Fridge Ventilator Fan Not Working

[hemiman03]

Hi
My fridge ventilator on/off switch located on the exterior side of fridge is not working.I looked for a fuse and haven t found one.My Hilo is a 2007 22T and the fan usually makes a loud noise when running,possible faulty switch,i pulled out switch and connections are good,any ideas

 

[retiredcamper47]

That switch is thermal controlled. Turned on, it allows 12v power to go to the thermal unit to the fan. When the heat build up reaches a certain temperature, the thermal unit allows the 12v power to go to the fan and turn it on. When the heat dissipates, the fan turns off. This way the fan is not constantly running. If your fan is like the one I had, you can peel back the paper label and find a rubber plug. Pull it out, put a few drops of oil in the hole, reinsert the plug. Or just replace the fan with a new quieter fan. Hope this helps.

Bob

 

[JackandJanet]

AND, there IS a fuse for the fan. It's inline on my trailer and is in the compartment below the one the fan is in. (Near the back base of the fridge.) As I recall, it's a 1 Amp fuse. But, as Bob said, the fan may not be running because the area it's in may not be hot enough.

- Jack

 

[Treeclimber]

And if it's noisy, go to the "search" header and check out the sushi mod, and maybe change the fan! It's been fantastic in my unit.
Tree

 

[Bitburg]

That switch is thermal controlled. Turned on, it allows 12v power to go to the thermal unit to the fan. When the heat build up reaches a certain temperature, the thermal unit allows the 12v power to go to the fan and turn it on. When the heat dissipates, the fan turns off. This way the fan is not constantly running. If your fan is like the one I had, you can peel back the paper label and find a rubber plug. Pull it out, put a few drops of oil in the hole, reinsert the plug. Or just replace the fan with a new quieter fan. Hope this helps.

Bob

I have a question regarding power to (or I should say through) the switch.

Is a 12vdc constant line load ran straight to the thermal unit? Once the thermal unit is within its “open” range, that 12vdc current would then continue along its path up to the fan on/off switch for user selection.

A long way around asking... should one of the 2 lines leading to or away from the on/off switch have 12vdc constant?

 

[JIM L-HILO]

If your fridg is like my 2005C The power line to the on/off switch will have 12vdc constant. When you turn the switch to on you get the 12v out to a thermal switch mounted to one of the cooling fins on the back of the fridg next to the cooling fan. The thermal switch has a set temp that turns the fan on and off as the fin heats up or cools down. The switch is mounted to the fin with a spring clip. The switch can go bad or if it slips off of the fin then it would not heat up enough to turn the fan on. Hope this helps.

 

[Bitburg]

It does help. Apparently I have no power to the switch and will have to do some investigating.

Ran the volt meter to both leads and do not have 12vdc.

It’s a 2010 2510H btw.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[Bitburg]

Update... the 12vdc constant routes to an inline 1amp glass tube fuse, then up to the toggle switch (thanks for your help JIM), then down to the thermal unit, then to the fan.

I will be doing the sushi mod - with slight adaptations as others have done,

Time to replace that glass 1amp inline fuse!

My next question is, I will replace the toggle with an illuminated one. Should I go with a 1.5amp in-line to compensate for led draw - or is it even an issue?

Last... with the sushi mod, would one want to increase the 1amp inline glass fuse - to a 2 or 2.5 amp

 

[JackandJanet]

Bitburg - I DID NOT change the fuse when I implemented my two fan version of the Sushi mod. My PC fans pull less current than the Mattell toy fan that was in there, they are far more quiet, and, they move more air!

I suspect an LED lighted switch would not need a larger fuse either, but 1.5A would probably not be an excessive increase.

- Jack

 

[Bitburg]

Thanks Jack, I appreciate the advice.

I will pick up a 1.5 amp for my peace of mind and look online for the fans you installed.

Will