Malo Posted July 27, 2014 Share Posted July 27, 2014 Hi people, I recently changed from a caravan to a motorhome, all good now I have sorted lots of silly niggles, bar an issue with the fridge, it's fine on 12v and mains but on gas it gives quite a smell from the exhaust vent, the vent was also very stained/sooty. I removed the lower vent and cover, it seems to have a nice blue flame, I cleaned the burner why I was there but still get the smell, if it was a car I would say it's running rich! Anyone had this problem or can help with it? I was going to renew the burner but don't want to if it's not needed. Thanks in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted July 27, 2014 Share Posted July 27, 2014 I doubt you'll need to replace the burner or the jet if the flame looks OK. Bad smell could be due to contamination and smelly burn-off except that if the fridge is OK on 12v and mains you would expect the small all the time. If the flue is clear, you may have to get a professional to service the frdige for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted July 27, 2014 Share Posted July 27, 2014 Have you removed the winter covers as they are only meant to be used in ambient temperatures lower than about 8 degrees C ? Have you asked the supplying dealer if they can help or the previous owner if it has happened before? If you stand close to the chimney exit there is always the smell of burnt gas so it will never be odourless and the exhaust fumes can waft back into the van depending on vent location in relation to open doors or windows and wind levels, so there may well be nothing wrong. If in doubt a visit to a local competent caravan gas fitter to have a quick smell should be able to tell you one way or another and should hopefully cost you no more than the fuel there and back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hallii Posted July 27, 2014 Share Posted July 27, 2014 On mine the chimney sooted up, a clean with a bottle brush and vacuum and all was well. The smell was a bit like bad eggs but ore chemically. H Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted July 27, 2014 Author Share Posted July 27, 2014 The person I got the van from didn't use it much and had hardly any knowledge of it.... Hence not much use asking them. If you sniff within about a foot of the vent it actually hurts your nose/sinus, it's been run on butane with a reg on the bottle, I am going to change back to propane and a gaslow reg shortly. If I remove the burner from the flu and pull it out of the vent hole, how high should the flame range from and too? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted July 27, 2014 Share Posted July 27, 2014 Hi, Is the cylinder near empty by any chance? There have been many reported cases of bad smelling gas just before a cylinder runs out. It seems the 'smell' which is added artificially to the gas settles at the bottom of the cylinder and smells badly immediately before running out! HTH, Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted July 27, 2014 Author Share Posted July 27, 2014 I did think low gas but the cylinder feels good and there is no smell on water heater, oven of hob. I will try to get the bits to run the blue bottle this week and see how it is Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RubyExsis Posted July 28, 2014 Share Posted July 28, 2014 I had the same problem...... a burning smell, sooty vent close to top of chimney vent, the flame appeared blue as normal. I poked something down the chimney vent and a large carbon type deposit and several small bits fell out and the fridge worked fine after that. Fred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted July 28, 2014 Share Posted July 28, 2014 The RM6401 is a relatively old Electrolux model. The symptoms (smelly gas exhaust) suggest that the gas-flue needs ‘sweeping’. As it’s not uncommon for a fridge to need to be displaced (or even completely removed) from its housing for this to be done, it’s often overlooked by owners and, eventually, the flue tends to soot up. It does need highlighting that, before sweeping is attempted, a twisted-metal baffle that hangs (or should hang!) within the flue should first be removed. An example of a flue-baffle is shown here http://www.ezfreezerefrigerator.com/ServiceG.html The baffle must be withdrawn from the top of the flue and, until it has been removed, trying to sweep the flue is likely to do as much harm as good. This 2009 MHF discussion relates to an RM6401 fridge and includes a how-to-clean description http://www.motorhomefacts.com/ftopic-61141-days0-orderasc-0.html If it’s impossible to remove the flue-baffle without moving the fridge, it might be worth tapping the top and bottom of the flue with a suitable metal tool (not a sledgehammer!) If there are large ‘clinkers’ in the flue (as with Fred’s fridge) this ploy may succeed in dislodging them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted July 29, 2014 Author Share Posted July 29, 2014 Thanks for the replies. I removed the baffle and poked an old metal hanger through the flue, I left some tissue underneath which got some carbon deposits, no big bits or what I would think would cause a problem, however I got a brush today to run through it for a proper clean then see what happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted August 3, 2014 Author Share Posted August 3, 2014 Brushed it through, still stinks! I ignited it with the burner pulled out of the side of the van, the flame was about 5-6 inches high, that seems to be a big flame for the job it's doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 That does sound excessive. Perhaps the previous owner ‘cleaned’ the fridge’s jet by poking a piece of wire through it, or the fridge has the wrong size jet fitted. It has to be said that I don’t know what a fridge-burner’s gas-flame should look like if it is burning in open-air rather than with the burner installed in its proper place at the bottom of the gas-flue. Presumably, if the burner’s flame is 5”+ in length outside the vehicle it will be a similar length when the burner is attached to the gas-flue, but I certainly wouldn’t swear to that being so. A caravan or motorhome dealership should be able to tell you whether the flame looks right or wrong if you replace the burner and provide the dealership with a demonstration. If there has been a blow-torch-style flame burning in your fridge’s flue, I would have thought the top ventilation grille would have melted by now, not just be stained/sooty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted August 3, 2014 Author Share Posted August 3, 2014 I was thinking the same about the jet being enlarged, the exhaust is not doing its job properly, you can smell fumes coming through the cooker which is right above the fridge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul- Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 It sounds like the fridge needs a service, not cheap but better than waking up dead. The other problem with fridges whether caravan or motorhome is that many aren't room sealed, they're simply stuck in without any care whatsoever as to if the foam seal actually seals, if you feel a draft around the fridge or smell fumes check it out or get it checked out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rudders Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 Malos from what you describe please please get your fridge checked out immediately, symptons you have experienced are associated with that of carbon monoxide poisoning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 Malo - 2014-08-03 4:55 PM I was thinking the same about the jet being enlarged, the exhaust is not doing its job properly, you can smell fumes coming through the cooker which is right above the fridge If there’s a particularly unpleasant smell coming from the fridge’s upper ventilation grille when the appliance is running on gas, the chances are high that the smell will enter the leisure-vehicle’s interior. It’s very often not a simple matter to hermetically seal the fridge’s enclosure from the vehicle’s living area even when the leisure-vehicle’s manufacturer tries to do so (and many manufacturers hardly seem to bother!) You’ve said the the fridge cools OK and you’ve swept the flue. The size of the gas-flame is concerning, so I think you now have two choices - either replace the jet yourself (with the correct size for the fridge of course) and hope this fixes the problem, or get the fridge looked at professionally. It has to be said that, if replacing the jet makes no difference, it’s hard to know what else can be done to address the smelliness-on-gas problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted August 4, 2014 Author Share Posted August 4, 2014 Thanks for the replies. I did use an electric monoxide detector which gave some fatal readings. It didn't look there's anything wrong with the burner apart from being a bit rusty and aged, I destroyed the jet getting it out though, I think it may be better to just buy a new burner with the jet installed, at least then I know it should last a good few years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted August 13, 2014 Author Share Posted August 13, 2014 All sorted, after chasing a few people for a new burner, I found the details of Rock services who are local to me, fitted yesterday and all good. With burner pulled out of vent hole, flame is blue and 1-1.5 inches. Someone must have pinned the jet to clean it...... Hope this thread can help others in the future Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJay Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 Malo Do you have web site for Rock, ? And where are they? PJay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malo Posted August 13, 2014 Author Share Posted August 13, 2014 Based in Northampton but seem to cover a big area 07973 440235 It was nice to speak to a genuine person Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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