Error light flashing on Waeco fridge.

Submitted: Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:25
ThreadID: 62876 Views:67734 Replies:11 FollowUps:6
This Thread has been Archived
Could any one on the forum tell me what is causing the error light on my Waeco CF 50 to flash at about 4 second intervals.Voltage at rear of vehicle is about 12.5 which is about the same as at the 2 nd battery which runs fridge only.It seems to run on 240 v quite OK..Any help would be appreciated.
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Reply By: Gramps (NSW) - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:30

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:30
Sounds like voltage drop.Check your cabling and connections/plugs.

AnswerID: 331828

Follow Up By: Gramps (NSW) - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:34

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:34
Sorry about the formatting but this is from the Waeco FAQs


Number of Red
Flashes
Danfoss BD35/50 Kompressor Guide Red Flash Guide Type
One Flash
Can be caused by:
• Insufficient cable size
• Too many connections
• Poor connections
• Not designating fridge
with own direct circuit
from battery
Battery Protection Cut-Out
If the error light on your fridge flashes once every 5 seconds, it is
definitely indicating that you have a voltage drop problem. This
means that the wiring in your car may be inadequate to carry the
correct amount of volts to the fridge. To test if this is the problem,
plug the fridge into a suitable AC adaptor. If you find that the
fridge works, you can eliminate that there is a problem with the
fridge and the car wiring configuration or plug connections
should be stringently checked.
We recommend car/motorhome/caravan wiring to be a minimum
of 6-8mm cross section wire for up to 4 metres. Above this
length the wiring would need an extra millimeter for every metre.
If the fridge does not work on the correct Waeco AC Adaptor,
further investigation is required. Contact Waeco if this occurs.
Two Flashes
Fan over current cut-out
If the fan circuit in the control module has a load in excess of 0.5
Amps, the system will fail.
Three Flashes
Motor Start Error
If your error light is flashing three times every 5 seconds, the
rotor may be blocked or the differential pressure in the
refrigeration system is too high. Faulty compressor or faulty
control module.
Four Flashes
Minimum Motor Speed Error
This failure occurs if the compressor is running slower than 1850
rpm.
Five Flashes
Thermal cut-out of electronic unit
If the error light is flashing five times every 5 seconds, the
refrigeration system has been too heavily loaded, or if the
surrounding temperature is high, the electronics will run too hot.
This is generally caused by not allowing enough ventilation
around the vents of your fridge. To overcome this, simply
ventilate your fridge more effectively

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FollowupID: 599684

Reply By: MEMBER - Darian (SA) - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:40

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:40
Insufficient voltage WHILE RUNNING - excuse the shouting, but you need to check the voltage at the fridge end of the circuit while it is running - no point at all when it is off - have you got the cutout slide left at the 10.5V mark ?
AnswerID: 331832

Reply By: Therifleman - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:48

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:48
Gramps,thanks for all that info.Wiring should be OK as it has run fridge for past 2 1/2 years & is of sufficient thickness to do the job.I am wondering if the voltage is too low & the battery could be on the way out(2 1/2 yrs. old)It is running OK on AC..I live about 40 minutes from Waeco service centre at Burleigh,so,Ill get the battery checked on Monday & then call at Waeco & get fridge checked.
.
AnswerID: 331834

Follow Up By: Gramps (NSW) - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:53

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:53
Therifleman,

No worries. Store it away for future reference though I hope you'll never have to use it :)))

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FollowupID: 599691

Reply By: Therifleman - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:54

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:54
Darian,virtually no voltage drop between battery & outlet in the back of Patrol.Wires are heavy enough to do the job,no trouble over last 2 1/2 years,I have tried voltage selector on all 3 settings,no change.Thanks for your reply.
AnswerID: 331836

Reply By: Therifleman - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:58

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 18:58
Darian,Sorry I misread your reply,with motor running I am getting 13.4 volts at point in the rear, Cheers
AnswerID: 331837

Follow Up By: MEMBER - Darian (SA) - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 19:14

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 19:14
Well you may have the same disease mine had for awhile (now all fixed under warranty and running happily) - I have the CF60 version - same job as the 50 but taller - now just 3 years and 2 months old -
mine was registering low voltage while the voltage was NOT low (and running into that crazy on-off cycling thingo that they do) - most annoying - only seemed to happen in very warm to hot weather - there has been quite a bit of info on this forum a year or so back on this very subject - the poly fuse on the main board is apparently the culprit - can't stand the heat in the kitchen so to speak - took mine to an agent - ended up with a whole new control board (he said)..... could be true, but its fixed anyway.
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FollowupID: 599694

Follow Up By: MEMBER - Darian (SA) - Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 14:15

Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 14:15
Re the comment below on switching it off - I think there is merit there too (not necessarily for your problem though) - whenever plugging either 240 or 12 supply in and out, the fridge will have less errors if it is turned off every time.
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FollowupID: 599816

Reply By: Member - Mfewster(SA) - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 19:08

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 19:08
I had a series of issues with our Waeco 50 on last Simpson trip. Waeco are going to address some of them (a blocked capillary that can't be repaired.) A further problem was a faulty Redarc. This has been replaced under warranty but it also caused the error light to flash.
AnswerID: 331840

Reply By: Best Off Road - Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 21:05

Saturday, Oct 25, 2008 at 21:05
Chuck.

Ring Waeco, their tech advice line is excelent.

I've solved a problem (minor) over the phone with them.

Jim.

AnswerID: 331863

Reply By: Dunco (NSW) - Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 01:09

Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 01:09
Try this first....

When I run my Waeco on 12v, it works fine...if I plug the 240v into the fridge, the red light flashes, so what I do is turn the fridge off at the switch (when on 12v), then plug in the 240v, then turn the fridge back on again. NO RED LIGHT flashing.

Something to do with the power difference ???

AnswerID: 331901

Follow Up By: Bonz (Vic) - Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 09:57

Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 09:57
It still shouldn't do that, They should cope with that sort of voltage changeovers
.
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FollowupID: 599788

Reply By: arofs1 - Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 16:42

Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 16:42
I had a similar problem several years ago and so did my brother in law, both were caused by not having the negative 12 volt wire earthing right back on to the negative battery terminal.

In both of our cases the voltages read correct, but became faulty under load, because of a poor earth somewhere between the plug earth wire to the body and the battery earth negative earth lead.

This was explained fully in the manual, but I thought I knew better when I installed mine, anyway.

Brian DJ
AnswerID: 331971

Follow Up By: Member - Peter R (QLD) - Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 17:05

Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 17:05
I had the same problem and it turned out to be the connection to battery which was in a battery box with a cigarette lighter type plug.

Had the plug replaced with a different type (2 pin) plug and no more problems.

Pedro
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FollowupID: 599834

Reply By: That Troopy Bloke (SA) - Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 17:31

Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 17:31
Your problem is the poly fuse, a known problem with Waecos of that vintage. Mine is about the same age, had the same symptoms about 18 months ago....took it to service centre and they replaced the poly fuse under warranty.
Has run beautifully 24/7/365 since.
Do a search on 'Waeco poly fuse' and you should get lots of info.

Cheers
Glenn
AnswerID: 331978

Reply By: 93 Navara - Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 17:41

Sunday, Oct 26, 2008 at 17:41
As said above, probably the poly fuse which is a simple upgrade. My Waeco is a 60 and the older style that doesn't have the inbuilt 240V. According to Waeco, it probably won't be the poly fuse on mine, but perhaps the main board. According to the tech this is not an uncommon problem. Dropped it off to him last night and will update you asap. Fridge has been brilliant up until 3 months ago when problem began (intermittently). Would be very disappointed if Waeco wash their hands of our issue as being outside the warranty period (only just). They're trying to go head to head with Engel and these issues don't help their cause.
Ben
AnswerID: 331982

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