[Resolved] Dometic fridge powered but no cooling

[Photohonesty]

Yup that’s right, the fridge is wired directly to the battery not the panel so it will be permanently live

Thanks Nigel also explains why the main battery became drained when the van sat with leisure battery disconnected

 

[Nigel W]

Thanks Nigel also explains why the main battery became drained when the van sat with leisure battery disconnected

the only way to drain the vehicle battery is if you left the control panel turned on and it set to vehicle battery which, I guess is a bit unlikely but possible.
I don’t know how often you use the camper, if like ours, it’s just sitting for weeks on end then the vehicle battery will discharge over time (sometimes just a couple of weeks).
buy one of these and stick it in the cig lighter so you can see it’s stage of charge at a glance. It’s a very useful bit of kit

Dual USB Car Charger - JEBSENS Car Voltage Meter Car Charger with Two USB Ports, 4.8A / 24W, LED Display Built-in Safety Protection Fast Charging Compatible with All Smartphones and Tablets: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike

Dual USB Car Charger - JEBSENS Car Voltage Meter Car Charger with Two USB Ports, 4.8A / 24W, LED Display Built-in Safety Protection Fast Charging Compatible with All Smartphones and Tablets: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike

www.amazon.co.uk

glad your sorted, you will sleep well tonight!

 

[Photohonesty]

the only way to drain the vehicle battery is if you left the control panel turned on and it set to vehicle battery which, I guess is a bit unlikely but possible.
I don’t know how often you use the camper, if like ours, it’s just sitting for weeks on end then the vehicle battery will discharge over time (sometimes just a couple of weeks).
buy one of these and stick it in the cig lighter so you can see it’s stage of charge at a glance. It’s a very useful bit of kit

Dual USB Car Charger - JEBSENS Car Voltage Meter Car Charger with Two USB Ports, 4.8A / 24W, LED Display Built-in Safety Protection Fast Charging Compatible with All Smartphones and Tablets: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike

Dual USB Car Charger - JEBSENS Car Voltage Meter Car Charger with Two USB Ports, 4.8A / 24W, LED Display Built-in Safety Protection Fast Charging Compatible with All Smartphones and Tablets: Amazon.co.uk: Car & Motorbike

www.amazon.co.uk

glad your sorted, you will sleep well tonight!

Thanks Nigel will do

 

[Big Al]

There you go!

 

[Richq75]

We had same issue. Disconnect power supply to the fridge for about 5 minutes. Re-connect and turn on again. Fingers crossed it helps. We havent had issues since. Bear in mind the amber compressor light you have on will only turn blue when the compressor is actually running, so dont panic!

Hi, so just to confirm it IS NORMAL for the light to alternate between the two colours when the fridge is running is this okay, ie the compressor will turn on and off to maintain the temperature?

 

[Photohonesty]

just our experience but we feel there was not enough oomph in the battery to allow the fridge to start. It drove us crazy as we needed to know that when we wanted to go on a trip that the fridge would work. I suspect there is a cut off in the fridge designed to protect the battery - that is if the battery is low the fridge doesn’t go on. Just my theory although I have a vague recollection of seeing this in some documentation for the fridge. Makes sense though. When we bought our van it had a budget Halfords battery and so decided to bite the bullet and buy a very good battery and we’ve not seen the issue since for six months except on one occasion when the van had been sitting but then as soon as we charged the battery all was good which would seem to support my theory. The battery we use is Hal Leisure Batt - L26AGM and we had to buy a new charger as well that was compatible with the battery.

 

[DXX]

just our experience but we feel there was not enough oomph in the battery to allow the fridge to start. It drove us crazy as we needed to know that when we wanted to go on a trip that the fridge would work. I suspect there is a cut off in the fridge designed to protect the battery - that is if the battery is low the fridge doesn’t go on. Just my theory although I have a vague recollection of seeing this in some documentation for the fridge. Makes sense though. When we bought our van it had a budget Halfords battery and so decided to bite the bullet and buy a very good battery and we’ve not seen the issue since for six months except on one occasion when the van had been sitting but then as soon as we charged the battery all was good which would seem to support my theory. The battery we use is Hal Leisure Batt - L26AGM and we had to buy a new charger as well that was compatible with the battery.

There is a minimum voltage cut out on the Dometic CRX fridges.
If owners don’t have the manual for their fridge they are available to download for free from the Dometic website.
There are a steady stream of ’fridge problem’ Forum discussions, many after a winter layup. Nearly all because of battery or wiring issues.
The Dometic CRX range are very reliable, the only drawback is the price tag.

 

[Pete C]

Hi, so just to confirm it IS NORMAL for the light to alternate between the two colours when the fridge is running is this okay, ie the compressor will turn on and off to maintain the temperature?

Yes