Much thanks to Robert Keever, who drove over to Spokane from Seattle to
help me with the refrigerator on my 1991 Volkswagen Vanagon GL Campmobile.

We spent all day and into the night Saturday.  He pulled the refrigerator,
Kept it upside down for several hours, cleaned the burner box, cleaned the
propane nozzle, put everything back together, ran it outside the van.  It
started ok, but would never get really cold.  I understand that the fins on
the outside of the unit should get quite hot, but only the burner box, the
exhaust, and the ammonia tank ever got hot, and then not really so.  Then
it would not start at all again.  We repeated the whole process again.
Would not start.

Robert suspected an occlusion, preventing adequate gas flow, but the nozzle
itself was clear.  He thought that rust particles from the old propane
tank, recently replaced, could possibly have migrated into the refrigerator
system.  He removed the very small diameter propane line that runs from the
push valve on the face of the refrigerator to the burner.  The end fitting
on the line was partially occluded by rust.  We could only get air to flow
through the pipe with difficulty.  We were surprised to find that the line
itself is made of steel.  Why?  All valves and fittings are brass, and all
feed lines for the propane outside the refrigerator are copper.

We sprayed WD-40 through the tiny pipe, and a very rusty oil came out the
other end.  Repeating this process several times never got clean oil to
come out, only rusty.  Robert believes that the line itself is rusted
inside.  I suppose that over a 26 year period, some moisture could be
introduced to the propane system and eventually cause enough rust to
occlude the pipe.  Air could be blown more easily through the line after
cleaning, but it is still partially blocked.

We did get the refrigerator to start after these manipulations, and Robert
reinstalled it.  I let it run overnight, and at ambient temperature this
morning of 58 F, the interior of the refrigerator was at 53 F.  Not good.

Bus Depot lists an item for the refrigerator called the "gas pipe," with a
part number, but no photograph, for $160.  That sounds like an inordinately
high price.  Robert thinks he may have one from an old refrigerator, and
will check.  I will call Bus Depot and try to determine if the one they
have is indeed this propane line.

Ideas?

mcneely