Club 80-90 Forums

Hi all thanks for all you help so far. I think i might have yet another one for you.
I bought my camper knowing the frige did not work. Earlier today while broken down i was playing around with it ( calm down i ment the fridge, stop laughing.
Anyway i had'nt try it on the gas before. It does'nt work on the 12v battery or the mains hook up, but i tried it on gas, the pilot light came on but i could'nt hear the fridge making any noise but doe's this mean that its working.

I only know westie's and the fridge makes no noise at all. There is a fan that makes a noise but that's only when the weather is hot. It takes a couple of hours to really notice if the fridge is actually cooling down (put a thermometer inside).

There are a different reasons for fridges not working including the coolant needing a shake up. I'm sure there is something on the wicki about this. Good luck

from my experience ive never heard a fridge make a noise on gas,it might be worth putting a beer in it for a few hours then send it to me and ill tell you if it cold or not,this is a free service by the way.

nostalgic wrote:Earlier today while broken down

I'd be slightly more worried about the van breaking down than messing about with the fridge

Leave it lit for a couple of hours and see if it gets cooler (make sure you're not parked on a hill though )

Thanks guys ill give it a go. If it does work is it safe leaving it running while driving asuming the bottle is secured. Im guessing probably not.

No... the gas should only be used when the van is stationery. The 12v is to be used when driving

Read the manuals!
Yes, you can run on gas whilst driving - you just have to remember to turn it off at service stations. I only use gas never 12v, my 12v goes into my batteries.

Thanks all. A manual never came with the van so ill try and track one down.

Oldiebut goodie wrote:Read the manuals!
Yes, you can run on gas whilst driving - you just have to remember to turn it off at service stations. I only use gas never 12v, my 12v goes into my batteries.

That's not what I've read / been told

See below thread:

http://archive.club8090.co.uk/viewtopic ... 9bc5a65262" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Read the manuals!

I am doing the 12 relay this weekend but only cause i am putting an auto split charge in at the same time so may as well. I have had my fridge on gas for days driving around. nothing wrong with it if your fridge is maintained properly.

Oldiebut goodie wrote:Read the manuals!

I have

I couldn't see anywhere that says you can't... but it doesn't necessarily say that you can lol

My original assumption was based on previously reading other topics... but I'll take your word for it

Somebody will go round saying that you can't use gas whilst driving yet use gas to power their engine!!!!

Here is an extract from a Vanagon fridge repair article:

Problems

If you're not up to performing any of the repair procedures listed below
yourself, you might also consider asking your favorite mechanic to do them
for you. You could photocopy this material to give to him.

LP Gas Flame Goes Out While Driving

The Vanagon refrigerator, when operated on LP Gas, develops a little flame
you are supposed to be able to see in the sight glass in the far inside left
rear of the refrigerator. This flame sometimes blows out while you are
driving around but it is not supposed to. There isn't anything unsafe about
it blowing out but it turns the refrigerator into a major pain because you
won't notice it when the flame first blows out. Your food has enough trouble
staying cold when the unit is always on. Vanagon owners should take all
measures to fix their refrigerator if it is blowing out on the road.

The procedures to follow to fix the LP Gas flame blowing out require you to
remove the refrigerator from the vehicle first. Some help can be found on how
to do this by common sense and reading the Bentley manual mentioned above.
There is also an excellent Volkswagen factory video tape made for its
mechanics to train them in exactly how to do it. You can order this tape from
me or perhaps borrow it from your local VW dealer.

POSSIBLE CAUSE #1: Once out of the vehicle you will see that the refrigerator
has two round vent pipes that go from the refrigerator up to the side of the
vehicle. These pipes are there to bring fresh air down to where the flame is
so it has oxygen and to vent the hot air created by the burning to the
outside of the vehicle. Dometic's standard line as to why the flame might
blow out while driving is that these pipes are not of exactly the same
length. Dometic claims that they must be the same length down to the smallest
measurement or it will cause unequal air pressure between the two pipes while
driving. Unequal air pressure, Dometic says, will result in air blowing
through the combustion chamber (the little box where the pipes join, and
where the flame is) which creates a draft in that chamber, thus blowing out
the flame.

Soooo, the repair here is to cut the longer of these two pipes by a small
amount so they are exactly equal in length. You could probably do it with a
hacksaw.

POSSIBLE CAUSE #2: If you look the back of the refrigerator you will see the
small metal box at the right rear at the bottom--the combustion chamber. The
lid of this box is screwed on to the bottom portion with screws. In between
these two halves of the box is a rubber gasket (usually red) which seals air
from getting in or out of the box. Sometimes, this gasket can develop small
leaks which allows a draft to develop into and out of the box, thus blowing
out the flame. Alternatively, a previous mechanic might have serviced this
box and decided to reassemble it without the gasket, not understanding its
importance. The repair task here is to replace the gasket or otherwise seal
the edges around this little box with silicone glue or other material to
prevent any air leaks. Air leaks here cause the same draft effect in Possible
Cause #1.

I guess my main concern was the flame blowing out, then you'd be filling the van with gas I think it's only the US fridges that have the twin pipes to the side of van... European only have the one.

My current fridge (RM122) has blown out a couple of times... I tend to check it regularly (every time I open/close a door!)