Fridge problem

[hymerholidays]

Hi, I had a habitation check done last December and they said they found a small gas leak behind the fridge which they fixed. The problem is, now I’ve gone to use my 1998 Hymer b544, I cannot get the fridge to work on gas. Fine when connected to house electricity supply for pre-travel cooling but I can’t get the gas to ignite. I can smell the gas coming through when I’m outside so I’m assuming it’s something to do with the ignition. Also, they seem to have reinstalled the fridge a fraction lower as the door no longer opens over the thin door mat. I feel awkward about going back to the repair shop as so much time has elapsed so any help would be appreciated. I’m a solo mature lady driver with few mechanical skills btw!

 

[mitzimad]

As a get out of jail fix you can usually get a long lighter or match in to light the fridge via the lower air vent once alight it will stay alight till you turn it off

 

[Figaro]

There should be no smell of gas as the gas valve should remain closed until there is a flame which is detected by the thermocouple and whilst present, will hold the gas valve open. If the flame should go out for any reason, the gas valve closes.
I think you should go back to whoever did the repair even if it was some time ago.
To leave it so the door won't open is not on.
Not working on gas may be a simple fix but without some diy skills you're going to struggle I think and with a possible leak still, it's perhaps beyond your abilities.. so get back to original repairer

I think sticking a lit match through the lower vent is not advisable if there is even the remote chance of a gas leak

 

[autorouter]

Many people spend their time on campsites and CL/CS sites that have electric hookup, so it is perfectly reasonable that you could have used the MH regularly and never needed to use the gas option for several months. Presumably it's the ignition device or the flame failure detection that's not working, and it might have gone wrong having been working fine when they repaired it.

So you could take it back and say the ignition has stopped working. And can they fix the door opening problem that's never been right since they worked on it last time.

 

[PaulOH]

I think you should go back to whoever did the repair even if it was some time ago.
To leave it so the door won't open is not on.
Not working on gas may be a simple fix but without some diy skills you're going to struggle I think and with a possible leak still, it's perhaps beyond your abilities.. so get back to original repairer

I think sticking a lit match through the lower vent is not advisable if there is even the remote chance of a gas leak

Fully agree - the gas system is a piece of kit that a qualified person needs to look at. I hope it's very simple, but you really need a specialist to help you here, and then you can be confident and stress free about the repair!

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[hymerholidays]

Thanks to everyone who replied. I can only smell the gas when someone is pressing in the knob which is what you press to allow the gas through, but the ignition switch doesn’t seem to make a spark. It’s a Dometic fridge btw and the motorhome is a 1998 but not sure if it’s a replacement or not. The door will open providing I lift the mat up but it wasn’t like that before. I’m embarrassed to say I don’t know where the lower vent is. I’m struggling to get to grips with everything mechanical as I have been left in the lurch by my husband of 30 years who has become an alcoholic so we have separated. Its a LHD b544 and I’m pleased to say that I’m very comfortable driving it, it’s just these niggles of an older motor home I guess. Although, I often see that people have a few problems with new ones too. I guess my problem is that I want to get away having retired very recently and the motorhome place near me can’t usually book it in until about 2 months time. Sometimes more. Also, I really like wild camping so need the gas although I do have two (elderly) solar panels. I have read of spiders nesting in the flue over the winter. Is this a real thing? So sorry for the lengthy messages but I’m really struggling here.

 

[paddymcc]

Do you hear a clicking sound when you press the button in to make the gas flow?. It's the sound you get with cookers when lighting the burners. You may not hear it well from inside - the lower fridge vent on the outside wall behind the fridge can be removed to give you access to the ignition and flame. That's where the clicking noise should come from.

 

[autorouter]

A fridge needs air circulation at the back to cool the hot circulation pipes. There will be two vents in the outside wall at the back of the fridge. The gas burner is usually in the lower corner at the back of the fridge, so removing the lower vent will usually give you access to the gas burner. Also the 12V and 240V connections are there too.

If the fridge is working on 12V and 240V then the expensive bit, the coolant circuit, is working fine. The only problem is with the ignition of the gas, as it seems the gas flow itself is OK. This would be quite easy for a fridge technician to fix, I think.

 

[Jimbohorlicks]

Hi, I had a habitation check done last December and they said they found a small gas leak behind the fridge which they fixed. The problem is, now I’ve gone to use my 1998 Hymer b544, I cannot get the fridge to work on gas. Fine when connected to house electricity supply for pre-travel cooling but I can’t get the gas to ignite. I can smell the gas coming through when I’m outside so I’m assuming it’s something to do with the ignition. Also, they seem to have reinstalled the fridge a fraction lower as the door no longer opens over the thin door mat. I feel awkward about going back to the repair shop as so much time has elapsed so any help would be appreciated. I’m a solo mature lady driver with few mechanical skills btw!

If you book yourself into the 3 fs meet that Lisa is organising ,there will be lots of folks on that meet that would be willing to sort things out for you.

 

[hymerholidays]

Where is the 3fs meet and when?

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[Lisa]

Where is the 3fs meet and when?

Hi,

If you click on Rallies on the blue bar at the top of the page, it will take you to the events that some funsters are organising. Unfortunately, the 3F's is full at this moment in time but a reserve list has been started incase of any drop outs. You are welcome to ask to go on the reserve list.

Link to meet - https://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/foru...th-a-difference-4-8-22-to-9-8-22-full.253855/

 

[Figaro]

hymerholidays it sounds like you fridge is working well apart from the gas which sounds like the ignighter has given up, but a simple job to replace.
Dust and cobwebs blocking the flue is a thing but if you had work done by a technician recently I wouldn't expect that to be a problem now.
My 2003 B544 has the lower fridge vent mounted horizontally in the floor behind the rear bumper, I suspect yours is the same which will explain why you can't find it.
I'm sure you'll be able to get it working properly with a little bit of help from on here.

What part of the country are you in ?