Fire Hazard Appliance Recalls UPDATED NORCOLD INFO 11-20-2010

We keep rehashing this issue. You seem determined that you are going to defend Norcold to the end. So be it. But the fact is, the sensor was NOT a recall it was a method of absolving Norcold from any liability. If the sensor fails and then you bypass it so that your fridge will work, and your rig catches on fire, which was the reason for the liability "recall" in the first place, then you would not have any recourse to claim Norcold was at fault because YOU bypassed THEIR recall. So you go ahead and defend Norcold. I had a refrigerator that was working just fine before the recall and I had to replace the coils after the recall was done. If your "recall" worked on your refrigerator, well, that's just fine.

I found the solution to the Norcold problem. I replaced the entire cooling unit with the new Amish Unit. What a MAJOR difference!! Cools very quickly.... no known problems, stays super cold and with absolutely no experience.... I did it myself. It's not all that difficult. It's much heavier and I had to have help sliding it back into the compartment but it made a world of difference.

MrDoneIt65 wrote:
Sorry, but you are only half right. The sensor was designed to keep the cooling coils from overheating, that's right. If the cooling coils overheat and the red light comes on with the sensor your refrigerator shuts down, it does not cool, and if you bypass it then you are risking the liability occuring that it was design to avoid for Norcold. In other words, if your refrigerator overheats and catches fire you are on your own. If the sensor trips your food will spoil unless you can get to a repair shop and have another sensor installed. That is a fact! Now, my coils blew after they installed the sensor. The red light came on like it was suppose to come on. Did the coils blow before the red light came on or after it came on? Who knows? I fixed it, I put in new coils, my food doesn't spoil.

My point was and still is if you know it,s simply a failed sensor then one should by pass it to save the food not stand by foolishly till a new sensor is installed!!! obviously if the coils fail then yes u loose whatever food was in the fridge assuming you have no other avenues of keeping it cool
If your coil blew after the sensor was installed and shut down the fridge then that proves it(sensor) did what was intended of it

Sorry, but you are only half right. The sensor was designed to keep the cooling coils from overheating, that's right. If the cooling coils overheat and the red light comes on with the sensor your refrigerator shuts down, it does not cool, and if you bypass it then you are risking the liability occuring that it was design to avoid for Norcold. In other words, if your refrigerator overheats and catches fire you are on your own. If the sensor trips your food will spoil unless you can get to a repair shop and have another sensor installed. That is a fact! Now, my coils blew after they installed the sensor. The red light came on like it was suppose to come on. Did the coils blow before the red light came on or after it came on? Who knows? I fixed it, I put in new coils, my food doesn't spoil.

MrDoneIt65 wrote:
My main issue with the recall, beside the fact that my refrigerator which was working perfect before they started doing recalls on it, was that the recall didn't fix the problem. It just stopped a problem from occurring which could come back to bite Norcold. If you are on a trip, pull into a campground and you notice a little red glow from the access door on the back of the refrigerator, your refrigerator isn't working. You have a refrigerator full of food that is suppose to be there for you to eat. It is now getting warm and will not be fit to eat. The recall did not fix the problem of the refrigerator supposedly overheating and causing a fire. It set you up for a refrigerator full of spoiled food.

It was never designed to fix the problem? where or why did u think that.It was designed to shut off your fridge if the cooling coil were to crack and your fridge would then start to overheat.Its designed to
shut the fridge off in this very very very unlikely situation
Also your fridge will work EXACTLY the same before and after the recall temp sensor is installed.EXACTLY the same.There unfortuneatly some REV C and the very odd REVD recall sensor failures.Its very easy to bypass the reacll in this situation and save this perceived food ruinage

My main issue with the recall, beside the fact that my refrigerator which was working perfect before they started doing recalls on it, was that the recall didn't fix the problem. It just stopped a problem from occurring which could come back to bite Norcold. If you are on a trip, pull into a campground and you notice a little red glow from the access door on the back of the refrigerator, your refrigerator isn't working. You have a refrigerator full of food that is suppose to be there for you to eat. It is now getting warm and will not be fit to eat. The recall did not fix the problem of the refrigerator supposedly overheating and causing a fire. It set you up for a refrigerator full of spoiled food.

I have never had any problem finding a place that does the recall. Even when I was on the road in Northern California, up at Lake of the Springs RV Resort. I called Norcold and they told me the two places close to where I was. One was DeMartini and I can't remember the name of the one I took it to, but they done an excellent job removing the fridge out, applying the recall and putting the fridge back in place. They covered all the carpet with plastic before starting the recall. Never have had any problems. But that is about the third recall that has been done on my Norcold 1200. So far it has been good thru nine years. Can not complain about that.

There are good dealerships out there though. I didn't mean to make it sound like I lumped them all together because of my experience. I called the dealership where I bought my Southwind and the only person I ever talked to was the operator. The salesman got fired the day after I bought my rig. Don't know if that is a good or bad sign.

Glad to hear you are capable and have the experience needed to enjoy the RV. Good Sam has a program where Members can assist others who are in need of the services of a handiman.

I hope you don't have any problems with your fridge. Good Luck and Happy Camping.

This is actually our second A class and we've had 2 tag alongs.Thank goodness my husband is an excellant mechanic...he does all of our service work and repairs all of the things that go wrong..hot water valve went bad...sunshade broke he took it apart and repaired...electric awning went out he had to repair (no more electric when this one's gone)....hose blew out on hydrolic jacks...so as you can see we have had our share of problems with this unit that would have been very expensive at a dealer..but warranty work (AC unit and fridge ($$$$) went out under warranty)and recalls we have to go back to the dealer and I would just about soon take a beaten than to call in for these problems so if it's not under warranty or just not that expensive to take care of ourselves we just take care of it but it should not be this way...the dealer called me day after day to buy this unit and when tail lights were out of sight I think they just put the papers in the back of the file cabinet and said we're done with that one....laughing all the way to the bank!!

It says you are a new member. I am going to make an assumption. If this is your first RV then you must know that you will have to be a handy man.

On the refrigerator recall. If the refrigerator quits working, do not throw it away and buy a new one. There is a company in Indiana that makes coils for your refrigerator. They are not cheap, cost me $1,075.00 for mine, but that is a heck of a lot cheaper than a new refrigerator. They come with complete instructions to change them. No recall necessary after their changed.

See if there is a manufacturers service manual available for your rig. It cost me $90.00 for the Workhorse Manual for my Southwind. But I had a serpinetime belt that shredded because a mechanic left a wiring harness bracket off the mounting bolt and it came in contact with the belt. The mechanic didn't have a diagram on how to replace the belt. He about fell out when I pulled out the service manual which showed the belt. Better safe than sorry.

Good Luck, enjoy the lifestyle, especially the people you will meet. And enjoy the things you will learn about fixing an RV. (I even had to put my mufflers back on after the trip home from the dealer and repair a gasoline leak because they missed the hose when putting on the clamp). Go figure!