Cassie Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 Hi Just back from six weeks in France in my 1 year old VW T5 Lwb high top. Very nice except for problem with the Waeco CR 80 compressor fridge. Works very effiently when travelling and during the day (( solar panel fitted) and when connected to mains electricity but will not last through the night. Red LED flashing indicating a low voltage. This suggests a problem with the battery. However I have investigated further since arriving home and the battery voltage reads 12.59 using a multimeter when the fridge is refuses to cool and the LED flashing. It should work at this voltage. The battery is next to the fridge so the voltage drop in the connecting cable should be small. ( I have contacted Waeco and their suggestions for getting it checked under warranty involve a lot of hassle and possible payment should the fridge not be at fault - I will be discussing this further with them should the need arise). Any help/ suggestions would be most welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 As its 1y.o. I'm guessing the van was purchased throu a dealer or convertor, or did you convert yourself? If it was purchased throu a dealer or convertor then they are first port of call with any problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 See if you can get a voltage reading at the fridge terminals rather than at the battery. That should tell you if the problem is the fridge, or the wiring. If there is a fuse in the feed to the fridge, try measuring the voltage there, as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Cole Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 Hi, I also have a waeco fridge in my vauxhall van conversion, I had a the same problem last year after I had bought the camper and travelled to France. The battery was flat by the time I got of the ferry (6hr crossing) the light in the fridge was flashing, the battery was reading about 12.2v but dropped to around 11.4v under load. In my case the problem was not the fridge but undersize wiring between the cab battery and the leisure battery. On checking the voltages I had 13.8v charge to the engine battery when the engine was running, but only 12.6v to the leisure battery therefore giving insufficient charge to the leisure battery. I have now fitted a dedicated battery for the fridge and replaced the battery cable using 8mm fine multicore cable,also replacing the negative earth cable as well to ensure no return voltage drop. On rechecking the voltage I now have the same voltage between the batteries when running, and fully charged batteries when arriving at our destinations. I also carry a couple of freezer packs in the ice box these help make the fridge more efficient .I now find that the fridge only uses only .2 of a volt overnight and have run for 2 days without hook up with no problems. I suggest you check the votages on the batteries to determin whether this is the problem, I doubt that the problem lies with your fridge as it appears to be working ok other than the problem you describe, It seems coverters do not always understand that with low voltage DC wiring inadequate cable sizes will create problems like this. hope this helps Geoff Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PCC Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 Compressor fridges draw a hefty current when they start up. I must say my compressor coolbox starts up and shuts down more than I would have expected. Coupled with the issues with wiring your battery needs to be in good condition to power one through the night. Have you got a decent quality leisure battery? Peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cassie Posted July 12, 2015 Author Share Posted July 12, 2015 Thanks for the suggestions. There is only 0.1 voltage drop between battery and fridge. I will get in touch with the converter. My gut reaction is that it is a problem with the battery even though I have no evidence for this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff Cole Posted July 12, 2015 Share Posted July 12, 2015 Hi The reading you took between the battery and fridge is ok, check the voltage on the cab and fridge battery with the engine running the readings should be about the same. When the fridge is on and the engine is running the alternator is charging the battery and running the fridge at the same time so more current is being drawn through the cable linking the batteries together so a heavy duty cable is required. A fully charged battery will read between12.7& 12.8 volts off charge if in good condition. Your fridge draws about 5.6v. if all checks out ok It could be that you have a faulty cell on your fridge battery causing an excessive votage drop under load. Let us know how you get on. Geoff Cole Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rod_vw Posted July 13, 2015 Share Posted July 13, 2015 Don't forget that the negative connection can be at fault as well as the positive. Have you checked that? A true voltage reading at the fridge control box terminals between -ve & +ve with the fridge compressor running is the most reliable check. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cassie Posted July 15, 2015 Author Share Posted July 15, 2015 Replaced battery. Run fridge for the last 24 hours and all seems well so, hopefully, sorted. Bought a Banner 115 AH battery from Tayna and was most impressed with their service. Ordered it, online, on Sunday afternoon ( a non- working day),received confirmation of the order 9am Mon and email telling me it had been dispatched at 12. Email first thing Tues informing me it would delivered between 9.10 and 10.10 and it arrived at 9.15. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polo Posted July 15, 2015 Share Posted July 15, 2015 We had a similar problem with our Autocruise Alto. After paying for a bench test which came out OK two new leisure batteries and still no better if anything worse. Resorted to bypass the sargent control unit and wire direct to the batteries with heavy duty wire. Problem now sorted. A few quid for wire against the 300 quid checking and new batteries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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