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bodacious's avatar
bodacious
Explorer
Jul 18, 2017

Refrigerator Prob - Which Way To Go

Norcold 1200 series fridge in my 2006 Escalade is not cooling properly. The original cooling unit has been replaced with the Amish made one. Mobile tech ran a few checks and said the cooling unit is bad. Cost of replacing the cooling unit is around $1800 (parts & labor). Question for you techies out there...Can the cooing unit be defective and still cool a little bit? Temps in freezer were near freezing but some items had thawed. Temps in fridge were 40-50 degrees and cooling fins were cool but not cold like normal. Want to be sure about diagnosis before doing anything drastic. Could the problem be thermister, controls, other?

Also...Probably not going to spend the money ($2000 or so) to fix a 12 year old fridge. Thinking about going to a residential unit since we do not travel in the RV. It is set up and being used year round as a second home. This option would limit resale potential when that day comes. Thoughts, comments please.....
  • SidecarFlip's avatar
    SidecarFlip
    Explorer III
    Jul 19, 2017
    Road Phantom wrote:
    google or utube burping your RV fridge. Removing and turning the fridge upside down loosens the freon inside.


    Absorbtion fridges don't have 'freon' inside. Only a compressor fridge does.
  • Road_Phantom's avatar
    Road_Phantom
    Explorer
    Jul 19, 2017
    google or utube burping your RV fridge. Removing and turning the fridge upside down loosens the freon inside.
  • pcm1959's avatar
    pcm1959
    Explorer
    Jul 19, 2017
    I ordered my 2014 with a 4 door Norcold 1200. At the 6 month mark, I took it out and replaced it with a 18 cu ft Samsung French door residential. I have never looked back. It will have been in the rig 3 years next month with ZERO issues making ice, keeping ice cream rock hard and the beer cold.
    I travel with the rig with an inverter, 2 6 volt batteries, and a 160 watt solar panel.
    More and more rigs are going residential as standard. Its cheaper for the manufacturer and does such a better job.
    Since you rig will be parked, there's no way I'd go with a replacement absorption unit. The Samsung fit in the footprint and cut out of the old Norcold perfectly.
  • Lantley's avatar
    Lantley
    Nomad
    Jul 19, 2017
    samsontdog wrote:
    Put in a res unit Thats what I did to 4 dif RVs

    Agreed if you no longer travel get a rez unit and be done with it.
    When it comes time to sell your 20 year old rig . The fridge will not be the deal breaker
  • Son_of_Norway's avatar
    Son_of_Norway
    Explorer
    Jul 18, 2017
    I don't know about draft horses, but I had a good experience buying an Amish cooling unit from Bob Ford. I think the Amish probably use the same care in making cooling units for sale to the public that they do for the ones they use themselves.
  • Old-Biscuit's avatar
    Old-Biscuit
    Explorer III
    Jul 18, 2017
    Freezer section getting down to 5*F or lower and food compartment NOT cooling down is sign of obstruction/blockage in tubing between the 2 evap coils

    What 'fault codes' are you getting?

    Are the 'fans' in outside compartment running?

    Have you been operating rig off-level' when stationary ----even during short roadside stops? (2 cooling units????)

    Have you tested door seals for leakage..place dollar bill across seals and close door then pull bill out......S/B strong resistance ----check several places top/bottom/sides. Leaking seals ----warm air in ---lack of cooling




    Simple test........
    Unplug thermistor (at light assembly)
    Turn temp setting to MAX
    Run fridge overnight then check freezer/food compartment temps
    Freezer S/B 5*F or lower (lower the better)
    Food compartment S/B 38*F or lower unless obstructed/blocked

    If temps do go low then replace thermistor'
    If freezer does but food compartment doesn't.......bad cooling unit
  • azrving's avatar
    azrving
    Explorer
    Jul 18, 2017
    If you are stationary I would surely get a resi. If your rig is older like mine it isn't going to make much difference in resale. I also figure as mine ages it will be more likely to be parked and lived in. You do need a way to get it in the rig and be sure you have the required clearances suggested by the manufacturer. I installed a 10.7 cf Whirlpool in my FW and would never go back.

    Obviously you are in the best position to use a resi. The worst position a person could be in is to be off grid all the time. But it's easy to cover by using the $2000 difference in frig prices to buy solar to cover the frig and probably everything in the rig.
  • SidecarFlip's avatar
    SidecarFlip
    Explorer III
    Jul 18, 2017
    First off, I wouldn't buy (or sell) a wooden nickle from any Amishman. My wife and I have dealt with them for many years selling draft horses. We learned to be very cautious or get screwed.

    I'd install residential fridge and be done with it and / or a Dometic or equivalent compressor cool box.
  • laknox's avatar
    laknox
    Nomad
    Jul 18, 2017
    md_procouple wrote:
    In our opinion, if your not traveling and plan on staying in a C/G, sure use a regular fridge. However if you plan on selling the unit any time soon, we would get another 3-way unit. Good Luck and Happy Camping !!


    FWIW, I regularly see RV fridges in our local Craigslist ads, so it shouldn't be hard to replace one, if need be.

    Lyle

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