RM212 Fridge - No Spark after removal

[MidLifeCrisis]

Its the RM212 with the Electronic Re-Ignitor do-dad on it.

Just removed the fridge and in the process managed to short the positive wire from the re-ignitor terminal block onto what I think was the gas pipe (but it might have struck other areas as I let it go) as I was disconnecting the wire.

Obviously its blown the fuse at the fuse block but I've replaced that - now the ignitor is not working at all, no clicking, no flashing light, nothing!?!?

I've checked that I'm getting 12v at the positive wire at the terminal block (after I replaced the fuse) - and that seems to be OK.

So, what have I done - bear in mind that I have had the fridge completely out - gas disconnected, all wiring disconnected - so the 'mistake' with grounding the positive wire to the ignitor might not be the culprit.

Any ideas? Is there a way to diagnose the re-ignitor to see why its not working?
Cheers.
P.S. And yes I know I should have disconnected the battery before I started removing the fridge but I got a bit carried away!!

[1664]

Check the negative return leg is sound since the fridge is 'out'

[MidLifeCrisis]

Yep - sorry - forgot to mention that I'd checked the ground going to the ignitor and it seems to have continuity to ground.

But on that subject - what does the 'spark' use for a ground? (Because there is only one wire going from the ignitor electronics down to the flame location - so it must use a different gnd??)

Anyone got a circuit diagram of the re-ignitor ? All I have is the RM212 manual and that's no real use.

[Oldiebut goodie]

gas pipe/burner and fittings form the ground.

[MidLifeCrisis]

gas pipe/burner and fittings form the ground.

OK - how are those grounded? Does it ground through the gas fittings back up to the gas knob (and from there to the ignitor circuit?)

[Oldiebut goodie]

All the metal parts are screwed/bolted to the body which should be connected to the 12v negative somewhere on the top usually. Just check you have continuity between the burner and 12v negative.

The igniter reigniter, used on certain Dometic
model refrigerators, operates on 12 volt current.
On gas operation the igniter senses the resistance
through the flame between the electrode
and burner. When there is no flame at the
burner, the resistance is high and the igniter
begins sparking to light the burner. As soon as
the flame is lit, the resistance between the
electrode and burner drops and the igniter
stops sparking. The resistance is monitored by
the igniter, and, if for any reason the flame
goes out, the igniter begins sparking until the
burner is lit. This ensures that the flame will
always be lit when desired. Each time the
igniter reigniter system sparks, a light will
illuminate on the lower left front corner of the
refrigerator.
If the electrode does not spark first, make sure
the igniter is receiving 12 volts. If the igniter is
receiving 12 volts and produces no spark, it
must be checked for operation.
(61)
Turn the refrigerator off and remove the wire
between the electrode and igniter. Now turn the
refrigerator to the gas mode. If no internal
clicking sound is heard the igniter is defective.
It is important to remove the high voltage wire
that goes to the electrode from the igniter when
you are checking the igniter for operation. The
high voltage wire and the electrode can be
shorted to ground causing the igniter reigniter
to think that the flame is lit, resulting in no
spark on gas operation.
(62)
The distance between the tip of the electrode
and the burner, known as the spark gap,
should be 3/16 of an inch. A greater distance
will create a slow spark causing the light to
blink. A lesser distance will create a fast spark
that may not light the burner.

[MidLifeCrisis]

Thanks 'Oldiebut goodie'
I'll take a look again on Monday - looks like I'll be yanking the fridge out again!

[andyhagerty]

Hi

I have a 212 fridge with a rocker switch for igniter, in my Komet. The electric spark packed up a couple of years ago. I have been living with it working on mains. I would however like to get it working. Is there anything I can do without taking fridge out? If not how easy is it to take out?

Cheers

Andy.

[MidLifeCrisis]

Have you checked the fuse on the wiring that goes to the ignitor?
If that is OK - then I think there is not much else you can do without taking the fridge (at least a bit of the way) out.
Might depend how your fridge is installed but I couldn't get to anything until fridge was out.
The ignitor unit (if you have the same RM212 fridge) is on the top of the fridge (in the front left corner) - if you can get to that then you can check that 12v is getting to the ignitor unit.
From there you'll then need to get the fridge totally out to check the actual sparking parts (down where the flame is).

I'm going to try to take a look at mine as soon as the temp rises enough that I don't mind messing around in the van!

[1664]

I'll post details and pictures when I get time. Probably the weekend but no promises

[andyhagerty]

Great, look forward to it.

Cheers

Andy

[1664]

Great, look forward to it.

we'll see about that


Right; I took all my furniture out to get at the inside of the bodywork seams so you may choose to remove it using a different method. I removed the cupboard top with the gas hob and sink still attached which gives easy access to all the screws etc. Whether you could access all these by removing just the wooden panel next to the gas isolation valves I don't know but it would be like the proverbial gynaecologist decorating his hall through the letterbox.

Firstly there are two screws fixing the either side of the fridge to the cupboard as shown below





You also need to detach the gas exhaust pipe. You could undo the flue from outside the van but I preferred to access it through the top heat vent - mine just pulled off





As I said previously I removed the entire cupboard top to reveal all the remaining fixings, there will be gaffa tape over the screws fixing the draught excluder plate at the back if I remember correctly. The gas pipe will need disconnecting too - easy with the cuboard top off but if you can't get at the actual fridge connection you might be able to get at the back of the isolation valve and bend the pipe downwards



with all that lot removed you should be able to pull the fridge out enough to get at the electrical connections at the front on either side



Enjoy!!

[andyhagerty]

Thanks for the pics and info. Looks like a good way to right-off a Sunday.

Cheers

Andy.

[MidLifeCrisis]

My fridge was only held in by the two screws going into the side walls so was a little easier to remove.
(i.e. I didn't need to remove the stove/sink top thankfully)

After removing the screws I was able to slide the fridge out (but I had a lot more play in the gas pipe connection as my isolation valves are in a different cupboard and whoever installed it had been kind enough to loop the pipe a little so that it had some 'give' - you may not be as lucky).

FYI - before you remove the fridge - mark exactly where it sits in relation to the surrounding cupboard walls as it needs to go back in the exact same place otherwise its a b*gger to get those screws back into the side walls as the holes wont line up exactly.

E D I T: Also I didn't have one of those draught excluder things - fancy!!

[1664]

Sounds like somebody has removed yours previously and they couldn't be bothered/thought better than to refit everything to allow easy future access.