That Damned Refrigerator

After hearing from two different people working at the RV park that they would call a guy about fixing the fridge, and being told they would let us know when he could come and take a look at it, and one interaction with a supposed smart guy about fixing things (who said we had already done all the things he would have tried), nothing had happened and we were losing hope we would solve this refrigerator problem quickly. The RVers next door, three couples from the Everett/Marysville/Snohomish area had several ideas about what we might try, and Jim recommended that we try to use his electrical bike tire pump to blow clear any obstructions in the gas line. Bob decided since professional expertise was not imminent, he should try all these options – and he did, to no avail. Jim came over and had one more variation on clearing the line which seemed to show promise, and may have resolved one issue but didn’t result in the fridge firing up. We finally decided the spark for the pilot igniter seemed a little weak so – what the hell – let’s try shoving the little propane lighter used to light the stove and hot water heater into the area where the fridge’s pilot light sits. Guess what? It worked! The refrigerator is now working properly on propane, and we don’t plan to shut it off until we get home. Actually we’ll probably run out of propane before then, but not before we leave Mexico and will have access to RV maintenance services if this fix doesn’t work next time. Anyway, it’s working now, and that means we can go back to the plan in which we’re dry camping on beaches for a few more days before heading into the northern mountains. We took Jan and Jim out to dinner to celebrate and thank Jim for his problem solving skills -- they were a real trip saver!