Fridge "Burping"

[JohnnyFry]

I have been having problems with my Dometic RM-2551 3 way refrigerator. I purchased the fridge new in May 2015 to replace a failed fridge in my 2008C210P RoadTrek. Over the past year I have been having increasing problems with the fridge cooling. I have been meticulous in keeping the unit level within 1 or 2 degrees except, of course, when traveling on mountain roads. I have an internal fan in the fridge and 2 fans installed in the outside compartment. I do not expect to maintain 35° when the ambient it in 90s and it has performed well in the past. It always keeps the freezer in the 0°F to 8°F range but the chill box can range from 45° to 50° range.

My question is: has anyone in the group actually performed the "Burping" procedure where you invert the fridge for 24 hours? and, if so, what were the symptoms that motivated you to do it and what were the results?

I have always been skeptical of doing this, but I am at the point where I would try it if there were a chance of success. It is certainly going to be a major hassle and I don't want to do it if it won't do any good.

Thanks for any input on this problem.

[GallenH]

I did on my Dometic 2310 (more "vintage" than yours) about 3 years ago and there was an improvement. I pulled the fridge and laid it on one side for 24 hours, then on the top for 24 hrs, and then on the other side. I don't think that I put it on the door front side.

That supposedly allows the solids that might have accumulated in an area (curve etc) to disperse. But they do disperse into the fluids in the system. Burping doesn't make them dissolve. Is it a wife's tale? I did do some other things such as cleaning the flue, burner, jet, etc. at the same time.

We drove to MN a few months ago and I remember when we were camped in Iowa it was over 100 there. Fortunately campsite had hookups so we could run AC and ran the fridge on AC as well. I think 42 was the high fridge temp and 30 the low at night (my thermostat obviously isn't working). And then sometimes I'm dealing with 90 outside and it drifts into the 50 range. Go figure.

One thing someone (booster?) mentioned about discrepancies between freeer being ok and cabinet being on the high side was to try cracking the freezer with a piece of foam, etc so that some of the colder freezer air migrates into the cabinet box portion

[Doneworking]

We bought our first motorhome in 1982 and it was a 1978 Class C Delta. The frig didn't work well at all and I took it to a local two man rv repair shop. They kept it a few days and had the refrig running like new. They told me they "burped" it and explained the procedure to me.

It seemed so odd that I remember the experience well after forty years. All I know is that is all they did and when we sold the C several years later the refrig was still operating just fine.

Since then I have known several instances of folks burping their refrigs and it seemed to work well for all them.

[peteco]

Originally Posted by JohnnyFry

I have been having problems with my Dometic RM-2551 3 way refrigerator. I purchased the fridge new in May 2015 to replace a failed fridge in my 2008C210P RoadTrek. Over the past year I have been having increasing problems with the fridge cooling. I have been meticulous in keeping the unit level within 1 or 2 degrees except, of course, when traveling on mountain roads. I have an internal fan in the fridge and 2 fans installed in the outside compartment. I do not expect to maintain 35° when the ambient it in 90s and it has performed well in the past. It always keeps the freezer in the 0°F to 8°F range but the chill box can range from 45° to 50° range.

My question is: has anyone in the group actually performed the "Burping" procedure where you invert the fridge for 24 hours? and, if so, what were the symptoms that motivated you to do it and what were the results?

I have always been skeptical of doing this, but I am at the point where I would try it if there were a chance of success. It is certainly going to be a major hassle and I don't want to do it if it won't do any good.

Thanks for any input on this problem.

I tried burping my 14 year old Dometic RM2554 in my RT 210P a couple years ago. It did not help, but I thought I would try it. Yes, it is a major hassle to do in the Roadtrek. I replaced with the same model. It has worked fine but for some reason the fridge temp went to 45-50 range near the end of our trip a month ago. When I got home a rearranged my vent fans and the fridge worked fine. Not sure the fan change did it though.

These fridges can be flaky. Sometimes it is the controls. A change to the Dinosaur board can fix the control problem. Sometimes I think it is the fridge plumbing itself. Some cool well, some are marginal. Mine is OK but I wish it cooled better.

This post describes the mods I did. One big issue with the 210 is Roadtrek did not do the vent properly. See the link below. Because I already had some investment in the ARPRV board and fans and the other mods, I decided to stay with the Dometic when I replaced the old fridge. I also wasn't up to doing the electrical upgrades needed for a compressor fridge. Sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision. However, if the Dometic dies I am definitely replacing with a compressor fridge and will just have to do the needed mods.

https://www.classbforum.com/forums/f...ance-8484.html

[rvsprinterguy]

Never needed to burp my old Norcold. It seemed to operate within specs the entire time I owned it. I went with a compressor refrigerator because I got tired of leveling requirements, needing to service/replace the burner on an annual basis and having recurring difficulties getting the thing to ignite. The Engel unit I installed is much more consistent in its cooling than the Norcold ever was.