You have now joined the elite Secrets of the Dometic Society.  These things
indeed have a life of their own.
How long did you wait for it to start to cool?  I found it took quite
awhile maybe 15 or 20 minutes or so.  If you have one of those dandy
digital indoor/outdoor thermometers (you can get at Radio Shack), put the
outdoor probe inside the fridge and stretch out on the couch and wait! 
Also, be sure you are on a level surface. Apparently these things don't
take kindly to being run on a tilt which as I understand it can cause
permenent damage.  You have accomplished something many haven't though,
getting it to LIGHT on gas.

Good luck
Wendy 
'85 Westy,   "S-CAPE"