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Re: [VAC] Ammonia cycle refrigerators.
Hi folks:
All the talk about this topic reminded me of something that I discovered
about my Dometic M52 ('67).
Once, on a little trip about a year ago to a park that didn't have
electrical hookups, I ran the fridge on gas and for the first time it
didn't get as cold as it should. I worried that the end was near for the
old thing. We got by with a Coleman cooler and ice. The fridge just
barely was cool enough although the burner seemed to be working OK.
Later, when I had the trailer back in the storage place, I got to
thinking about the fact that it seemed to run OK on electricity, which
led me to believe that the ammonia system was intact and functioning.
When I began checking around, I found that, due to the extreme bouncing
that my trailer does, the cap had popped off the top of the flue. The
cap is connected to a wire that supports and locates the screw shaped
flue baffle, which is critical to the proper operation of the
burner/heater. On my trailer, the cap is under a wooden plug in a
cabinet adjacent to the refrigerator vent. I placed the flue top back on
the flue and the fridge worked like gangbusters and has ever since.
So now each time I get to where I'm goin' I check that the cap is where
it should be. I wonder how many units were scrapped because of the flue
baffle?
Later,
GQ '67 Safari (Just back from a great trip to Humbolt County, CA and the
Redwood Empire...gas $1.99 9/10 gal...at least it wasn't $2.00!)
PS: Fridge worked great for 16 days on electric. Pre-cooled for 24 hours
on gas before starting out.