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Old 06-20-2017, 09:11 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cslcs25 View Post
We are having the exact same problem. In another thread someone suggested a "hepvo valve" solution. We did that and it did not help.
How would a Hepvo valve help with a fridge cooling or propane issue? Hepvo valves are to eliminate p-traps in drains.

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Old 06-20-2017, 09:15 AM   #22
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How would a Hepvo valve help with a fridge cooling or propane issue? Hepvo valves are to eliminate p-traps in drains.

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Hi: rbryan4... Exactly!!! Alf
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Old 06-20-2017, 09:19 AM   #23
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Y'all must have missed Jim's hepvro balloon fix for the refrigerator. Direct link: http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f9...tml#post199922
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Old 06-20-2017, 09:19 AM   #24
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It is not the true Hepvo valve but a ballon that has been cut off and placed over the condensate drain to prevent air from escaping but still allow the liquid to drain. See post #25 here
http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f9...s-10336-3.html
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Old 06-20-2017, 09:24 AM   #25
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Y'all must have missed Jim's hepvro balloon fix for the refrigerator. Direct link: http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f9...tml#post199922
I didn't miss the balloon post - just didn't think of it as a Hepvo valve. I suppose they are somewhat similar.

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Old 06-20-2017, 11:27 AM   #26
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Y'all must have missed Jim's hepvro balloon fix for the refrigerator. Direct link: http://www.escapeforum.org/forums/f9...tml#post199922
Actually I remembered that fix so I stopped and bought a balloon, cut a bit off the end and put it on the drain tube. It made no difference. Temperatures went up to 30s in freezer and 50s in refrigerator just the same as without the balloon, and this with environmental temps in the 70s or low 80s.
When I stop for an hour or two the temps fall back toward normal, and when I stop overnight the temps are equally good at single digits in freezer and upper 30s in refrigerator whether using propane or 110 volt.
So this is an issue only while driving.
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Old 06-20-2017, 11:45 AM   #27
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Actually I remembered that fix so I stopped and bought a balloon, cut a bit off the end and put it on the drain tube. It made no difference. Temperatures went up to 30s in freezer and 50s in refrigerator just the same as without the balloon, and this with environmental temps in the 70s or low 80s.
When I stop for an hour or two the temps fall back toward normal, and when I stop overnight the temps are equally good at single digits in freezer and upper 30s in refrigerator whether using propane or 110 volt.
So this is an issue only while driving.
Hi: casejh... Is the hook/latch that keeps the door closed, adjusted properly. If the door jiggled and opened slightly, while under tow, would let some cold air out!!! The magnetic seals are none to strong on these fridges. Alf
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Old 06-20-2017, 11:55 AM   #28
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Are we talking about cold air from inside the refrigerator sneaking out this little condensation drain hole at the back of the fridge (see photo below)? The whole concept still seems baffling to me. If the fridge door is sealed, short of forming some unusual vacuum inside the fridge, wouldn't an equal amount of ambient air need to enter the fridge to replace the cold air leaving? If so, where is the ambient air entering from? And if no ambient air is entering, and a vacuum forms inside the fridge, it seems like that vacuum alone would then prevent much of the cold air from leaving. Anyway, for those experiencing the problem, I guess another thing to try to test this theory would be to put a cork in the drain hole inside the fridge (again, see photo). You'd probably also need to put a cork in the drain whole in the condensation pan to let moisture dripping off the cooling plates still collect there, or be ready to occasionally mop up condensation pooling on the floor of the fridge while traveling.
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Old 06-20-2017, 12:06 PM   #29
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Hi: casejh... Is the hook/latch that keeps the door closed, adjusted properly. If the door jiggled and opened slightly, while under tow, would let some cold air out!!! The magnetic seals are none to strong on these fridges. Alf
escape artist N.S. of Lake Erie
The door latches for both freezer and refrigerator appear to close well. When I stop to check things on the road the unit is on (propane) and the doors are well closed. We had our orientation and pick up in Chilliwack 8 days ago so everything is new.
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Old 06-20-2017, 12:57 PM   #30
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This has nothing to do with the new refrigerators I realize, but we just got back from a trip to Myrtle Beach, SC, where it was extremely humid and the temps were in the mid 90's. Our old 85xx fridge was set on 5, and the coldest it could manage getting on propane or electricity was 41 in the fridge and 18 in the freezer.

Not great is my thinking, but at least safe I suppose. Since we are vegetarians, no meat to spoil or go bad. Just milk and cheese, if it would.

The trailer was in direct sunlight, and I found it only took 2 days for the water cup to go dry. Interesting thing was that it only jumped the temp 2 degrees by the cup being dry. I was unimpressed with the small difference having water in the cup made vs. without.

I'm just thinking that the refrigerators/freezers are the Achilles heel of the trailers, no matter which model of fridge it has.

Now our AC was another story. Worked very well, and dropped the indoor temp to 25-30 degrees from the outside temp. Add our Vortec fan to that and it was downright livable in the trailer. Good thing too, our dogs lounged in cool luxury all day while we baked at the beach. Oh now I get it!! That's where the term "you lucky dog" came from!
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Old 06-20-2017, 01:16 PM   #31
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Hi Nathan, how'd the fridge do when driving home? Mine's the same as you mention, except on long drives.
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Old 06-20-2017, 01:23 PM   #32
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Driving with propane on the trip down and back seemed to not make a big difference. Maybe a degree or 2 warmer on propane while traveling. It did not get cooler. I even bought a fridge fan before we left. The fridge was packed pretty tight though.

I did get the hair-brained idea to turn it down to 4 while at a campground near Mammoth Cave (in Kentucky I know, we went there too) and the temps rose to 50 and 26. Needless to say, it will always and forever stay on 5.
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Old 06-20-2017, 02:28 PM   #33
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Robert! How come nobody pays any attention to my answers? What was wrong with them? Guess I'll stick to decorating questions!

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Old 06-20-2017, 02:42 PM   #34
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A couple of ideas, one, the thermometer may not be accurate. I have both the old fashioned needle as well as the Accurite. when My unit rose to near 50 my freezer still remained below freezing, that tells me the unit is working. There was no flame blow out as the fault did not light. Other than the hole allowing warm air in, I also use the fridge fix plastic panels that keep the cold inside the refer when opening the door, so there are not swings in the temperature while in use at the cg. Rease examined mine and felt the vacuum inside while towing was allowing warm air to enter thru the hose. Suggested
a crack in the window, I decided on the ballon. Also strap the door tight while towing to prevent opening and air escaping around the gasket. I also have the auxiliary factory fan in the rear of the unit that is thermostatically controlled.
I also found the battery fans(2 inside the refer) helped move the cold air around. Despite the rise, nothing was spoiled nor did anything melt, so maybe it is working.
Finally I have the stock refrigerator in my 19, not he double door larger unit. They have their own issues with the bypass in the thermocouple that shuts it off.
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Old 06-20-2017, 03:23 PM   #35
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We just picked up our 21' one week ago and find the refrigerator works great on 110 volt or on propane (set on auto) when we are stopped camping. On the road we keep it on auto (so on propane) and it has not worked well at all, with refrigerator climbing to the low 50s and freezer climbing to the low to mid 30s. Then when we stop it cools back down. Anyone else had this problem? Any solutions?
One issue is I switch mine to gas manually. Yours may be using 12v instead of propane while in "Auto" mode. I recall some units on "Auto" have a 12v default setting.
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Old 06-20-2017, 03:46 PM   #36
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A couple of ideas, one, the thermometer may not be accurate. I have both the old fashioned needle as well as the Accurite. when My unit rose to near 50 my freezer still remained below freezing, that tells me the unit is working. There was no flame blow out as the fault did not light. Other than the hole allowing warm air in, I also use the fridge fix plastic panels that keep the cold inside the refer when opening the door, so there are not swings in the temperature while in use at the cg. Rease examined mine and felt the vacuum inside while towing was allowing warm air to enter thru the hose. Suggested
a crack in the window, I decided on the ballon. Also strap the door tight while towing to prevent opening and air escaping around the gasket. I also have the auxiliary factory fan in the rear of the unit that is thermostatically controlled.
I also found the battery fans(2 inside the refer) helped move the cold air around. Despite the rise, nothing was spoiled nor did anything melt, so maybe it is working.
Finally I have the stock refrigerator in my 19, not he double door larger unit. They have their own issues with the bypass in the thermocouple that shuts it off.
Thanks for the ideas. I also talked to Tammy on the phone today and she suggested turning off the extra auxillary (Texas) fan while driving as that may be causing too much air flow. I had been leaving it on all the time so I will try that first. We won't be back on the road for a couple more days so I won't be able to try anything until driving again. As I mentioned, it all works great when stationary, but we did have to bypass that fusible link that shut it off just 48 hours after our orientation. I will report findings after we drive again, and I am open to any other suggestions.
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Old 06-20-2017, 03:50 PM   #37
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One issue is I switch mine to gas manually. Yours may be using 12v instead of propane while in "Auto" mode. I recall some units on "Auto" have a 12v default setting.
In auto mode the default is 110 volt and it switches to propane when we unplug from 110 volt, and switches back when we plug into 110 volt again. The indicator lights indicate that it is doing exactly that. To run on 12 volt requires switching to the 12 volt setting, and we haven't tried that.
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Old 06-20-2017, 08:06 PM   #38
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I'm just thinking that the refrigerators/freezers are the Achilles heel of the trailers, no matter which model of fridge it has.
Hi Nathan, thank you for that statement. It helps me justify the expense and retrofit work I recently did on our new 2016 21ft.

We ordered it in 2015 without the absorption reefer, without the side wall vent and roof opening. All I asked was that there be a fused 12vdc wire pair in the empty cabinet.

For years been reading all the problems these units are causing, gotten better in the 2017 models of course, but nevertheless too finicky for my tastes. Owned a couple RVs with adsorption reefers over the years and decided never again. Your comment hit home and making me very glad I went 100% 12vdc.

With trailer parked on our 15% sloped driveway, 92 deg F inside the trailer, full sun beating on the driver side wall, the unit running at temp setting 4 out of 10 produces 38 deg F temp within 45 minutes and freezes ice cubes in one and half to two hours.

Depending on outside temperatures, consumes anywhere from 45 to 63 amp-hours per 24 hour period. 63 amp-hours per 24 hour period when outside temperature is 95 deg F and in full sun. I suppose a lot less than 45 amp-hours per 24 hour period as we get closer to winter. I added additional insulation just before sliding it into the cabinet. When it cycles on the Trimetric shows 3 to 5.5 amp flow. It cycles on and off and as quiet as a home refrigerator.

I have no solar panels. This electric refrigerator is a two door 6.8 cubic foot model.
We are not vegetarians but preserving our fish and chicken, as well as dairy and lots of veggies, is very important to us. If space aliens plucked our trailer never to be seen again, I would order a replacement the same way. Reace .... no fridge thank you, will add our own.
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Old 06-20-2017, 08:38 PM   #39
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Nathan, not sure if you have the same refrigerator or not. Ours is two-door, believe it is 8555 but not sure anymore with all of these different ones! I just used ours and it worked great at about 90 or a little over. Was not in sun, however. Cooled down in about 4 1/4 hours into the 30s and went into the 20s later as it often does. Very happy with it. Have made no additions or changes. No Texas fan.

On the other hand, our water pump is not working. Just sputters at the faucets and really nothing.
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Old 06-20-2017, 09:19 PM   #40
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Hi Santiago, I by no means know what I'm talking about, but thanks for pretending!

Hi Float5, I'm sure ours is the same. I'm not disappointed with its performance, as long as it keeps the food at a safe temp. I just realized that my favorite saying applies to it; "it is what it is". Maybe the newer fridges will be better, but even those seem to have their own problems. I'm just grateful for once Escape can't be blamed!
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