Fridge, water heater, and now air conditioning not working

[chiwawamama]

Ok - now the air conditioning just went out. 

The lights and outlets work. 

I am in tears.....

 

[chiwawamama]

My husband was able to get the air back on, but the fridge and water heater are still out.  We had to through a lot of food away and I am hoping a good cleaning with bleach will erase the terrible fridge smell.

My husband is at Home Depot buying fuses and testers now.    Our neighbor had him open the outdoor panel and everything looks clean.

 

[keymastr]

There most likely is a circuit breaker that is tripped, probably near the inverter. You  also need to check the source of shore power to see how many volts you are really plugged into and that the plug is wired correctly. These are common beginner problems and once you understand how all these systems work it will be fine and you will have very little trouble.

 

[Chuck and Lori]

If you have an outlet available, how about running an extension cord from there to the fridge.  This may give you the use of the fridge until you figure out what your electrical issues are. 

Thanks  Chuck

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The extension cord idea works if the problem is no 120v to the fridge outlet, but the fridge should auto-switch to LP gas if that's the issue. And apparently it failed when it did that last (the check light that was reported). Should be able to force the fridge to LP mode again using the control panel switch. That would test to see if that mode works. If it does, then the problem is somewhere in the 120vac side of things; if not the problem is deeper than that.

 

[chiwawamama]

Waiting for a service tech.  I will let you know what the issue is (if he can figure it out).

 

[chiwawamama]

Ok, the tech just left - hopefully not for long

He checked all the wires, circuits and fuses and found no issues.  So......he thinks it is the circuit board.  He went back to the shop to either find one in stock or get one from another unit.  Then he will return here and replace the current board and we hope that fixes the issue. 

The fridge smells because of being off with food inside it.  Will a good cleaning with bleach solve the problem or is there something else I should use to clean it?

 

[Rene T]

After washing it with strong solution of bleach (use ventilation) put a box or two of Arm & Hammer backing soda in the fridge. That will help some but I'm not sure if it, will take away all the smell.

 

[John From Detroit]

I woudl wash with baking soda and water

What board does he think it is?    You said A/C, water heater and fridge all went out.. They have two things in common

120 volts (The fridge should have switched to propane)

And in many rigs 12 volts.. 12 volts is used to run the control systems for all these devices.. For all of them to go out suggests a 12 volt issue.. The board here is the converter.

Of course,  Though I'm not a fan of it, coincidence is a fact in some cases, (multiple board failures at the same time) though usually there is a cause (Nearby lightening strike for example).

 

[Elkhounds]

You can also use some charcoal.  We froze about 6 bags of onions cut up and the next day the smell was very strong.  I was afraid it would make everything in the freezer smell and taste like the onions.  Charcoal (like used for grilling) cleared up the freezer in a few days.  Good luck with it all and keep us posted.

 

[chiwawamama]

My husband found a bad fuse last night and replaced it - that fixed the air, but nothing else.  We had hot water this morning, so the heater must be working now.

The tech just put in the new board and guess what.......the fridge still doesn't work.  He is off to the shop to talk to the service manager and possibly call the fridge maker Dometic (sp?) to see what to do next. 

 

[Brother Bear]

newspaper, printed in black ink will take the smell out of a fridge if left inside for a few days.

 

[keymastr]

That is great that you were able to get a tech out there so quickly. Don't be too discouraged, you have a pretty nice unit. They all have some bugs that get discovered when you start using them. If the industry was a bit better run then these issues would be caught  before delivery but often it is the first owner who works all the little kinks out. Hope they get you squared away pretty soon.

 

[chiwawamama]

So far the outcome is still no working fridge.  The hot water heater is working.  The service manager came out with the tech and did a recheck and found that the brow panel has to be replaced along with the auto button.  The manager explained it as the brain was disconnected from the body and that is why nothing was working. 

They are borrower a brow panel from another unit and will be here tomorrow to replace it.  Keeping my fingers crossed.

We are parked in a campground that is about 3 miles from the dealer, still under warranty (with an extended warranty) and also looking to upgrade to a 5th wheel.  I think that is why they came out so fast and made the house call.

They also know that I blog and will give them a thumbs up when this is all said and done.

 

[keymastr]

Well being so close is probably the biggest reason they are so quick but also that they want that future sale. Most don't seem to get too excited about blogging although Twitter is an amazing resource at the manufacturers level should the need arise to go that far. Sounds like they are going the extra mile for you compared to a lot of dealers. Hope the panel works out.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The dealer is indeed going the extra mile for you.  Mention their name and give 'em some praise!

 

[chiwawamama]

They couldn't borrow a panel, so it had to be ordered.  The part should come in sometime on Monday, so we are making due with using a cooler.

Hopefully it is the panel - otherwise they will have to replace the entire fridge. 

We have been very happy with McGeorge Rolling Hills RV in Ashland, VA!

 

[keymastr]

Yup, they have gone farther than many dealers to help get you fixed up. Form a good relationship with them and it will go a long way to making this a fun lifestyle. We should all be so lucky!

 

[nomad297]

They also know that I blog and will give them a thumbs up when this is all said and done.

What is the web address of your blog?

Bruce

 

[chiwawamama]

It was the eyebrow panel above the fridge.  It was replaced and everything is working fine now.