During recent 2 weeks tour, van fridge failed to maintain appropriate low temperature on Gas.
Problem was more apparent as the second week progressed.
The Fridge is an Electrolux 240/12 volt Gas. In the past it has always performed up to expectations.
Previously on gas this fridge has always performed very well.
The gas flame seems to be clean and burning well but may not be high enough.
Maybe the jet is partially blocked by this "oil"
The gas stove top, griller and oven see to be ok.
On checking the regulator (dismantled) I found a very oily substance within the two compartments. The rubber diaphram
seems to be distorted and completley out of shape.
Can this "oil" have been generated in the gas bottle or is it some other form of contamination.
I have tried another bottle with the same results, temp. not low enough.
Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
landy said
06:36 AM Nov 9, 2013
I can' t tell you much about the regulator. but I believe that it is posible for the chimney to get sooted up and need cleaning. might be worth checking anyway. Landy
elliemike said
08:23 AM Nov 9, 2013
Get the Fridge Serviced.
Buy a new Regulator and get it put on when you get the Fridge Serviced.
The gas jet is a very tiny Orifice in a ceramic disc, it can be still working but not quite getting the full volume of gas through it. Flame in the burner tube " looks OK" but is just not hot enough.
I had this while on the road recently, fridge OK one day, and not cooling the next.
Being out in the wops I did it myself removing the Jet and reaming it with a very fine strand of Copper wire stripped from a piece of auto 12v wire. Oh and a magnifying glass.
Put it back and we were up and running again.
Then I found the spare Jet I always carry stored away where I can lay my hand on it at any time. Hmmmmmmm forgot where I'd put didnt I.
But I think I am due a new Regulator as well at the next service. This has to be done by a registered Gas Fitter/Plumber to be legal.
Haji-Baba said
08:59 AM Nov 9, 2013
Thanks elliemike,
Exactly as I thought.
Definately need a new regulator, and whilst the flame seemed to be ok and burning clean, it just didn't seem to be hot enough.
On 240 V. power it is brilliant.
I am still worried about the oil substance in the lines and regulator, I have no idea where that comes from.
I have yet to find the jet and not quite game to interfere any further. I think a service is on the way.
Just to add to my misery we hit a big roo just East of Eidsvold last Wednesday 30 th. Oct. at 10 am. and very nearly wrote off a brand new Colorado. In the repair shop now.
Anyway the fun of travelling and touring.
Have fun Haji-Baba
oldbobsbus said
02:37 PM Nov 9, 2013
Haji-Baba wrote:
I am still worried about the oil substance in the lines and regulator, I have no idea where that comes from.
I have yet to find the jet and not quite game to interfere any further. I think a service is on the way.
When gas is extracted from crude oil they use a carry oil to remove it and also as it has no smell there is a product add to it to make it smell and this is also an oily substance.
This oil although almost the same consistance as liquid gas it still settles out and this is what you are seeing..
It also sticks to the sides of small orifices (Your Fridge injector) , if I was servicing your fridge i would remove the injector and boil it in soapy water to clean it and also give the burner tube a good clean out as dust gets sucked in and sticks to the underside of the burner where the flame is and while I was at it I would clean the chimney..
grill n chill said
04:00 PM Nov 9, 2013
Boil the injector in soapy water. never heard of that before and a really good tip.guess who is having trouble with his bbq? Going to try it for sure,thanks oldbobsbus.
oldbobsbus said
05:22 PM Nov 9, 2013
Some fridges have ceramic injectors and others have a ruby insert and the only way they can be cleaned is to boil them, i have a special set of reamers that I do the brass injectors with and I can even enlarge them if needed to improve the performance of the appliance but if I were to use the reamers on the others I would wreck them..
oldtrack123 said
01:18 AM Nov 10, 2013
HI
An oily residue from LPG is quite common & does stuff up regulators
You will need a new TWO stage regulator[to be legal]AND IT SHOULD BE MOUNTED HIGHER THAN THE GAS BOTTLE OUTLET.
I would attend to THAT first before fooling with the jet
THEY are very easily damaged if poked with metal objects!!
PeterQ
Haji-Baba said
05:16 AM Nov 10, 2013
Thanks for the replies, as i stated earlier I am not into fiddling with unknown items and gas is one thing I
won't play with.
And I would rather deal with a snake than 240 power. At least I can see a snake and take the necessary action.
I will renew the Regulator but getting it higher than the bottle will be a problem, it will work out some way.
Thanks for the info.
Haji-Baba
Baz421 said
06:16 AM Nov 10, 2013
Haji-Baba wrote:
Thanks for the replies, as i stated earlier I am not into fiddling with unknown items and gas is one thing I won't play with.
And I would rather deal with a snake than 240 power. At least I can see a snake and take the necessary action.
I will renew the Regulator but getting it higher than the bottle will be a problem, it will work out some way.
Thanks for the info.
Haji-Baba
I'd be following oldbobsbus and oldtrack123's advice if I was you Haji-Baba. One way to tell the gas bottle is getting low is the "odour",,, change bottle to avoid the reg getting gummed up.
Haji-Baba said
07:25 AM Nov 10, 2013
Thanks Baz, shall do as advised, too dangerous for me to fiddle with.
It works real well on 240 or even 12 volt. I think what has happened is that the gas bottle has got too low and a richer mix of gas and oil has basically blocked the regulator.
We were camped stationary for a couple of weeks and the fridge seemed to be getting hot towards the end of our stay using gas only.
When we went onto 240 power for three days in a van park everything recovered very well and we managed to save our frozen goods.
I shall follow old tracks advise and install a new two stage reg. next week.
It is getting a bit complicated around here at present with the ute in dock and urgent plumbing repairs required at Bribie Cottage
I am just about ready to disappear up my own trouser leg.
I have been going round in circles for week, I think some one has nailed my foot to a plank.
Have fun Haji-Baba
oldbobsbus said
03:34 PM Nov 10, 2013
If you are going anywhere near Grafton in you travels in the near future I would be happy to preform some magic on your fridge..
Vanderee said
08:53 AM Nov 14, 2013
Bob. Please clarify; Is it true, some body told me that gas fridges contain amonia which works the cooling system,
Sounds like is that is a risky substance??
I don't know what the fridge in my motor home runs on.
oldbobsbus said
03:58 PM Nov 14, 2013
Vanderee wrote:
Bob. Please clarify; Is it true, some body told me that gas fridges contain amonia which works the cooling system,
Sounds like is that is a risky substance??
I don't know what the fridge in my motor home runs on.
Absorption fridges ie:- those that use heat to cool. have a pressurized system of pipework built into them that is filled with a mixture of water and ammonia.
They work by heating the mixture to just on boiling point which causes the mixture to discharge hydrogen that is released into the pipes in the fridge area through a very small orifice it then absorbs the heat in the fridge and carries it to the outside of the fridge where it releases it through the cooling fins on the back of the fridge.
A couple of reasons why an absorption fridge stops working properly is that the heat value at the boiler tube falls off or the small orifice that meters the hydrogen get blocked partially or fully.
Now knowing this you will understand why sometimes peeps advise you to turn it upside down and take it for a ride in the back of a ute on a rough road ..lol.
this will sometimes shake the blockage away from the orifice and allow the fridge to work again.
Another reason is when it is running on LPG the flame heat value falls and it no longer get the mixture to the correct temp..
That is why I told the OP that if he was passing by this way I would preform some magic on the fridge for him.. as it is working ok on power I know that the system is working ok and it is a gas problem.
I'm not going to go on and try to describe all the things that can cause the gas to stop working properly as it could be one of about 10 things and without seeing the flame etc I can't be sure what the problem is..
During recent 2 weeks tour, van fridge failed to maintain appropriate low temperature on Gas.
Problem was more apparent as the second week progressed.
The Fridge is an Electrolux 240/12 volt Gas. In the past it has always performed up to expectations.
Previously on gas this fridge has always performed very well.
The gas flame seems to be clean and burning well but may not be high enough.
Maybe the jet is partially blocked by this "oil"
The gas stove top, griller and oven see to be ok.
On checking the regulator (dismantled) I found a very oily substance within the two compartments. The rubber diaphram
seems to be distorted and completley out of shape.
Can this "oil" have been generated in the gas bottle or is it some other form of contamination.
I have tried another bottle with the same results, temp. not low enough.
Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
Landy
Get the Fridge Serviced.
Buy a new Regulator and get it put on when you get the Fridge Serviced.
The gas jet is a very tiny Orifice in a ceramic disc, it can be still working but not quite getting the full volume of gas through it. Flame in the burner tube " looks OK" but is just not hot enough.
I had this while on the road recently, fridge OK one day, and not cooling the next.
Being out in the wops I did it myself removing the Jet and reaming it with a very fine strand of Copper wire stripped from a piece of auto 12v wire. Oh and a magnifying glass.
Put it back and we were up and running again.
Then I found the spare Jet I always carry stored away where I can lay my hand on it at any time. Hmmmmmmm forgot where I'd put didnt I.
But I think I am due a new Regulator as well at the next service. This has to be done by a registered Gas Fitter/Plumber to be legal.
Exactly as I thought.
Definately need a new regulator, and whilst the flame seemed to be ok and burning clean, it just didn't seem to be hot enough.
On 240 V. power it is brilliant.
I am still worried about the oil substance in the lines and regulator, I have no idea where that comes from.
I have yet to find the jet and not quite game to interfere any further. I think a service is on the way.
Just to add to my misery we hit a big roo just East of Eidsvold last Wednesday 30 th. Oct. at 10 am. and very nearly wrote off a brand new Colorado. In the repair shop now.
Anyway the fun of travelling and touring.
Have fun Haji-Baba
When gas is extracted from crude oil they use a carry oil to remove it and also as it has no smell there is a product add to it to make it smell and this is also an oily substance.
This oil although almost the same consistance as liquid gas it still settles out and this is what you are seeing..
It also sticks to the sides of small orifices (Your Fridge injector) , if I was servicing your fridge i would remove the injector and boil it in soapy water to clean it and also give the burner tube a good clean out as dust gets sucked in and sticks to the underside of the burner where the flame is and while I was at it I would clean the chimney..
Boil the injector in soapy water. never heard of that before and a really good tip.guess who is having trouble with his bbq? Going to try it for sure,thanks oldbobsbus.
HI
An oily residue from LPG is quite common & does stuff up regulators
You will need a new TWO stage regulator[to be legal]AND IT SHOULD BE MOUNTED HIGHER THAN THE GAS BOTTLE OUTLET.
I would attend to THAT first before fooling with the jet
THEY are very easily damaged if poked with metal objects!!
PeterQ
won't play with.
And I would rather deal with a snake than 240 power. At least I can see a snake and take the necessary action.
I will renew the Regulator but getting it higher than the bottle will be a problem, it will work out some way.
Thanks for the info.
Haji-Baba
I'd be following oldbobsbus and oldtrack123's advice if I was you Haji-Baba. One way to tell the gas bottle is getting low is the "odour",,, change bottle to avoid the reg getting gummed up.
It works real well on 240 or even 12 volt. I think what has happened is that the gas bottle has got too low and a richer mix of gas and oil has basically blocked the regulator.
We were camped stationary for a couple of weeks and the fridge seemed to be getting hot towards the end of our stay using gas only.
When we went onto 240 power for three days in a van park everything recovered very well and we managed to save our frozen goods.
I shall follow old tracks advise and install a new two stage reg. next week.
It is getting a bit complicated around here at present with the ute in dock and urgent plumbing repairs required at Bribie Cottage
I am just about ready to disappear up my own trouser leg.
I have been going round in circles for week, I think some one has nailed my foot to a plank.
Have fun Haji-Baba
Bob. Please clarify; Is it true, some body told me that gas fridges contain amonia which works the cooling system,
Sounds like is that is a risky substance??
I don't know what the fridge in my motor home runs on.
Absorption fridges ie:- those that use heat to cool. have a pressurized system of pipework built into them that is filled with a mixture of water and ammonia.
They work by heating the mixture to just on boiling point which causes the mixture to discharge hydrogen that is released into the pipes in the fridge area through a very small orifice it then absorbs the heat in the fridge and carries it to the outside of the fridge where it releases it through the cooling fins on the back of the fridge.
A couple of reasons why an absorption fridge stops working properly is that the heat value at the boiler tube falls off or the small orifice that meters the hydrogen get blocked partially or fully.
Now knowing this you will understand why sometimes peeps advise you to turn it upside down and take it for a ride in the back of a ute on a rough road ..lol.
this will sometimes shake the blockage away from the orifice and allow the fridge to work again.
Another reason is when it is running on LPG the flame heat value falls and it no longer get the mixture to the correct temp..
That is why I told the OP that if he was passing by this way I would preform some magic on the fridge for him.. as it is working ok on power I know that the system is working ok and it is a gas problem.
I'm not going to go on and try to describe all the things that can cause the gas to stop working properly as it could be one of about 10 things and without seeing the flame etc I can't be sure what the problem is..