American Tug 34 Owner Experiences
Chapter 10 Galley
Page 10-2
ventilation – 40 at the top and 40 at the bottom. To make matters worse, if you subtract
the restriction from the grills (as the manual suggests), the actually ventilation is about
half that. In addition, they recommended that the ventilation be towards the back rather
than at the front, as it is in our installation.
Tomco added now added more ventilation on more recent boats. I found that “HeartTug”
hull#95 has narrow slots routed into the cabinetry below the microwave as well as a vent
above the microwave. Later boats have a rectangular grill installed on the side of the
refrigerator cabinet, by the steps.
NovaKool suggested that we perform the following test to see if venting was the cause of
our poor performance.
•
Get a fridge thermometer so that you can see exactly how it’s doing. (We keep
one in the fridge as well as the freezer.)
•
Make sure the fridge has been recently defrosted so that there is no heavy frost
build-up on the cold plate at the top of the fridge. (We defrost the fridge weekly in
warm weather and every 2-3 weeks in cooler weather, depending on the frost
build-up.) The NovaKool rep mentioned that if you consistently have a heavy
frost build-up, then the problem may be the seal around the door.
•
Remove the fridge from the cabinet, set the thermostat to #4 and leave it out in the
salon area overnight. (It generally takes about 8-12 hours to see a noticeable
difference in internal fridge temp when you make any changes, such as changes to
ventilation, defrosting, or changes to the thermostat).
•
If the fridge cools down to an appropriate temperature, then the problem is
ventilation. If not, then it’s time to start looking for a NovaKool technician.
Removal
1.
Remove the quarter-round trim strip on the left hand side of the fridge - closest to
the steps. (8 long screws)
2.
Remove the cabinet door closest to the freezer. This makes it easier to get the
fridge out without dinging the door in the process. (4 screws in the 2 hinges).
3.
Remove the 6 short screws holding the fridge in place.
4.
Pull the fridge aft a short distance, then lift it up over the short wood base trim
piece.
Additional Ventilation
Intake
We purchased a ‘Seateak’ 9in x 16 in teak vent cover from West Marine to use for a new
intake vent.
We cut a hole in the side of the cabinet sized to fit the vent over, just above the top step,
starting about one inch above the carpet and one inch back from the corner molding.
This put the intake right next to the compressor, which is in the space between the fridge
and the freezer.
