Fridge thermostat capillary tube installation

[Zanshin]

There is no bulb at the end of the sense tube. We had to interrupt our analysis because I didn't have any R134a to flush the tubes to measure pressures and at the moment the island is on lockdown for another day before I can get back to the unit.

The fridge and freezer are both cooling and working; but both had their C&T connections bridged directly at the compressors and the wires to the two thermostats cut. We are assuming that the charter base did a quick fix once and then never fixed it; but the first step is to see if the simple thermostat is going to turn off the compressor at some temperature. Things are made a bit more difficult in that the fridge is being used and thus has a certain amount of ballast and of course the quarantine and lockdown that prevents access.

So at the moment I have no real problem.

I want to repeat that at the moment I have no questions, the diagnosis and setting of the fridge and later the freezer is progressing but I found that capillary coiled outside instead of inside the fridge and asked myself whether this might affect the setting of the thermostat.

The first thing I am doing is ensuring that the thermostat for the fridge is working, but we can't finish that until we are allowed back on the boat. Once we have determined that the thermostat is indeed working and calibrated to the correct temperature range we can see if anything needs to be corrected.

[bstreep]

You mention that these are Seafrost systems. Documentation is available on their website - even for older units. We have 2 Seafrost systems. Ours have their electronic controls, which are different. My understanding is that there should be a bulb on the end of the tube. Is it possible that the tube got broken off, and the "solution" was to just have it run continuously? You should be able to get a new bulb for not-a-lot-of-money. Even in St. Lucia.

[OzeLouie]

Originally Posted by bstreep

You mention that these are Seafrost systems. Documentation is available on their website - even for older units. We have 2 Seafrost systems. Ours have their electronic controls, which are different. My understanding is that there should be a bulb on the end of the tube. Is it possible that the tube got broken off, and the "solution" was to just have it run continuously? You should be able to get a new bulb for not-a-lot-of-money. Even in St. Lucia.

Hi bstreep, I think you have nailed it, with something us fridge 'geniouses' totally overlooked!!!
If as you suggest the manufacturers thermostat is an ambient compensated type (that is with a fat sensing bulb on the end of the capillary) then the mechanism and most of the capillary could be external as the OP found.
If the sensor bulb has been broken off it should be obvious by checking the end of the capillary where the break off occurred and if confirmed the thermostat needs to be replaced (Not repairable)

Cheers Louie

[Zanshin]

I think I mentioned earlier in the thread that the replacement mechanical ones cost over $80 but are available here at Island Waterworld. All of SeaFrost's documents are available as word or pdf files on their site, and I've downloaded all the relevant ones (the installation is a BD aircooled one).
I didn't check the end of the capillary to see if it might have been fiddled with, but it certainly doesn't have a bulb. The replacement thermostat looks identical and it also has no bulb - and the picture on SeaFrost's web site shows that their replacement thermostat also has no bulb:

http://www.seafrost.com/_images/Dscf0504-md.jpg

Curfew is lifting soon and then I can see if the thermostat worked.