This is the second part of an article on gas fridges. See the first part on Gas Absorption Fridges - how do they work?

Gas fridges were invented in 1922 by Baltzar von Platen and Carl Munters in Sweden. They have been in commercial production since 1923. Since then design and manufacture has come a long way and now the European Union have applied standards to the performance of fridges. If you have a fridge that is rated to only work at 32 degrees ambient temperature and it is 35 degrees it is highly likely that the fridge will not work well and any attempt to make it work better can be frustrating and may not help. So be sure you buy a fridge designed to do what you want to do.

All that aside there are many things you can do to make the fridge work better. Essentially, it takes longer than your standard home fridge to change temperature. Keep this in mind when using the fridge.

Yearly Maintenance . This is especially important if you have not used your motorhome for some time. Inspect vents and flue's to ensure they are not clogged with cobwebs and or spiders and other small creepy crawlies. Check the burner to ensure it is burning cleanly. If not have it serviced by an authorised service technician. Also check the defrost holes in the back of the fridge compartment - see your manual to find the exact location. If these are blocked the water can not escape and will pool in the bottom of your fridge.

Check door seals to ensure they are not worn and are working to seal the door. This need to be done more often than you would with your fridge at home as the door lock can warp seals and allow them to move. To check seals use a $5.00 note and put it in the seal and close the door. If the note can move around the seal needs replacing. If you can not slide the note out easily the seals are probably working.

Level: Make sure the fridge is level. A trick to helping this is before you leave home and with the fridge empty put a two way spirit level in the freezer compartment or the bottom of the fridge. Then move the vehicle to a position where the base of the freezer or fridge is level. Then before moving the vehicle move the level and mount it in a position where the driver can see it easily and remount it to level. Then when you get to your site you can use the level that the driver can now see easily to move the vehicle into a position where he or she knows the fridge is level.

Insulation: Although the fridge will come with in-built insulation adding extra will help with energy consumption and cooling. Polystyrene sheets on either side and on top will help with insulation but ensure you do not restrict the air flow up the back of the fridge.

Position: If the fridge is sitting in the sun it will not work as efficiently as in shade. Make sure when you park your motorhome, the side where the fridge is situated is not in direct sunlight. If it is move the vehicle or have an awning over the fridge. if you choose the awning option ensure the exhaust vent is above the awning. As the sun moves throughout the day try to park with the fridge side pointing south so that it is in shade morning through afternoon.

Ventilation: The rear of the fridge must be well ventilated. A vent at the bottom and the top is a must. The condenser fins at the top of the fridge produce heat (see article on how a gas fridge works) and this heat must be extracted for the fridge to work efficiently. The cool air is drawn in from the bottom vent and as hot air rises it can escape through the vent at the top. There may also need to be baffles installed to ensure the air passes over the fins and not around them. If you only have one vent the air will not flow freely over the fins. Also ensure that the air is directed up and out and not up into a dead space where it will become trapped therefore not allowing the free flow of air.

Avoid filling the fridge with warm food and or drink. It will only heat up the interior of the fridge and take longer for it to cool down again. If possible buy cold drinks - or leave them outside overnight to cool down. If you do find you need to restock the fridge try to do it in the evening so it has the cool night and no door opening to quickly return it to the desired temperature.

Defrost your frozen foods in the fridge section keeps the fridge section colder

If you are having trouble in a hot climate Freeze up your freezer packs overnight and put them in the fridge during the day again keeps the fridge section colder.

Do not open the fridge unless you know exactly what you want and keep the door open for as little time as possible when the door is open cold air will fall out (hot air rises, cold air falls). This lost cold air will be replaced with ambient temperate air and will take some time to be replaced again with cold air.

Thermostat keep the thermostat set no colder than the level you need. Any higher and you are just wasting gas.

Don't turn the thermostat up to maximum: Turning up the thermostat does not make the fridge work any faster. All it will do is heat up the burner more, use more gas and make the fridge more inefficient. If the fridge is not cool enough turn up the thermostat 1-2 points and wait at least 12 - 24 hours before adjusting again.

If using your motorhome for short trips turn the fridge on at least 24-36 hours before you leave home, or leave it plugged in running on electricity all the time. You can not pack it with room temperature food then travel to your destination and expect it to cool down within two hours of you being there. We regularly turn the fridge on 36 hours before we plan to leave then pack the fridge with cold food from the house fridge on the night before we leave so it has at least the cooler night air to get the fridge working to it's optimum. If in a hurry use freezer blocks from your home freezer can half the cooling down time.

A tip for fitting more into the freezer is to freeze the meat in the freezer whist still at home. This allows you to put the softer cold meat in and mould it to the shape of your freezer rather than trying to put a solid rock in of a different shape. We have found we can almost double the amount we can fit in using this method. It also makes the freezer more efficient to have it as full as possible as there is less cold air around the food to fall out when you open the freezer.

It's all the little things that help as there's nothing like a cold beer or wine at the end of the day.

© 2006 Gail Bennett (motorhominglifestyle.com). If you would like to reproduce this article on your website please contact gail@motorhominglifestyle.com