We have struggled for the last few years with issues with both the fridge and freezer on Mariadz. The problem is made worse due to the fire damage, and poor quality repair, that happened before our ownership of the boat. The galley area has not been refitted with a view to maintenance and access to the freezer and the fridge mechanics is “difficult” to say the least. As part of the attempts to fix this we have had to cut out parts of the units in the galley area. This allowed us to change the couplings which are a common failure resulting in loss of gas. However, it is still a problem and after our last “emergency” lift-out, it seems that the water cooling has also stopped working. This would normally mean we would lift-out to check the hull part of the cooling system but at a cost of over £400 for a lift out, we are keen to leave this if possible.

We are having to bite the bullet and come up with a better long term strategy for resolving the issue or we will be haunted with these problems for the rest of our lives. The first step is to perform a pressurisation test to try and see where the leak is located. By excluding parts of the system, such as the compressor, we can ensure that the rest of the pipework for the freezer (and fridge) are working as expected. If this proves that the pipework is in working order then we will change the compressor for a new one with air-cooling then when we come out in the summer for some other work, we can resolve the issues with the water cooling system. Fingers crossed this means that we will have finally solved the refrigeration problem!