Club 80-90 Forums

The recent warm weather has produced fridge cooling problems, need to rectify in preparation for next summers heatwave!!

What are peoples views on installing upper and lower fridge vents on the outside of their vans, is it an easy prospect? Also the price of these plastic vents seems to range from £15 to £30-£40. Are the cheap ones worth using?

Before the barrage of " get a compressor fridge " replies come thick and fast , I’ll just say my fridge is a dometic three way ( 4421) and I don’t have any vents on the outside of the van other than the exhaust flu and mine maintains its temperature, when it was 32°c ambient the fridge was still 0°c on gas .
You can improove it more by adding a 120mm silent 12v fan behind the fridge blowing across the cooling fins to move the air , ideally switched by a thermo switch, but a manual switch works fine if you switch it on in the morning and off at night .

Regular maintenance of the fridge is essential in my experience, both the gas system and the mains and 12v wiring to ensure good connections and low voltage loss

I only had the flue vent on mine when i had my three way, never had any cooling problems.

Oh by the way, buy a compressor fridge

What would regular maintenance entail?

My fridge has not been used on gas by the previous van owner for years so I guess it needs some!

when I tried it the neon switch lights up and I hear the ignition clicking but no flame?

Can you get them serviced?

Oh and I am considering a compressor fridge!

Thanks for those replies, very useful and maybe saved me making 2 unnecessary holes in the van.
I have purchased a fan which was originally going to extract warm air to the exterior, however the suggestion to blow air over the cooling fins seems feasible. Where is the best location for the fan, on top of fridge or bottom.


Many thanks

Apart from my recent post in electrical. My 3 way fridge is now working well. Am going to get a thermometer so that I can see how effective the cooling. Impressed when on gas. Trying to gauge how much gas it uses. Currently 37 degrees here and on electric- beers still cold although they are in the ice compartment (holds two tinnies).I took the unit off mine. Shot blasted and repainted and wire brushed around the burner and electric spark. You need to hold the knob in till it stops sparking and check through the eye hole in bottom of fridge for a flame.
The fan seems a good idea as my cupboards get hot. Also at moment the outside panel is in full sun and very hot so will rig up some shade.

PS I too will look at a compressor fridge. [SMILING FACE WITH SMILING EYES] But running on gas when off grid is very useful for wild camping.

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Hi Sunscreen, the fan on my Westy fridge is positioned at the bottom and draws air in from the bottom and blows it upwards and out the top.
For what it's worth, when I'm on the road (anything from a couple of days to a couple of months) l run my fridge permanently on gas. After a recent service it runs fine and has coped admirably with recent weather. After all, man (this one) cannot live with warm beer. AND, get yaself a compressor fridge.

Regards, Max.

Hi Max, can I ask, does your van have top and bottom vents on the exterior?

Cant afford a compressor fridge

In answer to Sunscreen's Q, no. Like Mocki, my fridge only has an exhaust flu for the gas flame as with all standard Westy's. The modern upgrade to a 12v computer fan has made a significant difference. I'm mindful to having a working catbon monoxide detector though.

Regards, Max

If anyone is interested I have been using Electrolux three way fridges in my various vans over the years and in all cases have holes in the floor under them with mesh to keep mice and bugs out and one vent in the side of the van up near the top on the basis that hot air rises and is replaced by cool air from underneath. While there is only a limited space around the fridge installation It is not hermetic by any means. Being a bit OCD I prefer to get on hookup if at all possible. My current Liesuredrive had a clumsily Eletrolux fitted when I got it which I tidied up in the rebuild. Apart from an early failure in the early days I have never had one let me down.
I would be interested in fitting a compressor type if my current one and it's standby spare failed but that could take a time based on my experience. Plus it would have to look like a "proper" fridge to keep Her Ladyship on side as she wasn't impressed with the cool box style compressor our mate has in his narrow boat. Although I have to say I haven't really studied them. plus my one leisure battery would need upgrading.

Mr Bean wrote:Plus it would have to look like a "proper" fridge to keep Her Ladyship on side as she wasn't impressed with the cool box style compressor our mate has in his narrow boat. Although I have to say I haven't really studied them. plus my one leisure battery would need upgrading.

My Waeco CR50, recently replaced by the CRX50 (probably the most popular compressor fridge in vans our size) looks exactly like a mini version of the fridge in my house! Was the one on the narrow boat a top loader? They do indeed look more like a coolbox but are actually a bit more efficient as the internal temperature stays lower through multiple door openings.

Wear Sunscreen wrote: Hi Max, can I ask, does your van have top and bottom vents on the exterior ?

Mine had both, now only has the top one, no noticeable difference. I seal the vent in winter and have mozzie net on it in summer.

I think it's a great idea to buy a compressor fridge to replace your working 3 way ... just give me first dibs at buying it cheap eh Rob