Thetford Fridge problem....advice welcome please (1 Viewer)

[simplyjimbo]

Hi All,
We have a three year old Rapido fitted with a Thetford N3150 Fridge/Freezer.
Just been away for a weekend by the Dordogne river and the fridge does not cool when on gas. It cools on electric when plugged into the mains.
The gas can be heard igniting beneath the fridge, and the gas motor runs constantly drawing gas but it does not cool. The fridge has an external digital display that gives the internal temperature, and when the gas motor is running it just goes up. It got to 17 by this morning.
The temperature here in South West France is still high 20's low 30's so we really need it to work.
Both gas bottles are full, although one is turned off. Butane.
Any idea's/solutions would be gratefully received.
Thanks. Jim

 

[Off da Grid]

Not enough gas, not sure about your particular model but is the gas burner actually making a roaring sound?
It should also be a nice blue colour.
If not either the burner or burner gas nozzle is dirty and needs cleaning.
The flue could also be sooted up.
One thing to try is take a small spanner and gently tap the gas valve this may be stuck, not letting enough gas through.
If you can take the burner out turn it upside down and give it a light tap there might be some debris from the flue on it.
Have a look at this.

https://www.thetford.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/N3104-N3150-Installation-and-Owners-Manual.pdf

The temperater should not be too high for the fridge to cope with if it works on electric, gas is more efficient. Butane i believe burns hotter than propane although ususally the regulator for butane is usually 37mb not 30 as for propane

 

[mitzimad]

all modern appliances run on 30mb usual cause is blocked jet or crud in the burner

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[poppycamper]

Confused by your comment "gas motor runs constantly" ??

 

[zedman]

Me too ???

 

[simplyjimbo]

Many thanks for the replies. The flame burner can be heard running all the time, not sure how else to describe it.
It ignites, and the gas can be heard burning, quite noisily.
Will try and check the flame colour etc as suggested.

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[Off da Grid]

Should be roaring so sounds ok if it’s noisy.
Could be the burner has dropped down from the flue.
There should be a self tapping screw holding it in place, they get rusty and drop out.

 

[TheBig1]

have you tried turning it down, not up to maximum? This is a frequently seen phenomena where you expect the fridge to work harder with more gas. Instead, in high ambient temperatures it can actually heat the fridge rather than cool it

 

[Off da Grid]

Good point forgot about that one ours works better at the 5 o’clock position

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[Ninovan]

Just discovered our Dometic fridge won’t light Everything else ok on gas. Oh well, lucky only one night & hab check tomorrow. Probably something simple Sorry, didn’t mean to hijack thread.

 

[Ninovan]

Re my post above - now feel a right plonker! Question of operator error or RTFM. It’s been so long since we’ve used or stayed in the van & had to use gas, I had forgotten how to light the fridge. . I had been pushing in the bat/ehu /gas knob to get the increased flow for lighting, not the temp control No problem with it at all Derrrr Right eejit!

 

[Off da Grid]

Your not the only one who has forgotten van related things.
When you regularly do stuff it becomes 2nd nature once you stop you can lose the knowledge

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[Kniste]

Perhaps someone reading this thread can help.
I have a N3000/3142 (now obsolete) Thetford fridge. vintage 2016. Hymer MLT560. the short story is that it has become temperamental to the point of not working. It sometimes cools the ice box to minus 25'c and leaves the fridge at room temperature.
1) I have replaced the PCB
2) I have replaced the thermister
3) I have made sure that the van is levelled to less that the 2.5' as suggested in the manual (flat)
4) The gas burns with a beautiful pure blue flame.
5) I have installed 2 fans at the top vent.
6) There is approx 10'c difference between the air at the bottom and the top regardless of heat source.
7) One suggestion is that the fluids in the cooling system has become displaced and the fridge should be removed and turned upside down for 24 hours.
8) other sources say that any respite would be temporary.
Any Ideas..
If I have to replace.. looks likely, what do you think of the Thetford T1052 or the DOMETIC RCL 10.4T. any comment would be appreciated.
Kind Regards,
Steve

 

[DP+JAY]

The fact that the freezer is working well -(-25°) should rule out any problem with the burner, refrigerant or electrics. It sounds like either heat transfer paste or door seal problem.
DP

 

[Kniste]

Thanks DP, this was one of the solutions suggested on the web, I haven't ruled it out, they suggested that 1) remove the cooling fins and renew the heat paste. or 2) use a hair drier to heat the cooling fins.
This is an issue that can happen in older fridges, I would not have expected a 100%breakdown in 4yo fridge.
I did try heating the fins, not massively, to no avail.

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[jonasw19]

Perhaps someone reading this thread can help.
I have a N3000/3142 (now obsolete) Thetford fridge. vintage 2016. Hymer MLT560. the short story is that it has become temperamental to the point of not working. It sometimes cools the ice box to minus 25'c and leaves the fridge at room temperature.
1) I have replaced the PCB
2) I have replaced the thermister
3) I have made sure that the van is levelled to less that the 2.5' as suggested in the manual (flat)
4) The gas burns with a beautiful pure blue flame.
5) I have installed 2 fans at the top vent.
6) There is approx 10'c difference between the air at the bottom and the top regardless of heat source.
7) One suggestion is that the fluids in the cooling system has become displaced and the fridge should be removed and turned upside down for 24 hours.
8) other sources say that any respite would be temporary.
Any Ideas..
If I have to replace.. looks likely, what do you think of the Thetford T1052 or the DOMETIC RCL 10.4T. any comment would be appreciated.
Kind Regards,
Steve

I had the same symptoms/ problem with the same model fridge, eventually after much buggering about replaced the complete fridge.
Thetford N 4142e is the latest version, drop in to our Hymer ML620. Very simple just 1 gas connection and sundry plugs, fridges went in and out of the hab door. The new fridge did not come with the shiny black door card, so swapped them over.
Chap who did it said it was likely one of the internal restrictors was partly blocked.
Whatever, we now have our fridge back working as expected.
Jon

 

[jonasw19]

During our investigations we renewed the heat transfer paste, which made no discernable difference. The control board was doing controlling, as expected. We replaced the thermistor, which was slightly out of spec, no difference. The burner was giving a nice blue flame, so we replaced that.
The upshot of all this was the fridge was still erratic, with the the freezer sometimes as low as -12, but the fridge generally at ambient.
This led us to believe the blocked internal restrictor theory. Our fridge had a lot of use since 2016, 18 to 20 months altogether, 95% on gas.

 

[TheBig1]

Thanks DP, this was one of the solutions suggested on the web, I haven't ruled it out, they suggested that 1) remove the cooling fins and renew the heat paste. or 2) use a hair drier to heat the cooling fins.
This is an issue that can happen in older fridges, I would not have expected a 100%breakdown in 4yo fridge.
I did try heating the fins, not massively, to no avail.

heating it would have absolutely no positive benefit. The only possible solution is to unscrew the fins, clean of the small amount of dried up transfer paste and renewing it with high quality paste as used on computer chip's heat sinks

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[Kniste]

I am about to go compressor, does anyone have experience with Thetford 1152 or DOMETIC RCL 10.4T. they are both the same size as the 3142.

 

[Vikdikdok]

That's why I changed to a compressor fridge !

 

[Kniste]

That's why I changed to a compressor fridge !

can you tell me what kind of power that you have on your van. I have 200 watt lithium batteries and 80watt solar tracking panel.I goes I need more solar.

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[Vikdikdok]

I have 300w solar panel & 3 x 110Ah leisure batteries with Victron MPPT controller

 

[Stroppy Bird]

I am about to go compressor, does anyone have experience with Thetford 1152 or DOMETIC RCL 10.4T. they are both the same size as the 3142.

We have the Thetford 1152. We have 200a AGM batteries and 120watt solar. We mainly do off grid, though travels have been limited this year since we got the van. Our main big holiday to Europe would have been this Oct, where our set up would have got a good test. Mostly on our 3 day away trips that we've managed we've had sun, and the battery monitor has never dropped below 12.7. On one trip though it was cloudy for pretty much the whole 3 days and the battery monitor only dropped to 12.5 on the third day, and that was only while the fridge compressor was running. Once the compressor stopped its cycle, the battery showed 12.7 again. This was while static, so no engine charging over the 3 days.

 

[Kniste]

Just for info; The DOMETIC RCL 10.4T is still vapourware, announced but not available. I turned my Thetford 3142 upside down for 24 hours and it works like a dream, sometimes.

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[VXman]

Hi All,
We have a three year old Rapido fitted with a Thetford N3150 Fridge/Freezer.
Just been away for a weekend by the Dordogne river and the fridge does not cool when on gas. It cools on electric when plugged into the mains.
The gas can be heard igniting beneath the fridge, and the gas motor runs constantly drawing gas but it does not cool. The fridge has an external digital display that gives the internal temperature, and when the gas motor is running it just goes up. It got to 17 by this morning.
The temperature here in South West France is still high 20's low 30's so we really need it to work.
Both gas bottles are full, although one is turned off. Butane.
Any idea's/solutions would be gratefully received.
Thanks. Jim

I know it's been a while but did you solve this issue?. I have a similar problem with a Thetford 4000

 

[Vikdikdok]

Whilst many of these suggestions would (probably) help, in the long run I doubt they will ‘cure’ any fridge/freezer problems or deficiencies - especially during this warmer weather or in hotter climates, my own opinion is that 3way gas/240v/12v produced for use in the UK are only rated for use in temperate climates- after buying and fitting 2 different make/models I gave up and changed to a compressor fridge (rated for use in tropical climate), during this hot 28/30C weather period its worked absolutely perfectly keeping the freezer at -8C on it’s LOWEST setting, the fridge also maintaining optimal temperature for salad produce & other food.
OK, the route I took cost me money for the fridge plus fitting an extra leisure battery (I now have 3x110Ah also fitting a 370w solar panel + Victron MPPT controller, no more worrying or making sure I’m perfectly level; off grid without EHU we can last at least 4 days (so far we’ve not been off grid for any longer- (yet); we mostly use campsites with EHU & it’s been fridge worry free, - consider biting the bullet and make the change to compressor, I’m convinced you’ll find it worthwhile.

 

[VXman]

Whilst many of these suggestions would (probably) help, in the long run I doubt they will ‘cure’ any fridge/freezer problems or deficiencies - especially during this warmer weather or in hotter climates, my own opinion is that 3way gas/240v/12v produced for use in the UK are only rated for use in temperate climates- after buying and fitting 2 different make/models I gave up and changed to a compressor fridge (rated for use in tropical climate), during this hot 28/30C weather period its worked absolutely perfectly keeping the freezer at -8C on it’s LOWEST setting, the fridge also maintaining optimal temperature for salad produce & other food.
OK, the route I took cost me money for the fridge plus fitting an extra leisure battery (I now have 3x110Ah also fitting a 370w solar panel + Victron MPPT controller, no more worrying or making sure I’m perfectly level; off grid without EHU we can last at least 4 days (so far we’ve not been off grid for any longer- (yet); we mostly use campsites with EHU & it’s been fridge worry free, - consider biting the bullet and make the change to compressor, I’m convinced you’ll find it worthwhile.

Not sure if this was in answer to my question but my problem, like the original poster, was a question of the gas side of the fridge not working at all. Mine is working OK on electric and 12V but just not cooling at all on gas. I agree that in very hot weather a compressor fridge may be a better choice but that isn't the issue here.

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[TheBig1]

if a fridge lights on gas, but won't cool, despite working fine on 240v, it is likely the flue needs cleaning. and check the baffle is intact and the flue unobstructed. The difference between the 2 is simply heat source, but the gas is more energetic when burning correctly

You also need to check the jet in the burner is not partly blocked

 

[VXman]

if a fridge lights on gas, but won't cool, despite working fine on 240v, it is likely the flue needs cleaning. and check the baffle is intact and the flue unobstructed. The difference between the 2 is simply heat source, but the gas is more energetic when burning correctly

You also need to check the jet in the burner is not partly blocked

Looks like a good flame and as I say it seems to be heating stuff up as well as the electric does. Flue should shouldn't be a problem as I have only had the van 4 months (from new) and only used it on gas on a few occasions. I did try to check the flue but couldn't see it. See diagram below.

If its around 1 and 2 (heat cap and heat diffuser) then that's pretty inaccessible without removing the fridge.

 

[TheBig1]

have you tried turning the fridge down to setting 2 or 3?

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