya-know..there are times when they don't seem to make a difference, perhaps the fresh air is just too hot and there is no 'spray' to give evaporative cooling. Now there's an idea. Just something else to create rust behind the fridge. The current draw for the fans is significantly less than the original fan and if you check the amperage draw you will see that the more you pay the more efficient the fans will be. Something you may wish to try is to run with your fridge side window open half way to encourage air movement and crack open your roof vent. Try to park with the fridge side of the van away from the sun and leave open the window when parked, using the curtains to 'funnel' the rising heat right out the window.
You are also right about the internal fan sucking the ice off the inside fins and hopefully spreading it around.
Whatever, don't give up.. just realize that the fridge has a mind of it's own and you will never really conquer it, only occasionally beat it temporarily into submission. Good Luck
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Classifieds Feedback
birthright4soup
Samba Member


Joined: March 27, 2008
Posts: 2

birthright4soup is offline 

PostPosted: Fri Mar 28, 2008 3:00 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

This is my first post here. I've read over a hundred posts which deal with the Dometic 182B refrigerator. I bought my used '82 Type II a few years ago. My 'frig has always worked. However, the external fan stoped working recently. So I downloaded the factory repair manual. Then I finally pulled mine out and did all the recommended maintenanace/performance tricks. I bench checked the operation of the fan, and it works. I suspect the problem is with the thermostat, which is connected with two screws to one of the condenser fins on the back of the 'frig (underlined words are taken from the factory repair manual).

My current questionis this: Where can I obtain a new thermostat? The current thermostat has quick-connect male tabs on opposing sides and also has a blue-colored dot centered on it. Imprinted on it is the following:

TYPE 261
250/10(3)~T175

The Dometic manual and the factory repair manual state that the "thermo switch" closes at 140 degrees F (which starts the fan) and opens at 124 degrees F (which stops the fan).

I've searched many places online for a replacement thermostat. Does anyone know where I can obtain one? Please reply via in this forum AND via my email addy: [email protected]

Thanks!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Classifieds Feedback
Pascal
Samba Member


Joined: January 13, 2006
Posts: 825
Location: Fredericton, NB, Canada
Pascal is offline 

PostPosted: Fri Mar 28, 2008 4:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I performed maintenance on our fridge (cleaned combustion chamber, new seals) and installed radiant insulation where I could. We then set out for an 8 week cross Canada tour. After two weeks we figured out how to make that fridge work well. For the remaining six weeks it performed how it should...but we also knew it's limitations. It's realy about experience and having to make due with what we had. What we learned early was that if its over 30 celcius, the dometic has an awfull hard time as a beer fridge (i.e. opened and close often).

Now when we go on weekend trips we bring a "drink" cooler that is wet and full of ice, and we use the dometic as a dry cooler/fridge. Works great for us in eastern Canada.
_________________
'84 Westy - 2.2wbx, GT Torque-Biasing Differential
'91 EA Cabby
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
birthright4soup
Samba Member


Joined: March 27, 2008
Posts: 2

birthright4soup is offline 

PostPosted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 3:22 pm    Post subject: ... a success story... Reply with quote

Since my previous post here, I've done the following with my 'frig:

Since I'm not Mr. Moneybags, I took a "muffin fan" off of my car battery-powered food dehydrator and installed it externally on the back of the 'frig, on the bottom side of the upper set of condenser fins (just to the left of the thermostat).

I pre-tested the thermostat with a volt meter on a warmed iron skillet and found that the switch worked fine after all. So I bought some "heat transfer paste" from Radio Shack (got ripped for about $8, since they're the only game in town -- I sojourn on a rather small island). I applied a dab to the bottom of the thermostat and re-installed it in its proper spot on the condenser fins. In short, deter was correct in that the thermostat itself was not faulty; apparently, it was just a matter of reliable *contact* between it and the fin.

Then I installed a bypass switch, a SPST micro-toggle, on the panel (to the right of the LED display), so I can manually activate both fans at the same time. I did not remove the factory fan, as it still runs fine, and I don't mind that it doesn't run as quiet as the muffin fan because the noise keeps me alerted to the fact that the fans are indeed running.

Now it looks like I'll pick up that super-efficient matchbook-sized 12VDC micro-"muffin fan" (again, at Radio Shack for $15) and install it inside the 'frig. If I wish to power that internal fan with AC power, then I'll use a "black cube" converter in the onboard AC120V receptacle to get 12VDC power. If I wish to power that fan with straight 12VDC, I'll probably tap into the wire bundle behind the LED display on the panel. And, of course, I'll install a switch to move back and forth between the two power sources. At 1.56 watts, this micro-fan should work fine (catalog #273-240) --> http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?produc...age=search

Back to my story. I let the 'frig run on my friend's outside 120VAC power for a full day. My volt meter has a thermo-couple so I tested the temperatures inside, outside, and behind the 'frig. Outside (ambient) was about 68 degrees F. Inside was about 27 degrees F. Then I played around a bit by testing the ambient temp's near and around the condenser coils. I even stuffed up the intake/floor vent and exhaust/top vent with towels to intentionally "raise the stakes" a bit.

In the end, the 'frig make ice in both of the ice cube trays! It also chilled my drinking water bottle down, dare I say, to the point where it hurt the back of my throat to drink more than one swallow at a time.

I do think it's an important step in the overall plan of chilling the 'frig to go ahead and install an internal fan to minimize any frosting. Gotta keep that chilled air movin' so it is thoroughly "mixed" i.e. totally homogenous in that box! But, I don't like the idea of having to run a wire past or drill through the fascia or 'frig door. Is a remote controlled fan fea$ible or even possible?

Finally, I give a hearty THANK YOU to deter, who spent the time to actually forward me so much actually useful info! deter, thank you so very much!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Classifieds Feedback
Californio
Samba Member


Joined: May 17, 2007
Posts: 1276

Californio is offline 

PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 2:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm in the process of installing a 4" muffin fan to exhaust the hot air through the (former) city water hookup. Question: is it more efficient to blow air in from the outside or out from the inside?

Seems to me you could argue it both ways: outside air is always cooler than inside, especially between the fridge and the body panel, so blowing air IN will cool it. OTOH, if you blow the air OUT, you can feel the heat on your hand, so that must be cooling it too.

Anybody done a scientific experiment in this new, fascinating field of research?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
PDXWesty
Samba Member


Joined: April 11, 2006
Posts: 6235
Location: Portland OR
PDXWesty is offline 

PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 2:24 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

It's more efficient to exhaust the hot air out from behind the fridge, not blow outside air in.
_________________
89 Westy 2.1 Auto
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
JPrato
Samba Member


Joined: December 15, 2006
Posts: 788
Location: Livonia, NY
JPrato is offline 

PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 2:29 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Good question. I would say that the vent is above the fridge in a area of hot air, so push that hot air out and hopefully draw some cooler air up from below past the cooling fins to take it's place.
_________________
Joe

87 Syncro Tin Top project
84 Westy, 2.5L Subaru power
06 Subaru 2.5 turbo in waiting
46 Cessna 140
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Gallery Classifieds Feedback
DAIZEE
Samba Member


Joined: January 26, 2010
Posts: 7552
Location: Greater Toronto Area Ontario West Side
DAIZEE is offline 

PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 3:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

The Riviera has a Dometic RM215 which is much bigger than the Dometic in the Westy's. I haven't fired it up yet and I am trying to track down info on it. Did find an online manual for the Westy model.

I will invest in a thermometer for reading and as it has a freezer I will put two trays of full size ice cubes in and see how they do. There is much more room behind the RM 215 than the other. Only time will tell me how it goes.
_________________
'09 2.5L Jetta 5 cylinder, 5 spd, super turbo, see thread in H2O Cooled Jetta, etc...
83.5 Vanagon L Riviera Model with 98 1.9L TD AAZ 4 speed Daily Driver 3 out of 4 seasons (sold)
84 Vanagon GL Wolfsburg Westy WBX 4 speed (sold)
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Facebook Gallery Classifieds Feedback
firepilot
Samba Member


Joined: February 10, 2009
Posts: 273
Location: Boise
firepilot is offline 

PostPosted: Thu May 06, 2010 3:43 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

My solution is that I have one of those digital clock/weather stations that has a remote wireless temp sensor that you can stick anywhere. I will just put the main unit on the side of the closet , and then stick the temperature sensor in the fridge.

You can sometimes find these things fairly cheap online.
_________________
86 Westy Syncro
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Classifieds Feedback
heidi85ho
Samba Member


Joined: October 17, 2009
Posts: 298
Location: Williamsburg,Virginia
heidi85ho is offline 

PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2010 6:24 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

to compensate for the temp diff from night to hot days, i will place a freeze pack above the cooling fins in the fridge. most flat ice packs fit. it will freeze overnite providing help for the fridge during the hot part of the day. as an added plus, it seems to moderate slightly the nite temp so that the freezing of veggies becomes less of a problem.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
MarkWard
Samba Member


Joined: February 09, 2005
Posts: 17014
Location: Retired South Florida
MarkWard is offline 

PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2010 6:48 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Someone posted hear about rotating freezer packs top to bottom every day. I have two that I tried and along with a small battery fan kept my stock fridge working fine. The freezer packs are the size of the ice cube tray shelf. It will freeze solid in a day and then gets rotated to the bottom of the fridge the next day. I run on 12 volt when moving, propane when camping, unless there is elec and then I hook up to the grid, charge my batteries and run the fridge off of 110. It works well enough that I have not replaced it with one of the modern ones yet.
_________________
☮️
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
Californio
Samba Member


Joined: May 17, 2007
Posts: 1276

Californio is offline 

PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2010 7:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

What keeps me going with the Dometic is the propane. I have two tanks mounted and on those can keep it running for about seven weeks without touching it, no solar, no AC, no nada.

So far I've found that the exhaust fans, whether directed in or out, don't make a huge amount of difference in internal temps, though they do reduce the temps above and behind the fridge quite a lot. At the end of a day in the 70's, the internal fridge temp is around 45. That means on a hot day in August it won't be usable for much.

One design defect in these is the proximity of the heater to the rear wall of the cooling box. Anybody ever dealt with that (by moving/insulating the heater) ?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Gallery Classifieds Feedback
westynova
Samba Member


Joined: December 14, 2008
Posts: 209
Location: Nova Scotia, Canada
westynova is offline 

PostPosted: Fri May 07, 2010 9:54 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I always the performance was on the edge. It would work but struggled to maintain temps on 12V or propane. It worked well on AC and could hold its own on warm days. Really sucked while driving on 12V so I used to try running it on propane with the vent modification.

Did some of the performance mods but never seemed to really improve performance. I had a bad experience on a weekend trip where my wife noticed the internal temp went up to 8'C (not sure what that is in F) on the remote thermometer. She felt ALL the food was bad so it ALL had to go in the garbage and I had to buy a whole bunch of stuff to complete the weekend. She does not trust it so it is no longer an option.

So out it came this winter and there is a new Engel fridge in its place. There is a 135W solar panel and batteries to be installed once I do the Aux Battery relay conversion.

To those of you with the original fridge, good luck.
_________________
84 Westy
2010 VW Golf TDI Wagon
2009 Jeep Rubicon Unlimited, Lifted and Locked
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website Gallery Classifieds Feedback
Typhon2222
Samba Member


Joined: October 24, 2009
Posts: 363
Location: Berkeley, CA --> Berlin, Germany
Typhon2222 is offline 

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 5:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

rsxsr wrote:
Someone posted hear about rotating freezer packs top to bottom every day. I have two that I tried and along with a small battery fan kept my stock fridge working fine. The freezer packs are the size of the ice cube tray shelf. It will freeze solid in a day and then gets rotated to the bottom of the fridge the next day. I run on 12 volt when moving, propane when camping, unless there is elec and then I hook up to the grid, charge my batteries and run the fridge off of 110. It works well enough that I have not replaced it with one of the modern ones yet.


Inspired by this post, I've spent some time (both off- and on-line) trying to find freezer packs of the small size described (able to fit on the tiny ice-cube tray shelf), but have had no luck. Even the 8-ounce Rubbermaid blue ice mini pack ( http://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-Home-Blue-Mini-10...amp;sr=8-5 ) is too large to fit on the wee shelf.

Anybody have any leads?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website Classifieds Feedback
DWC
Samba Member


Joined: October 02, 2007
Posts: 223
Location: San Jose CA
DWC is offline 

PostPosted: Sun May 09, 2010 10:32 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

In reply to ....

"buspor63
I was at the Target the other day looking for "Fillmore the Bus" toy's, none yet-none left?? Anyway, I looked at the wireless thermometers they had and wasnt taken with any of them. All the senders looked to be about the size of a deck of cards, is that normal?...reason-battery size? Was $15-$20 about right for price?"

Here's what I use: http://www.partshelf.com/ci00782.html

Works great, the main unit / display fits perfectly in the front panel indentation where the stove knobs are (I used a small adhesive backed magnet to hold it in place.) The sender is also small and fits in the fridge door racks - or you can place it anyplace in the fridge with velcro. I think I paid about $13.00 for it at my local hardware store.
Batteries last over a year.

DC
_________________
83.5 Westy Waterboxer
71 Squareback
81 Westy
59 Panel van
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Classifieds Feedback
candyman
Samba Trout Slayer


Joined: December 20, 2003
Posts: 2694
Location: Missoula MT
candyman is offline 

PostPosted: Mon May 10, 2010 11:22 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=357977&highlight=dometic+fridge

heres my way of dealing with it
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website Gallery Classifieds Feedback
Display posts from previous:   
Reply to topic    Forum Index -> Vanagon All times are Mountain Standard Time/Pacific Daylight Savings Time
Page: Previous  1, 2
Page 2 of 2

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum

About | Help! | Advertise | Donate | Premium Membership | Privacy/Terms of Use | Contact Us | Site Map
Copyright © 1996-2023, Everett Barnes. All Rights Reserved.
Not affiliated with or sponsored by Volkswagen of America | Forum powered by phpBB
Links to eBay or other vendor sites may be affiliate links where the site receives compensation.