12 volt fridge light

[mrsmelly]

Hi Peeps

 

I have inherited 12volt equipment on this boat. It has a 12 volt fridge which says on the front " Cool zone "

There is a red light on the front of it which has until this evening remained unlit. Tonite it is flashin 3 short flashes approx every couple of seconds?

Stuff inside is still cold as I am having beer now from it. My 12 volt batts are full and on mains float so its not low voltage.

Any ideas anyone?

 

Cheers

 

Tim

[b0atman]

Possibly low volts at fridge due to undersized cable or bad connection ,

[Martin Megson]

Hi Tim,

 

You don't mention a manufacturer but if its any help the this is the trouble shooting guide for my Shoreline fridge. It uses a Danfoss compressor so the error codes may be common.

 

12 Troubleshooting
The significance of the red LED (fig. 5 2, page 5)

For operational faults it illuminates several times. The number of pulses de- pends on the type of fault.

Each flash lasts for one quarter of a second. After the series of impulses a pause follows. The sequence for the fault is repeated every four seconds.

Number of flashes

Fault

Possible cause

1

Supply voltage

The supply voltage is outside of the set range.

2

Excessive fan current

The fan loads the electronics unit with more than 1 A.

3

The motor doesn't start

The rotor is jammed.

The pressure difference in the cooling system is too high (> 5 bar).

4

Speed too low

If the cooling system is overloaded, the minimum speed of the motor of 1850 RPM cannot be maintained.

5

Overheating of the electron- ics unit

If the cooling system is loaded too heav- ily or the temperature is set too high, the electronics can overheat.

[Bobbybass]

Hi. I had 'long term' experience of this fault..with this fridge.

 

In my case..it was often caused by sudden fluctuation of supply voltage.

 

It is really when the fridge compressor cuts in..at about the same time that there is a voltage change...for example..in your case..it could be that your charger system..is just on float...your fridge kicks in and instantly draws a large current..and the charger kicks straight in to make up the loss. ..thus the voltage goes down..then suddenly shoots up.

 

It is not really a problem...and normally resets itself.

If the blinking persists..then settle it by pulling the fuse /breaker...leaving it for a few minutes..and then resetting.

 

As you say...as long as your beer stays cool..that is great !

 

My fridge did this for 5 years...no problems...

 

Hope that helps.

[mrsmelly]

Hi. I had 'long term' experience of this fault..with this fridge.

 

In my case..it was often caused by sudden fluctuation of supply voltage.

 

It is really when the fridge compressor cuts in..at about the same time that there is a voltage change...for example..in your case..it could be that your charger system..is just on float...your fridge kicks in and instantly draws a large current..and the charger kicks straight in to make up the loss. ..thus the voltage goes down..then suddenly shoots up.

 

It is not really a problem...and normally resets itself.

If the blinking persists..then settle it by pulling the fuse /breaker...leaving it for a few minutes..and then resetting.

 

As you say...as long as your beer stays cool..that is great !

 

My fridge did this for 5 years...no problems...

 

Hope that helps.

 

Berlimey thanks folks for the immediate response. I believe the above post has hit the nail on the head. I have just been and switched off and on again at the isolater and flashing has stopped. It did start flashing when swmbo put washing machine on and I have one of those silly inverters that helps out the shore supply when needed ( Its going soon ) and the voltage had dipped a little. All now seems well with the fridge. I am fitting a less complicated lovely manual inverter and seperate charger system some time this year so should avert things like this in the future.

 

Cheeers peeps

 

Tim

[trackman]

Hi. I had 'long term' experience of this fault..with this fridge.

 

In my case..it was often caused by sudden fluctuation of supply voltage.

 

It is really when the fridge compressor cuts in..at about the same time that there is a voltage change...for example..in your case..it could be that your charger system..is just on float...your fridge kicks in and instantly draws a large current..and the charger kicks straight in to make up the loss. ..thus the voltage goes down..then suddenly shoots up.

 

It is not really a problem...and normally resets itself.

If the blinking persists..then settle it by pulling the fuse /breaker...leaving it for a few minutes..and then resetting.

 

As you say...as long as your beer stays cool..that is great !

 

My fridge did this for 5 years...no problems...

 

Hope that helps.

What he said. Our Shoreline is just the same. Now approaching 9 years old, has always done this, never along term problem.

 

Since we fitted solar panels, it seems to occur quite often on really sunny days for some reason, but it used to happen now and then before that. Flicking off the breaker briefly usually resets it.