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RV Maintenance: Absorption Refrigerators

RV owners are dependent on their refrigerators. In fact, not only is a refrigerator necessary for self-containment, most owners would probably cancel their trip plans if it quit working. It’s easy to think that an RV refrigerator will be ready to go and be just as reliable as a residential version, but there are a number of issues that are exclusive to absorption refrigerators. Repairs, and possible replacement, are costly — to the tune of hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

Following are five of the most common practices that can cause an RV refrigerator to fail. As with most RV systems, reading the owner’s manual and becoming familiar with the appliance will go a long way toward preventing a chilled-food calamity.

DON’T: Operate the refrigerator too far off level

An RV absorption refrigerator is dependent on heat and the proper flow of its refrigerant. Unlike a residential fridge that uses one chemical for refrigeration, an RV version uses a solution of ammonia, hydrogen, water and sodium chromate, which is heated to the boiling point and then cooled to absorb heat from the food-storage areas. Heat is provided by an electric element or an LP-gas flame.

This design is ages old and was commonly used before the advent of electric compressors and modern refrigerants. However, physics has a lot to do with its proper operation, and while the cooling-unit design has been fine-tuned over the years, it’s still dependent on being “comfortably” level to operate properly, with tolerances of 3 degrees side to side and 6 degrees front to back.

If the refrigerator is operated off level, then the heating of the boiler is uneven, creating hot spots where the sodium chromate can begin to precipitate out of the solution and form crystals or flakes in the solution. Once formed, the flakes always remain and can create a blockage. Once the blockage forms, the cooling unit becomes damaged and must be replaced at considerable expense.

Preventing this malady can be accomplished simply by leveling the RV to a comfortable position. A proper posture requires that the floor of the freezer be relatively level. This can be checked with a small bubble level. It may not be possible to achieve a perfect position, but if the bubble in the level is half in the center bull’s-eye, the refrigerator will likely perform properly.

Tech Tip

It’s best to turn the refrigerator off when parking temporarily on an unlevel surface, such as while shopping or sightseeing.

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