Installation of the Amish Cooling Coil Units

While not a great picture of a Norcold cooling unit, it will give you some idea about the difference in the amount of coils compared to a Amish one.
The NoCool 1200 does not have enough coils for the size refer.

Larry 1190 wrote:
I have a 2011 Carriage 5th Wheel and I'm concerned about this Norcold refrigerator fire problem. My question is has anyone had the Amish coil cooling unit installed in there unit, if so who done it and where are they located. I live in North Florida. According to Carriage all the recalls were done on my 5th wheel before it left the factory (Feb 2011) for the dealer. Now I see all these forums about campers of all makes and models going up in flames even though they too had these band aid fixes by Norcold.

S/F

Another you-tube video on how to install

I appreciate your opinion and have a great deal of respect of it… although honestly have almost no faith or respect in the BBB ratings, but they are a tool that can be used just the same…
All the early evidence points to it being a good product but I think the NC 1200 double wide series is the only ones using their own design, all the others can be new or remaned, but I could be wrong about that…

I hope they prove to be as good as claimed, because someday I may need one… it’s an expensive part for an expensive appliance that just must work…
Thanks…

I agree that "Amish" does not automatically confer quality on a product, although in the case of Pines, their growing reputation is certainly leaning that way. As for comparing them or their units to World Class RV Refrigeration, I'm not impressed with World Class at all. They too are about 10 years old, having incorporated in 2004. Based on their web site, they do not build completely new units, they manufacture old units, galvanizing the evaporator as you said, and replacing the boiler with their own design. They also have an 'F' BBB rating. Pines on the other hand, has been in business since 2002, has an 'A+' BBB rating, and builds their new units entirely from scratch, using their own designs for the coils and boiler. The anecdotal reports on this and other forums seem to indicate that the Pines design is more efficient, providing better cooling than the OEM version. Long term reliability? We don't know the complete history of all of the units they've built for residential and RV use, so it's difficult to extrapolate that of course. With Norcold LRIM units failing in as little as a year or two though, I'd think the odds are certainly better with a Pines unit.

Dutch_12078 wrote:

JJBIRISH wrote:

The new Norcold units built by Pines RV Refrigeration and sold by David Force's Cooling Unit Warehouse are made using a thicker wall tubing than the OEM and a different coil pattern. Pines is indeed an Amish owned and operated company located on a traditional Amish farm in Shipshewana, IN. The owner is Larry Miller, and the tubing is formed and welded by his brother in law, Harley, at JC Refrigeration located a few farms down the road, prior to final assembly and testing at Pines. There is a very detailed post on another forum by someone who was in Shipshewana for repairs to his KZ TT and visited their facilities after winning a contest sponsored by David Force. They also do installations there.

Dutch
I don’t question that they (Pines or JC) are Amish… while there are many Amish craftsmen the term Amish built isn’t a guarantee of quality…. I am aware of their experience and use of absorption cooling in home, cottage, or cabin type refrigeration, but I don’t know that the different types and styles of cu are equal in quality for the different types of service… I know they say the tubing is 50% heavier but does that always equal better…

I know they offer quick and helpful service… But I also know they are a young maybe under 10 years old and small with a hand full of employees company, and in the grand scheme of things there is no track record… if information I have read is true there have been at least a couple revisions in the Amish built norcold 1200 cu’s in their short life… while we all know Dometic and NorCold have dropped the ball the fires are numbered maybe in the hundreds and failures in the thousands of the millions recalled… IMHO only, they might be the best, but I don’t have enough information to say the Amish units are better, safer and long term reliable…

As an example I couldn’t say they are better than one from, World Class RV Refrigeration that also build their own, www.rvfridge.com …
They have galvanized evaporator assemblies and many failures are due to sweating and rust in the evaporator when turning it on or off to use and store… they also use a different designed boiler assembly… while I have no way to prove it I believe the boiler assembly is the real problem with the fires… I believe they overheat and crack the tubing in the boiler, about the only way they would start a fire…

I haven’t had a problem myself and haven’t done enough research on the problem because of that, but I have my own suspicions of what and why the problems exist…

my brother in law ordered the Amish cooling unit and shipped it to an RV technician in Tampa (RV Medic) who installed it.

That new a unit and if it's cooling well, then add a smoke detector and a auto fire system. Yes fires are a real problem, but a good auto system and shutting it off when not needed is what I'd do. I replaced my 1200 with a Amish cooling unit because it was getting worse and worse about cooling even with extra fans. I would also put a thermal fuse on your fans so you do not fan the flames.

"Now I see all these forums about campers of all makes and models going up in flames even though they too had these band aid fixes by Norcold."

It's not like every other RV with a Norcold is spontaneously combusting - the overwhelming majority have never had a problem. If you're worried, put a temperature-controlled halon extinguisher in your refer compartment; cheaper and just as effective.

If fire is your concern and your Norcold fridge is running fine you may want to consider a Halon fire extinguisher. http://www.rvcoolingunit.net/servlet/the-Halon-Fire-Fight1-Extinguishers*****/Categories

As far as replacement cooling units go I replaced my Dometic unit with a Amish built unit last year. I installed it myself, it took longer to do than they say but we are happy with the unit.

JJBIRISH wrote:
there are several on here that have had them installed…
I’m not sure there are enough of them to make any kind of comparison, and what is the real difference in them that makes them any better???
Marketing aside, Who’s to say they won’t catch fire???

I’m not sure what Amish made really means or what is better about them…
all companies that make them claim theirs to be the best available…

The new Norcold units built by Pines RV Refrigeration and sold by David Force's Cooling Unit Warehouse are made using a thicker wall tubing than the OEM and a different coil pattern. Pines is indeed an Amish owned and operated company located on a traditional Amish farm in Shipshewana, IN. The owner is Larry Miller, and the tubing is formed and welded by his brother in law, Harley, at JC Refrigeration located a few farms down the road, prior to final assembly and testing at Pines. There is a very detailed post on another forum by someone who was in Shipshewana for repairs to his KZ TT and visited their facilities after winning a contest sponsored by David Force. They also do installations there.