Refrigerator overheating

[Montana_3540]

We bought a new, 2004 bought this year, Montana 2980. We had it at a local RV shop to have them install a solar panel. He usually uses the vent on the frig for his wires but he could not since our frig is in a slide unit. He said he has seen problems with refrigerators overheating because they are in a slide unit and running while the slide is closed. We tend to leave the frig on in the summer and want to close the trailer up while not using it. Has anyone had a problem with the frig overheating while running and the slide unit closed?

It would be nice to know if there is a problem before we find out the hard way.

[azstar]

kclester,

First of all welcome to the MOC Forum,

This is a fascinating question. I at this point can't imagine why this might happen, unless the flow of air is restricted. Is the inside or outside Refer. vent blocked in any way when closed?

The only other thing that comes to mind is the thought that if your Rig was closed up it could lead to very high temps inside you Rig.

I'll be watching this post with great interest to see what pops up.

Wish you well and Happy Camping

[Countryfolks]

Look on the outside where the reefer is installed, there should be 2 metal doors/panels, one above the other. The lower one will have the refrig drain, The upper one is a vent [in conjunction with the lower one] that allows air to circulate behind the refrig. There should be a thermostat controled fan located in the space behind that cycles when the flow is insufficient. We've had ours on many times in the summer with the slide closed, no problems.

Skip

[sreigle]

None at all. As Skip said, that's probably why there are two vent doors when the fridge is in a slide.

When we were weekender/vacationers we turned the fridge on in the spring and turned it off in the late fall. It stayed on all the time with slides in at the house. As fulltimers, it's been on all the time for over two years. It gets turned off during defrosting and recently got turned off when we had a 21 mile bridge/tunnel that required propane be off. I turned the fridge off so it wouldn't sit there trying to ignite. Otherwise it's on all the time and it's in a slide. Never a problem with the fridge. I suspect the mechanic was thinking back to early slides before they learned this could be a problem and provided better venting. Just a guess.

[harleyrider]

I also have the fridge in the slide.I haven`t had a problem with it running with the slides closed.Makes you thing though as to why he would have mentioned that!!!!

[Montana_3540]

Thanks for all of your input on this matter. I will try running the frig and keep an eye on it. The person that mentioned it had worked on older models and found a problem with heat buildup causing the frig to shut down. It could be that he isn't used to the newer models.

[sreigle]

Kenneth, please post back when you're satisfied it's ok or if you find a problem. I think a lot of us would like to know.
thanks.