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Old 05-07-2017, 04:26 PM   #1
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Freezer door flying open

We have a 2017 Forester 3051S with the 4 door Dometic refrigerator. 3 times now on our current trip we have had contents shift in the freezer while making a left turn causing the freezer door fly open spilling the contents on to the floor. Has anyone else had this problem? It seems that the latches on both the freezer and refrige doors are not that secure. Maybe there is a manual latching tool that you can slip on the doors to keep them from opening ??? Has anyone seen anything like that? Last time a container of frozen mac and cheese landed in our cat's litter box....guess we will have something else for dinner !!
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Old 05-07-2017, 05:57 PM   #2
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Yes Jim, the magnetic seal is about all that holds the doors closed, so anything hitting the smaller freezer doors can knock them open. The hinge on the "latches" is just plastic without a spring to hold it closed. I read in another forum about a mod using thin feeler guages behind them to make them function like they are supposed to. Search 4-door Fridge door latch failure - Forest River Forums

I have a cardboard wedge that I put in the gap between the hinges for a pair of doors to force them to latch tighter. The newer Dometics have a better hinge. Dont know if they interchange.
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Old 05-07-2017, 07:17 PM   #3
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Old 05-07-2017, 07:50 PM   #4
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I have a 2017 Wildcat 301RES TT that has a two door residential type refrigerator. Doors are held closed by magnetic seal. It came with brackets attached on each side of the refrigerator that bungee cords attach to that go across the doors to hold them shut during travel. Important as the refrigerator is eclipsed by the slide out when it is in. If the doors came open could jam up the slide.
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Old 05-07-2017, 08:56 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gidyupgo View Post
Yes Jim, the magnetic seal is about all that holds the doors closed, so anything hitting the smaller freezer doors can knock them open. The hinge on the "latches" is just plastic without a spring to hold it closed. I read in another forum about a mod using thin feeler guages behind them to make them function like they are supposed to. Search 4-door Fridge door latch failure - Forest River Forums

I have a cardboard wedge that I put in the gap between the hinges for a pair of doors to force them to latch tighter. The newer Dometics have a better hinge. Dont know if they interchange.
Yeah, I thought maybe putting something in between the latch handles to force them to hold tighter might work also. Thanks for confirming my theory. I will try that.
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Old 05-07-2017, 10:34 PM   #6
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Dometic claims a patented automatic door lock that is activated by the rv ignition system, but only on selected models. I was under the impression for some reason that mine locked but DW opened it while going down the road so maybe not. Mine haven't flown open yet & hope they don't.
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Old 05-08-2017, 03:40 PM   #7
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we have had the same happen with our current camper. I put a screw on the side of the frame in the wall. I use a piece of string through both the freezer and refrigerator doors to hold them closed while traveling.
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Old 05-08-2017, 03:55 PM   #8
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I use a pop cycle stick across the inside of the lock to force the latch to make a tighter hold on latch.......J
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Old 05-08-2017, 03:57 PM   #9
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Bungee and Command Strips

I have the same 4 door Dometic with out the ignition lock. We put 3M Command Strip 'hooks' on either side of the refrigerator at freezer and refrigerator levels and use bungee cords to hold the doors closed. Simple to install, hook up when leaving, and unhook after arriving. If necessary, easy to remove while underway to gain access.
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