Surveyor 264 rks refrigerator question

[Tooljunke]

Hello , I'm a total newbie to the forum and owning an rv. We just purchased a 2015 Surveyor 264 rks , getting ready to take it on its maiden voyage. With the stacks of owners manuals , I haven't found the answer to my question about the refrigerator. Mine is dual (gas/electric) it only has two buttons on the controller on/off & gas and two lights , "auto" & "check" , but no light to tell me if it really is running on gas. How do I tell without waiting 2or3 hours only to find a hot refrigerator. Thanks

[Twisty]

Put your ear close to the exterior fridge grill or pop it off.
Ours sounds like a tiny rocket when on gas.

[Tooljunke]

Thank You

[Buck1032]

Just a little tip that I do on my SP260, about 12 hours before I want to turn the fridge on I pack it and the freezer full of ice packs. When the fridge is turned on its all ready down to temp and doesn't have to work at it.

[TURBS]

If the "check" light is on then it's not running.

These fridges need at least a full 6 hours to cool down.

TURBS

"SABRE OWNERS UNITED"

[Tooljunke]

Thanks , I'll have to try that. And thanks about the check light info.

[schrederman]

When you first turn it on to operate on gas and go outside, you can hear the igniter popping. It will go through several cycles of popping while the gas is clearing the air out of the lines and getting back there. Then you will hear it light and can hear the flame rush. I usually light the stove first to go ahead and get gas back there. Then the igniter only goes a couple of times and I hear the flame going... My SV-264 is the same floor plan as yours... just a little older and on different axles. I hope you enjoy yours and much as we have.

[Tooljunke]

Thanks schrederman. I plan on trying out all of these tips this weekend when I have time to dedicate to it. I love the floor plan too . I spent well over two years researching this model and it's the only one that will accommodate my needs.

[Buckskin]

When you open freezer the instructions are at front. I always turn mind on the night before with gas off to save propane and if long trip I will turn on gas to keep food cool - they don't recommend this but have done for years. You can see flame in evening/night if you pull plastic access panel outside and look cloesely from side; not straight on. As mentioned you can hear ignitor firing when gas it trys to start. I always bleed air by lighting stove to get air from line before trying to start refrig or gas water heater otherwise it will try to start with air in line and it may take several attempts..

[Tooljunke]

Thanks Buckskin , I turned it on to electric today and plan on switching it over to gas tomorrow to check it out.

[Tooljunke]

I left it on for a good 24 hours on electric and it got down to the normal operating range. Fridge & freezer both good and cold . Tried to switch it over to gas but it didn't light. Already bled the lines @ the stove. Does anyone know if it has to drop to a certain temperature before it will kick on ? I managed to get it working on gas last weekend but this is the first time I've tried to switch from one to the other.

[schrederman]

You'll probably have to leave it turned on to operate on gas and allow the thermostat to work. It should kick in on gas when the temp rises enough to need cooling. I've done this once when we lost power for a day and it ran fine on gas and the battery.

[MOD Guy]

Originally Posted by Tooljunke

I left it on for a good 24 hours on electric and it got down to the normal operating range. Fridge & freezer both good and cold . Tried to switch it over to gas but it didn't light. Already bled the lines @ the stove. Does anyone know if it has to drop to a certain temperature before it will kick on ? I managed to get it working on gas last weekend but this is the first time I've tried to switch from one to the other.

If you used the button to change it to gas, you are good to go as long as the yellow "Check" light did not come on. Mine almost always changes over with just one click, and I can usually hear it from inside.

The check light will come on if your are out or gas and/or it won't light for some reason. If you are out of gas/ won't light / of do not have shore power, the check light will come on.
If you have no shore power, and no battery power, the light won't work, and neither will the Ref.

When it's set on Auto, it should automatically change over to gas when you disconnect the shore power.

[Tooljunke]

Thanks MOD guy. I'm on my maiden voyage right now. Had rv plugged in at the house for last couple of days . Refrigerator was cold this morning when I unplugged it , but it didn't switch over to gas. Already had gas on & bled. Do I need to hit the gas button also to get it to light ? I had it on "auto" . But by the time I got here (about an hour & half later) the refrigerator was about 20 degrees warmer. Am I doing something wrong ?

[MOD Guy]

Originally Posted by Tooljunke

Thanks MOD guy. I'm on my maiden voyage right now. Had rv plugged in at the house for last couple of days . Refrigerator was cold this morning when I unplugged it , but it didn't switch over to gas. Already had gas on & bled. Do I need to hit the gas button also to get it to light ? I had it on "auto" . But by the time I got here (about an hour & half later) the refrigerator was about 20 degrees warmer. Am I doing something wrong ?

Nope, you should not have to manually change it over to gas. When set in the Auto position, it should change over on it's own. If it did not light, then the "Check" light should have come on. You can try switching to gas manually and see if it lights. If if it does not light, the "Check" light should come on. If the "Check" light is not telling you that there is a problem, then that's a problem.

It sounds like you may need to take it to the dealer for a look-see.

I just picked mine up from service today. I had to replace the refrigerator with a new unit, the orig. one (8 years old) developed a leak in the coolant line. It was only $100 more to replace the whole unit vs. repairing it. They had it plunged in and cooling when I picked it up. Unhooked the shore power and it changed itself over to gas with one click.

Good luck with yours, I am sure it is something that can be easily corrected.

[Tooljunke]

Thanks MOD guy. I may have to take it in when I get back.

[Tooljunke]

Took it back to the dealer for this and a couple of other problems. They couldn't find anything wrong with it. It was "on" and working on "auto" when I picked it up on Saturday. Still couldn't see or hear anything running but it was cold. I looked behind the outside grill after it got dark and could see the flame from the burner. I have it plugged in to electricity now and will switch it over this week after dark to see if it lights up again. Thanks for everone's help.

[Buckskin]

The only sound you should hear is gas from burner if using propane. These units work by heat and do not have any compressors or fans. I read somewhere they work better with propane as they heat faster but I never turn on propane until just before leaving for trip and use electricity instead at home. Turn on a full night before leaving and refrig should get cold.

They work better if you cool food before putting inside; these units are slower at cooling than house refrig.

[johndeerefarmer]

I plug mine into 120VAC the night before and then any food added (like Shiner beer, soda's etc) is already cold. I then run it on propane.

Enjoy your Surveyor.

[49ergold1]

I'm Marvin I have a 2015 surveyor cadet a 264 really enjoy have had a few little problems just wonder if anybody else have had any problems with the heating in the living room area