Forum Discussion

fijidad's avatar
fijidad
Explorer
Jul 06, 2021

Help getting fridge to run while underway

Our fridge and freezer run under these conditions: 1) while plugged into shore power, 2) on the inverter...with engine off, and 3) on propane...with engine off.

When I start the engine, however, the fridge and freezer do not function. I get an alarm sounding and codes flashing. The code indicated the problem is not something I can resolve, but need to take it to a dealer.

Just checking with the community before I go through that hassle...again.

Among my frustrations is that I've already taken it to San Diego RV and they told me just to reverse the plugs to the refer and ice maker. They didn't test it or fix it. When I later did that, I got the same results.

Any thoughts?
  • dougrainer wrote:
    accsys wrote:
    It would help TREMENDOUSLY if we knew the make, model and year of your motorhome!!! They are all different and each has its own idiosyncrasies.


    AND the Model and Brand of refer. He appears to have a Monaco and that would be a 1200 Norcold OR a 2110 Norcold. Now one of his older posts indicates what the dealer told him about the 2 rear AC outlet plugs behind the refer. There are 2 plugs on the Back of the refer.
    One plug is connected thru the Inverter and is dedicated to the Icemaker so you can make Ice when traveling and on Inverter. The 2nd plug is the standard 120 plug bypassing the Inverter to run the Refer on LP or 120. 120 when on Genset or Shore Power. It appears he swapped the cords per his dumb dealers recommendation. SO, that means when the Inverter is ON, his refer runs on 120 regardless when refer set to AUTO. The ONLY way to get it to run on LP is to go to the refer and set the refer to LP ONLY. Now, he states he has a problem when starting the engine and the refer goes haywire. That would appear to mean that he may have messed with the coach batteries or battery system. He also needs to state WHAT error codes are showing on the refer. There is NO interconnect on a Monaco between the Ignition ON or OFF, so that points to something wrong with the battery system. WE need a lot more info to help him out. Doug



    Well said. I only hope the OP reads this!
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    What is the code?
    One possibility is the fridge is losing 12 volts when you crank it up

    Recommend running on propane by the way If you drive very far the fridge sucks power faster than the tow vehicle will provide it.

    Another option is over voltage.. The Tow vehicle may be pushing too much power. There are ways to load the charge line a bit to reduce that.

    But we need the code.
  • accsys wrote:
    It would help TREMENDOUSLY if we knew the make, model and year of your motorhome!!! They are all different and each has its own idiosyncrasies.


    AND the Model and Brand of refer. He appears to have a Monaco and that would be a 1200 Norcold OR a 2110 Norcold. Now one of his older posts indicates what the dealer told him about the 2 rear AC outlet plugs behind the refer. There are 2 plugs on the Back of the refer.
    One plug is connected thru the Inverter and is dedicated to the Icemaker so you can make Ice when traveling and on Inverter. The 2nd plug is the standard 120 plug bypassing the Inverter to run the Refer on LP or 120. 120 when on Genset or Shore Power. It appears he swapped the cords per his dumb dealers recommendation. SO, that means when the Inverter is ON, his refer runs on 120 regardless when refer set to AUTO. The ONLY way to get it to run on LP is to go to the refer and set the refer to LP ONLY. Now, he states he has a problem when starting the engine and the refer goes haywire. That would appear to mean that he may have messed with the coach batteries or battery system. He also needs to state WHAT error codes are showing on the refer. There is NO interconnect on a Monaco between the Ignition ON or OFF, so that points to something wrong with the battery system. WE need a lot more info to help him out. Doug
  • It would help TREMENDOUSLY if we knew the make, model and year of your motorhome!!! They are all different and each has its own idiosyncrasies.
  • Does it run in motion on the inverter? I believe that is the solution.
  • My fridge automatically switches to Propane when I am not on shore power. It also runs on propane when my big engine is running. Don’t exactly know what yours is supposed to do but I suspect that the operation should be similar. Most RVs that I know of operate that way like mine. If you call me I will help you over the phone to troubleshoot.
  • House battery disconnect may not be energized.
    Cycle battery disconnect on and off several times. You should hear a sound click.
    Make and model of rig?
    Make and model of refer? Residential?
  • Sounds like you are loosing 12v when the engine is running. Easy to check on the back of the refrigrator. I will take a shot that the house battery does not get charge when the engine is running. Next time post what brand refrigator and year would be helpful. I would say to check the Alternator isolator to start with battery voltage.



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