hyattjlbb
Minot, ND
Senior Member
Joined: 05/21/2006
View Profile
 Offline
|
As we are towing the rig we are not "exactly" level hooked up and the fridge has worked fine when driving for 10 hours. I also have to agree with propane cools much quicker.
2007 Jayco Jay-Flight 31.5BHDS
2006 Chevy Silverado CC/SB 2500HD, Duramax/Allison
Beautiful Wife of only 12 Years
Boy - 10yrs
Boy - 4yrs
|
Hurricaner
Hurricane Utah
Senior Member
Joined: 02/17/2007
View Profile
|
If the RV is moving it does not matter as the problem can't occur if the fluid is being slopped around. The reefer can be damaged in less than an hour by unleveled operation and the effect is cumulative. So you might not know if you have done damage for several months or years. These things cost 1000 to 4000 dollars to replace, don't take a chance with unleveled operation.
Propane and electric are designed to be the same but most people find the gas to be a little faster although there are those that say the electric is faster. It depends on several factors but they should be close to the same.
Sam
Sam & Kari
Hurricane, Utah
2004 34' Damon Challenger 315
|
BobMary8101
Lake County FL for the winter
Senior Member
Joined: 10/25/2007
View Profile
 Online
|
Something that I don't think anyone has mentioned is this; front to back level is much more critical than side to side. Front to back needs to be 3 degrees or less, side to side can be up to 6 degrees out.
Bob
Bob and Mary
Pace-Arrow Vision 36B
Ford V-10 36 feet
Toad: 2008 Ford Focus
FMCA F398511
|
twinsmom04
BC Canada
Full Member
Joined: 04/21/2008
View Profile
Offline
|
BobMary8101 wrote:Something that I don't think anyone has mentioned is this; front to back level is much more critical than side to side. Front to back needs to be 3 degrees or less, side to side can be up to 6 degrees out.
Bob
that's really helpful to know  I like having specifics
TV - 2007 Silverado Crew cab shortbox with 5.3l engine
TT - 2007 28BHS Passport
campers include me and my 4 year old twin boys and occasionally DH
|
davidj54
South Alabama
Senior Member
Joined: 06/23/2006
View Profile
Offline
|
Remember that's front to back, side to side from the fridges perspective not necessarily the RV's. Our fridge sits middle of the curb side, so the RV can be 5" out of level side to side (fridge front to back) and 3' out front to back (fridge side to side). I know at those numbers I wouldn't be walking around in it.
Dodge Ram 2500 Mega Cab (Yeah, it's got a Cummins)
2006 Forest River Grand Surveyor GS-280
Prodigy Brake Controller
1000/10000lb Equal-i-zer with 4-way sway control
|
|
|
kitch251
Aiken, SC
Senior Member
Joined: 04/18/2006
View Profile
Offline
|
Bobmary8110
I was told or read just the opposite: the critical leveling is side to side and not front to back. I wonder who is right?
Jim
|
BobMary8101
Lake County FL for the winter
Senior Member
Joined: 10/25/2007
View Profile
Online
|
Jim, if you take the cover off the back of your fridge, you will see that the coils weave back and forth from front to back, from the prespective of the coach, if the fridge is built against an outside wall. It is important that the chems in the coils be able to move down through the coils without pooling in low spots. That is why the 3 degrees is front to back from the coach's prespective.
I have never seen a fridge set at any angle in a coach other than sitting directly against an outer wall. That being said, I have not seen every rv so I can't argue with what someone else has. As long as the 3 degree figure is from the prespective of the sides of the fridge as stated above you will not have problems.
Bob
|
Ray,IN
IN, USA
Senior Member
Joined: 03/22/2001
View Profile
Offline
|
BobMary8101 wrote:Something that I don't think anyone has mentioned is this; front to back level is much more critical than side to side. Front to back needs to be 3 degrees or less, side to side can be up to 6 degrees out.
Bob
To further explain, front to back (of fridg) is 6* max, side to side (of fridg) is 3*. Ask Dometic troubleshooting and service yourself.
I calculated this out for my 5er, a 40'er, and it really corresponds to the saying "if your trailer is level enough to live in confortably the fridge will operate normally".
|
BobMary8101
Lake County FL for the winter
Senior Member
Joined: 10/25/2007
View Profile
Online
|
Yup, Ray, this is one of those things that is really hard to explain to someone without using "show & tell". I'm sitting here thinking that my explanation was as clear as mud. Prespective is everything in this explanation. Of course the 3 degree figure is side to side from the fridge's point of view.
Bob
|
Mousefart
New Jersey
Senior Member
Joined: 08/15/2004
View Profile
Offline
|
kitch251 wrote:Bobmary8110
I was told or read just the opposite: the critical leveling is side to side and not front to back. I wonder who is right?
Jim
Depends if you are talking about the fridge itself, or the trailer.
The fridge is more sensitive to side to side leveling, since the fridge is mounted against a side wall in 99% of RVs, this translates to front to back leveling being more critical for the RV itself. If you have one of those rare rigs that has the fridge mounted on a front or back wall, it would be reversed.
But again, the 3 to 6 degree allowand translates to 6 to 8 inches out of level side to side (of the RV, not the fridge) and up to a foot or more front to back (depending on length).
So those people who spend half an hour leveling their rigs to the last 1/2 degree to "prevent damage to the fridge" are just wasting precious camping time.
Same for those who level their rigs by putting the level on the fridge itself and running in and out of the rig to check because they are worried the the fridge itself might have been mounted crooked in the rig. Again, a complete waste of time.
Some more RV fridge facts are....
The damage done from running a fridge out of level are CUMULATIVE as each time you do it cause more hard deposits to collect in bad places. So running it out of level for one hour a month for a year causes the same damage as running it for 12 hours straight out of level. The tubes slowly clog more and more until the fridge can no longer cool properly. So even though you are stopping for lunch for "only an hour", if your RV is more than that 6" to 8" out of level in the parking lot, shut the fridge off as all those "one hour lunches" will add up over time.
Running the fridge while driving will NOT damage it as the fluid are constantly sloshing around even when going up and down steep hills. Therefore the fluid doesn't sit in one place long enough to cause buildup.
These units are DESIGNED to be run on propane while traveling and this is what MOST people do. The people who won't due to unfounded paranoia are just inconveniencing themselves and are risking food poisoning to boot. There are safety systems built into all modern propane tanks that shut of the flow in the even of a broken line or accident. Driving with the propane on is no different than driving your car/truck "with the gasoline turned on" (you won't even leave the driveway with it turned off  ). In fact, my propane has NEVER been turned off since the day I towed my trailer off the dealer's lot. Yes, RVs do occasionally (very rarely) catch fire while driving down the road (but almost never due to propane), but SO DO CARS AND TRUCKS! So let's just forget the whole thing and stay home. 
Paul (Mouse)
2007 Flagstaff Shamrock 17 Hybrid (heavily modified for boondocking and winter camping).
2007 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab 4x4, 4.7L HO, factory tow, 3.92 gears.
Equil-i-zer Hitch, Prodigy.
Yamaha EF2400 Generator (quiet, cause I care!)
|
|
|
