Fridge external grill - waterproof?

[ShaKen]

Hi all

I was giving my MH it’s first wash (by me) and noticed that the vent grills (top and bottom) are pretty big and it crossed my mind as to how waterproof they are going to be (it’s on a 2018 Chausson).

Fair enough in a little rain I’d expect the grill to do its job of deflecting the water away and the interior would stay dry, but surely if your running down a motorway in the middle of a heavy downpour, some water must penetrate the grill and enter the back of the fridge/freezer?

I took the grills off for a look and there doesn’t appear to be any special water penetration protection - just the standard timber / panels used for the construction with exposed edges right at the point where water could do some damage.

Am I being overly concerned? Is the Chausson design a poor one or the norm? Should I do some additional water protection work behind the grill to ensure water doesn’t penetrate the panel edges?

 

[funflair]

I would not worry it looks normal and basically the vent is waterproof as long as you are not directing a hosepipe up the vents.

Martin

 

[Richard n Ann]

Creosote it our's isn't waterproof, when I had the fridge fan controller behind it, it got wet.
IP rating 0.5

 

[Griffithii]

Not heard any reports of water getting in but our Chausson came with plastic blanking plates which can be put inside the grill if the van is laid up in winter.We also have a cover that clips over the heating vent when van not in use.
Not used either so far.
There is an active Chausson user group on Facebook. I do MoHo fun, OH does Facebook.

 

[DavidG58]

our vents have quite a fine mesh on the back of them which I guess must also stop some water ingress

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[Lenny HB]

General use they are normally OK but Dometic say to put winter covers on when washing the van.
I always put mine on when not using the van as it stops most of of the dirt and crap getting in there.

 

[Jaws]

Deleted .............
wrong thread !! DOH !!!

 

[Kingham]

I never bother fitting my winter covers when I wash the van, I just make sure that when I’m rinsing with the hose, it is from above the vents.
Come to think of it, I don’t think my van came with the winter vents as standard, I’m fairly certain they came as part of the Winter Pack that I paid extra for.

 

[gus-lopez]

When I'm washing the van the fridge is on? I just rinse from above so it runs down.