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Engel making noise?
#1
I have had this Engel for 5 years.    Over the course of the last 2 weeks it has started to make more noise.    A muffled rattling sound.   That is in addition to the usual noisy running.

I am worried it needs some maintenance… but, I don’t know what or how.    Hate to find myself buying a new one when it is a simple issue to deal with.

Anyone have any suggestions?
1989 Honeywell motorhome
Ford E350 chassis.  460 engine
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#2
I hated the sawafuji spring compressor.
I.tried extra bushings and isolating compressor and condenser crom.fridge body for.minor improvements when there was a certain amount of.weight inside fridge.

The front.door wound up.getting all these knuckle marks in it, from me punching it in frustration, and it failed.at the 5 year mark.
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#3
There is likely a condenser fan too.
The fans are likely sleeve bearing fans, instead of dual ball bearing fan.

Sleeve bearing fans get noisy when their sleeve runs out.of lubricant.
Relubing, is an increasingly temporary fix.

if one is removing fan to lube hub, they should just replace fan with a better model, and one would have to try hard, to find a worse fan, than the one they provided.

Also, dust build up on condenser fins and fan blades happens very quickly in an RV.
This has huge effects on duty cycle, as heat extracted from items within, cannot be purged to exterior as intended.

When dust build up on fan blades and body and conderser fin becomes impacted amd crusty, it can sound like a muffled rattle, even louder than the sawafuji swing compressor.

I much prefer my vitrifrigo fridge with danfoss/secop compressor. Much quieter, slightly more efficient.
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#4
Seems like, from what I read a while back when I was shopping. That Engel went the way of the optima batteries. Awesome product for years and a huge rep for being solid and “bulletproof” and then..:average performance.

As an example. My Optimas were as balanced and the same as they could be. Installed on the same day. The underseat has zero parasitic draw and the engine has the usual lite draw. 2005 tech compared to 2021 Tech. They are connected while running and disconnected when engine off. One has a solar panel pushing amps into it, underseat, via the Victron 75/10 MPPT charger. After a few months the Optimas are different. The voltage of the underseat is 12.87. The engine is 12.58. Measured at night after a two hour drive from 5 to sunset. So not sure what this means over the short course of time or I might be reading into shit that is simple and nothing. But all the reviews on the forums say they aren’t as good as they used to be. “Made in Mexico” bad lead” profit grab, living on their Rep. Failed after 2 years. Failed under load over 20amps. Takes forever to recharge “sits on absorb for hours” etc etc.

Engel fridges were arguably one of the top performers for years. ARB bounced back and forth as two three between National Luna. Now if you look you rarely see National Luna which in my opinion was the superior product. But this was in Africa. So I have no idea if the National Luna products we used were the same as the North American variant. Similarly some early ARB products were different than the ones sold in Australia. Something to think about when looking at reviews. Hell I buy the same 511 shirts in Canada and some are made in the Philippines
and others made in India. So while we all like to do research to decide what to buy looking can be even more confusing.

So while this doesn’t help with the nosy compressor from the original post I hope it helps future readers make decision s. If you look nowadays at ratings the National Luna rarely rates. Perhaps this is do to cost, as they are pricey or perhaps they just aren’t a contender anymore. I don’t known. With the Optimas I bought as it was what I knew from personal experience. I didn’t use the same metric for my fridge. I trusted a forum members recommendation. I couldn’t be happier. It is nearly silent and seems to preform as advertised. Now to be fair the price was ridiculously low for a swing compressor fridge and at the time I bought it off the kickstarter campaign I thought if it lasts for three years it won’t owe me a dime. Is it built like ARB or Engel? Nope not even close. It’s more like a Dometic in build quality. It’s much quieter than the 45 Dometic I borrowed, from my nephew, for a couple of little trips. His National Luna stainless was to big and lives on his boat. His Engel is to large for my van as well and is the houses back up fridge. So as my nephew has all three and had used an ARB I asked him if all things were equal size wise which he’d get. He had to admit my Iceco was quietest by a large margin and in a small space that is what swung the decision. Will it last three years? I’ll let you know. Will I care if I have to replace it in three years? Nope.

I hope you can fix the noisy Engle. Keeping things out of the land fill is a good thing. At least with the Engel you can easily take it apart. Not so much with mine.


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#5
I'm not.sure gathering opinions online, about product quality,.has any relevance anymore.

Like amazon reviews, the reviewer's intelligence, and motives are highly suspect,.
One needs.to.find the few reviews, if they exist, by someone with an aptitude and expienceeri to provide a.helpful review, and then hope the product they have is built the same as the one the prospective. COnsumer would receive should they click ' place.order'

Also, what one bought in 2005, has little relevance to the same product.today.

My VF fridge .purchased october 2012, was made in Italy.
Todays Vf fridges are made in China.

There appear dozens.of clones with dometic/isotherm/truckfridge/waeco badges.
Some group them a together as one and the same. No difference, even though the condenser and plumbing and thermostat and fan are likely all different.

On automotive forums, people recommend starter batteries based on 35.year old.experiences with certain labels, and a thousand people then repeat the completely delusional basis.of.perceived quality, or lack there of. Pointing out that battery longevity is based far more on average state of charge and average temperature, is dismissed. The sticker is far more important to them, than facts, physics, and logic.

The bandwagon is like a magnet for the loud, and insecure.

Maximum profit, now.
Integrity be damned.

Buyer beware, but in an alternative facts world, everything is bullshit, and luck, or lack thereof.
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#6
Well…it has gotten quiet again. But, I guess I should realize that I should plan for a new fridge. I’ll check out VF. Are they still coming from China?

Any made here? Prefer to know where I am going to get service if I need it, or technical help to take it part in a few years
1989 Honeywell motorhome
Ford E350 chassis.  460 engine
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#7
24/7 usage for 5 years is about it for portable fridges sold for consumer use.

You can replace the fan but the compressor or other moving or electronic parts might be the next items to need replacement.

Like any other 'wear item'...it's best years are probably in the rear view mirror.
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#8
My VF is a.front loader, not a portable.
Dont think they make portables, and.likely are still made.in china.

It either just turned 9, or.10 , my norcold.with sawafuji compressor, made.it about 5.

Cruisers.forum.had a fairly recent
12/24 vdc portable fridge thread.

When my norcold failed, it.was just cycling.on and off rapidly.
On 15.seconds, off.30.
No louder than normal when on.
Its failure.permeated.my dreams,.and i awoke to.find it reality.

Going back to a cooler.and block ice, for.2.weeks, was.amazingly depressing.
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#9
I'm answering the OP...with a comment about the Engel that is 5 years old.
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#10
Thanks for the five year notice.

Ah, five years for Engels, lesser fridges, like my Whynters may not make it into the fifth year of operating.

Having weird fridge issues lately. Inconsistent temperatures on DC. AC better, but the inverter takes a cut.

My seven year old Endless Breeze fan is starting to quietly scream. Hard life being a portable fan.
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