Save Your RV Refrigerator: Always Level

Above, leveled in Yosemite National Park's North Pines Campground. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

There is an axiom in the RVing world: always lever your RV to prevent damage to your propane refrigerator. 

No matter how long I am stopped anywhere for overnighting, I always lever the motorhome. If I am stopping somewhere that would be longer than 30 minutes, I shut the refrigerator off. When I get back into the motorhome to get back on the road, I turn it back on.

I have never had to replace my RV's refrigerator due to not leveling since I do the above.

This is a topic in RV Travel that every RVer should read. 

They begin with:

 I read this tip:

Do you level? That’s a question repeatedly posted on RV forums, regarding leveling an RV when stopping at the end of the day. Here’s a typical response: “I try to get it relatively close unless it’s just for an overnight stop, in which case I don’t bother.” Unless it’s an overnight stop? ALWAYS level your RV. Another comment tells you why: “I’m on my second Dometic 4-door. I level METICULOUSLY every time I stop to camp and I check level every morning. I refuse to go thru all that replacement AGAIN.”

RV refrigerators need to be level to work properly, and to prevent damage. No absorption-type RV refrigerator has ever read the fine print that says, “Don’t count the damage caused by operating off-level if it’s only overnight.” Seriously, damage to an RV cooling unit is CUMULATIVE, and every “only overnight” adds up. Can’t level? Shut off the fridge.

I was rather shocked by people’s thinking that running an absorption refrigerator out of level overnight or for any length of time is an acceptable practice. As mentioned above, the damage is cumulative, adding up each time you operate your refrigerator out of level.

To read more, go here.