AdventureTaco - turbodb's build and adventures

EddieWorld is awesome and a required stop. They have a great selection of sugar free candy.

 

Dan, what's wrong with the fridge? Have you had a chance to look into it?

 

The "real" answer is "I don't know, but..." ARB support has been quite unhelpful, which is unfortunate given the price I paid for the fridge. Granted, 6 years ago (almost exactly) so it's out of warranty.

As you can imagine, I have this all ready for a Rig Review, but that'll have to wait for the trip report to finish, so here's the jist, since you asked:

Below is the full conversation I've had with them, and ultimately their suggestion hasn't changed even with all the info: "take it to an appliance repair shop or ARB dealer." The reason that seems pretty lame to me is that:

• an appliance repair place can't fix the compressor anyway, so I'd be out whatever they charge me (an hour of the same debugging I did?) and then still have to buy a new fridge.
• And an ARB dealer (places like Toyota of Bellevue) just sells the fridges, they aren't going to have people who can tell me what's wrong.

So yeah. Time for a new fridge. Perhaps Dometic this time. Longer warranty and currently on sale for 20% off for Memorial Day. Still trying to decide, since the ARB did work well for 6 years and is (if only slightly) larger. Curious to hear which way you'd go.

--- --- --- communication with ARB, start at the top, read down; emails dated --- --- ---

From: Dan
Sent: Sunday, April 23, 2023 20:21
To: ARB Tech <tech@arbusa.com>
Subject: RE: ARB 50qt Fridge/freezer issue

Evening,

I wanted to reach out because I just got back from a trip where my ARB 50qt Fridge/freezer failed while I was on the trail, and I’d like to figure out the best way to get it fixed or replaced.

I go on trips pretty regularly - generally for 3-7 days, approximately every couple of weeks. Between each trip I empty and clean the fridge, and leave it open so that it doesn’t develop mildew or anything. On my last trip (I departed on Wed 4/19 and returned today, Sunday 4/23), followed my usual procedure of taking the fridge to my truck, powering it on (12v), and loading it up before taking off for SE Utah.

A few hours into the journey, I just happened to glance at the temp on the fridge - not sure why, I don’t generally check it, as it’s performed pretty well as long as I’ve had it, except for the issue I contacted you guys about below) - and I noticed that it hadn’t dropped at all from when I’d loaded up.

I made sure the fan was on (it was), and the temp was correctly set to 37°F (it was), and decided to give it another hour. After that hour, it still wasn’t cooling, so I was forced to stop at a local Albertsons to grab a couple of 10lbs blocks of ice, converting my fridge into a cooler for the rest of the trip.

As soon as I got home, I took a bit of a closer look. I don’t see any broken wires, the fan comes on (with both 12v DC and 120v AC), and the control panel still “works” - the light is green when it’s trying to cool, no flashing red light, etc. but it is not cooling at all.

What would you guys suggest?

Thanks much,
Dan

---

From: Dan
Sent: Friday, April 28, 2023 12:14
To: 'Technical Support' <tech@arbusa.com>
Subject: RE: [Request received]

Afternoon folks,

Just wanted to reach out since I hadn’t heard back on this. I’m sure you are busy, but just wanted to make sure it wasn’t lost in the shuffle.

Cheers,
Dan

---

From: Don (Technical Support) <tech@arbusa.com>
Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2023 14:46
To: Dan
Subject: [ARBUSA] Re: RE: ARB 50qt Fridge/freezer issue

Your request (18199) has been updated. To add additional comments, reply to this email.

Hello Dan,

Have you turned off the fridge and let it sit for an hour and then plugging the system back in on AC and see if it does the same? This can sometimes reset the system.

As for the issue you're experiencing, I suggest that you reach out to a small appliance shop that deals with fridges or a dealer that sells ARB products to help diagnose. There may be several factors that could cause the problem, and diagnosing them is best done in person. Unfortunately, being a remote team, we're unable to pinpoint the exact cause of the issue.

What I can provide you with is the troubleshoot manual for your reference. This provides a flow chart and troubleshoot steps that can help pin point what part that may need to be replaced on the fridge if applicable.

We appreciate your understanding and hope you're able to find a solution soon.

Best regards,
D - ARB Technical Support

---

From: Dan
Sent: Wednesday, May 10, 2023 17:25
To: Technical Support <tech@arbusa.com>
Subject: Re: [ARBUSA] Re: RE: ARB 50qt Fridge/freezer issue

Thanks Don, do you have a place that you guys recommend near Seattle, Washington?

Cheers, Dan

---

From: Don (Technical Support) <tech@arbusa.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2023 08:03
To: Dan
Subject: [ARBUSA] Re: RE: ARB 50qt Fridge/freezer issue

Your request (18199) has been updated. To add additional comments, reply to this email.

Hello Dan,

We currently have no recommendations unfortunately. We would recommend reaching out to an appliance shop that works on fridges that would be able to look into your issues.

You can also go to our website on ARBUSA.com and look under Find a Dealer and this will show all of our ARB shops near your area. They should be able to point you the right direction.

Best Regards

---

From: Dan
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2023 09:10
To: Technical Support <tech@arbusa.com>
Subject: RE: [ARBUSA] Re: RE: ARB 50qt Fridge/freezer issue

Ron, using the service manual you provided (thank you), I have some additional information that I hope helps:

• It seems to me that the compressor is not actually turning on after I left the fridge for1 hour, then plugged it into AC power. The front control panel was set to 37°F, and it was 60°F in the room, and the cooling fan came on, but I never heard the compressor kick in (after waiting for about a minute). The entire time, the green light was illuminated on the front control panel (as if it was working correctly), with no flashing lights indicating errors. (NOTE: after running the tests below, I think the compressor did actually come on but this was my impression initially.)

Given that, I proceeded into the service manual:

8.2 - skipped this test, as I was using A/C power at this point.

8.3 - Test main circuit board - 100-240V AC
* result: 122V AC measured between input “L” and “N” and output “L” and “N” -- good
*** Test Pass - the main circuit board has now been eliminated as a possible fault.

8.4 - Test compressor control unit - 100-240V AC
* result: 122V AC measured between terminals “L” and “N” on the compressor control unit -- good
* result: 13V DC measured between terminals “A” and “C” on the compressor control unit -- good
*** Test Pass - The compressor control unit has now been eliminated as a possible fault

8.5 Test compressor (windings)
* result: 2.5ohms between center and left pins -- good
* result: 2.5ohms between center and right pins -- good
*** Test pass - compressor windings are OK.

8.6 Test thermistor (my fridge has the thermistor connected directly to CN7 on the main PCB)
* result: Ambient temperature of 60°F, 13.6kohm on thermistor -- good (between 8-14kohm)
*** Test pass - the thermistor is functioning correctly.

With all those tests coming out good, I went back to test 8.2 to recheck the compressor control board and compressor.

8.2 Test compressor control unit - 12/24V DC
* result: When terminals “T” and lower “C” were connected, the cooling fan and compressor turned on. (Neither was on prior to connecting the two terminals.) -- good
*** Test pass - The compressor control unit has now been eliminated as a possible fault. (again)

So, it seems that there are no faults in the system, and yet it is not cooling at all. With that information, do you have any further recommendations as to steps to take prior to my having to pay out of pocket to go to a third party? And, if the problem does turn out to be a leak in the refrigerant system, is there any way to fix that, short of purchasing a new refrigerator?

Thanks,
-d

---

From: Don (Technical Support) <tech@arbusa.com>
Sent: Thursday, May 11, 2023 09:25
To: Dan
Subject: [ARBUSA] Re: RE: ARB 50qt Fridge/freezer issue

Your request (18199) has been updated. To add additional comments, reply to this email.

Hi Dan,

From what it sounds like is that you may have a leak in the system like you have stated. Though being remote I cannot confirm this. I highly recommend reaching out to a repair technician that feels confident on sourcing the problem. If it is the compressor Im afraid you may have to get a new unit.

Hope you're able to find a solution soon.

Best regards,
D - ARB Technical Support

--- --- --- end communication with ARB --- --- ---​

So yeah, Don was polite enough, but quite unhelpful.

 

Calling Don “tech support” is a joke. Personally I would give Dometic a shot after those responses.

 

My thoughts as well. No personal experience, but I'd go Dometic. ARB is pretty diverse and likely just rebrands someone else's fridge. Dometic seems to specialize in RV/outdoor cooling solutions, so support would likely be a bit better.

A buddy got a cheap Chinese knock-off. It works, but the temp seems a bit erratic at times.

 

I can see how that would be very frustrating.

The only suggestion I have for the scenario where you keep it and try to fix it, would be to find someone that is up front about tracking down a refrigerant leak. It'll take someone who has first hand knowledge and experience. Seems like a long shot to find the right situation but might be worth a try. Maybe an RV repair place might have someone on staff who works on these types of systems.

It seems like 6 years of pounding might be the norm for these things. My first fridge, a Whynter, lasted that long before starting to have issues. FWIW, it still works on AC only. It has been demoted to garage duty which seems fine for it.

I will say that for the cost the Dometic has been great. It was a bit smaller, a plus that it fit my in cab location a bit better, but a minus that I had to learn to rethink how I carry what I need. This might not be an issue for you. Mine is the CFX3 55im model. Only time will tell how long it'll last tho.

 

Didn't realize you got a new fridge as well, but I did know about the AC power of your first one. I'm considering the

$780 CFX3 45 -Liter Portable Refrigerator and Freezer, Powered by AC/DC or Solar

CFX3 45 model, so a bit smaller than yours and opens the other direction (which is what I need since I keep mine in the bed).

As for the ARB, I see where you're going with that. Could be worthwhile if it could allow me to recoup some costs by ultimately selling it... at any rate, it was pricey enough that it'll be a while before I just toss it, hahaha.

 

Harbor Freight sells a refrigerant leak detector. Might be worth sniffing to see if it really is leaking. But if it is leaking, I would expect to see an oily film near the source of the leak. At the very least, some small amount of oil covered in dust.

 

I'm familiar with the Harbor Freight detector; used it when I was searching for a leak in the A/C on the Tacoma.

Problem is, *if* there is a hole in the system and everything leaked out (which would be a little strange, given that it worked great through the end of the trip to Mojave Preserve, and then didn't work *immediately* when I restarted it 3 weeks later for the trip to Utah), all the refrigerant is long gone (now more than a month after the Utah trip, so 7-8 weeks after it last worked). Like you, I'd have expected to see an oily film somewhere too; but there wasn't one anywhere (at least, on the part of the system that is visible outside the shell). No oily dust, either.

Still, I very much appreciate the ideas; keep them coming - would be great to figure out the problem!

 

Have you tried just jumping the compressor on to see if it gets cold or the condenser gets hot. Might be a broken low pressure limit switch

 

Have you taken a temperature measurement between off and on? Or tried to recalibrate the thermometer?

 

Sigh, unfortunately (I think?) I've done that. It's not super clear from the notes above, but that was this test:

8.2 Test compressor control unit - 12/24V DC
* result: When terminals “T” and lower “C” were connected, the cooling fan and compressor turned on. (Neither was on prior to connecting the two terminals.) -- good
*** Test pass - The compressor control unit has now been eliminated as a possible fault. (again)​

Jumping "T" and "C" takes the compressor control unit out of the picture by directly turning on the compressor. Cooling fan comes on, I can feel the compressor "spin/vibrate up", but still nothing. It continues to run continuously forever. I can't say that anything really seems to get warm, though?

Now... to your point of a low pressure limit switch - I *thought* that's what the thermistor was - and that tested "good" as well...in test 8.6. I'm all ears for a different way to test it though!

Not sure what you mean. Whatever the ambient temperature is outside the fridge, that's what the temperature inside the fridge stays (even when the compressor is on continuously). Or, if the ambient temperature outside the fridge is different than inside, the inside slowly works its way to the outside ambient temp.

 

If the compressor spun up and nothing got hot or cold it's outta gas unfortunately

 

Yeah, boo. That's what I figured. I suppose I'll go spin it up for an hour again, just to verify. Thanks as always.

 

I was curious whether it was cooling at all. But you answered that.

 

My fridge died too. Well, not completely, it still keeps food cold. But it runs CONSTANTLY. It's now running down my battery overnight, like in 8 hours to low-voltage cutout and no-crank in the morning. Which based on its rated power consumption (50W) should be impossible, given that my battery is rated to store ~3x the charge necessary to deliver 50W for 8 hours. But I can't argue with empirical evidence: when the fridge is on, my battery is dead by morning.

Haven't gotten stranded yet, but had to hook up the solar panel during breakfast to crank the engine this morning. I decided to order a new fridge in hopes that this fixes the problem. Otherwise I have a defective battery (a six-month-old Northstar 27F), or a major parasitic load. New fridge would be the easiest fix... hope it works!

Anyway, that's not why I hopped on here.

Wanted to post a selfie, and pose a riddle as to where I was a few hours ago:



Clues:

1. Considerably more than 1300 feet to hike underground here.
2. Slightly closer to home (for me) than the location referenced above, and accessed via a different highway corridor from LA.
2. Has its own Wikipedia page.
4. I don't think you've been there, but I'm often wrong about such things.

Rules:
1. No checking my aprs, or exif on the file.
2. Null and void if you've already been here and recognize it. In which case... god dammit, Dan, I tried.

Cheers y'all.

 

Well, I've never been 1300 feet into any adit except for the stupidity of our little jaunt into the Carlisle, so I don't recognize it. I was going to leave it there and just complain that you didn't balance out the lights - there are more in the right fork than the left, but then I decided that I should cheat too by checking APRS. That's your fault, because I wouldn't have even thought to check APRS if you hadn't mentioned it, so maybe it's not even cheating, really.

Yeah, I still have no idea where you were. I started looking through wikipedia, but apparently there are a lot of pages there. I got to the "AA" and gave up. Note that "AA" may be the first page. Except for "0," if you're sorting based on ASCII codes or something.

Anyway, so as to not be totally worthless, here's where I was a couple days ago. I was going to just go to bed and sleep, but then I remembered a bunch of the night shots you've been posting and felt like I'd been shown up, so I got up and setup the camera for a few photos. Came out just OK, but I like it nonetheless. Probably best full screen and HD, since stars are small.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uY-2zsNFMLM

 

Based on a quick Google search I'm guessing Big Horn Mine, but that's seems a little too obvious so it can't be that.

 

Dan,

I've throughly enjoyed your trip write ups of Southern Utah as it's awesome to see others out exploring what was my back yard growing up. If you are ever looking for other cool spots in the area to check out I can put you in touch with my dad, who has been exploring the area for the last +/- 40 years and might know of a place or 2 that covered in most guide books. Keep up the trip reports!

 

Dunno why I wanted to stump you, but mission accomplished I guess.

It's the Burro Schmidt tunnel.



Oh, and the side shoot on the left is a dead end. And evidently, a restroom for some percentage of visitors... sigh.

I wouldn't say its spectacular or must-see, but definitely worth a side trip if you find yourself in the randsburg area.