Lighting
the Dometic 2310 Fridge
The Dometic 2310 is a three
way (propane, 120 volt, 12 volt) refrigerator that was used for many years in Roadtreks. One
of its nicest features is that it requires no 12 volt power to run on propane
(which is not true of the current models).
Still having a working fridge when your house battery has gone kaput is
a good thing. The worst feature of
the 2310 is the bottom controls.
Newer Dometics can be started while standing
up!
The 2310 does not have electronic ignition. You need to light the fridge
manually.
It is
wise to make sure you have propane before you attempt to light the fridge
– it will save you a lot of frustration!
Step 1: Make sure propane is turned on at the
tank. Light the stove to make sure
you have gas in the lines (it takes some time to purge the air from the
lines). Now you know you have
propane available.
Step2: Turn the mode selection knob to
GAS. Notice there is more than one
OFF position.
Step 3: Push
in the manual gas on button and hold it in. Do not release
the button until you have a steady flame (usually 10 or 15 seconds, but it
doesn’t hurt to hold longer).
The gas button opens the gas line, once the thermocouple in the flame
heats up it will keep the gas line open (and will close it if the flame goes
out).
Step 4: Push
in the Igniter button (it will click) multiple times. You will see a flash in the sight
window. It will first be yellow,
but then will settle down to a silvery color. The sight window is the end of a plexiglass rod that goes to the burner box on the rear of
the fridge. You are seeing a dim
view of the burner flame. The
initial flash will be obvious and yellow, but it should change to a blue flame,
which appears rather silver in the window.
Although this is easy to see at night, it is rather difficult at first
during the day. If the window is
black, there is no flame. If it is
not black, there is a flame.
If you have any doubts that the fridge is running you
can open the outside fridge access door and see if the burner box and flue are
warm. The burner box and the flue
are at the right side of the access compartment.
Note: Cooling is a slow process on a gas
absorption fridge. If at all
possible start the fridge on electric (LEC) or propane (GAS) 24 hours before
you need to leave. Always put in
pre-cooled food & drink. We
usually freeze 6-7 water bottles and place on the bottom shelf. They thaw slowly and help keep the
fridge cool.
We find
ourselves forgetting to change the power source for the fridge when
traveling. Using reminder tags like
these in a spot where you have to remove them to drive any is a good reminder.