My 2017 Norcold Fridge Model N305R is not cooling the bottom of the fridge. The freezer is below zero but the bottom of fridge is not getting cold. Same on Electric or LP gas. I have a thermostor that is factor set and not removable. I think I might could pry it loose though. The fridge has worked fine until this past week. Are there any recommendations on how to fix the problem?

Need more info. Is this in a Tent Camper? What type RV is it in? Does it have 2 outside exterior wall vents upper and lower? Does it have a rear ventilation fan? You do know the refer HAS to be level for operation, except when in transit? DougPS, 24 hours out of level can ruin the cooling unit. A Blocked cooling unit will still freeze the freezer.

more info.It's in a 2017 Starcraft TT. Upper and lower outside vents. NO fan and does not require any 12 volt DC at all. The fridge worked well in Jan, Feb, May & June trips. It will drop the fridge about 10 degrees at night and freezes everything fine in the freezer. My research shows a lot of these Norcold Fridge Model N305R not cooling the bottom of the fridge but nobody says what the fix was. A lot of posting about the thermistor but nothing useful? I am pretty sure its the thermistor. Like I said earlier, my thermistor is preset and attached to the 5th fin from the right. Where is the other end of that thermistor attached?

1. The Thermister is NOT a Thermister. It is a silver capillary tube that runs from the 120 Tstat to the fins on the evaporator.2. Your Gas tstat selector IS the tstat for the Gas side. You should have HI -MED-- LO settings on the gas knob. Unlike older BYPASS gas tstats, this system does NOT alter the flame height when temp is reached. HI is the coldest setting. 3. Your model SHOULD have a 12 volt cooling fan on the backside between the outer wall and the back of the cooling unit. You may not see it, you may have to remove the upper outside vent/door to see it. IT MUST BE RUNNING FOR COOLING TO HAPPEN. Some models do not have this fan(roof top venting), but for your type of install they are required, especially if NO roof top vent and the cooling air has to come in the bottom vent and then come out the top side vent. 4. WHILE YOUR MODEL IS not 3 WAY (dc BEING THE 3RD heat supply) you should have a 12 volt and neg wire connected to supply power to the cooling fan.5. Your Tstat sensor tube connects to the 120 Thermostat and then goes to the evap fins. You have 2 separate tstats on your refer. A GAS tstat and a 120 Tstat. 6. The BEST way to test is to connect the 120 element direct to an 120 extension cord for 24 hours. Level the RV and this bypasses all controls. If after 24 hours the refer is NOT below 38 degrees and the freezer is NOT below 10 degrees, your cooling unit is BAD.32 to 38 is the refer temps and 0 to 10 is the freezer temps. Use a cup of water after 24 hours to measure the refer temp. DO NOT USE A IR THERMOMETER. They do NOT work for refer temps. Doug

Thanks Doug! You should have HI -MED-- LO settings on the gas knob.Thats correct and I saw the flame go from LO to Med and Hi as wife turned the knob through each setting.I actually put a small cordless fan inside the lower vent while we were dry camping last week and it didn't help.With The upper vent off I see an angled piece of wood to divert air toward the cooling unit, I will have to remove it to look for a fan.We are back home now and hooked up to 110 AC power so I can try more things. By the way, my IR THERMOMETER seems to work on the back side of the freezer showing minus .01 degrees. It registered -8 dry on LP while camping.

If after 24 hours the refer is NOT below 38 degrees and the freezer is NOT below 10 degrees, your cooling unit is BAD.We were actually freezing ice in our freezer to put in a cooler for our food while dry camping on LP. Could the unit be bad and still freeze water?

Norcold Fridge Model N305R not cooling bottom | Good Sam Community

mtnman1989
Explorer
Jul 18, 2023
How did you learn all this fridge info, were you a tech or do like I do and learn from personal experience?
dougrainer
Nomad
Jul 18, 2023
mtnman1989 wrote:
How did you learn all this fridge info, were you a tech or do like I do and learn from personal experience?

I am a Master Certified RV technician with 44 years experience. TRUST ME when I tell you the details on how to troubleshoot and measure temp. You call up RVP(Coleman)/Dometic/Norcold and tell them an IR measurement, they will laugh at you. I do NOT know the difference between the 3 model numbers. There IS a difference between the 3 way and 2 way by the letter at the end of the N305. You NEED a LP pressure test. You will be spinning your wheels if it works fine on 120 but you have a problem with the LP without the pressure test. A not scientific way to test your LP regulator is to turn of the refer on LP. Then light the range burners on full. LIGHT the water Heater and furnace. Watch the Range burners. If the flames pulsate or diminish when you run the water heater and furnace your LP regulator is bad and needs replaced. You can also remove the LP burner and remove the orifice and blow it out. Is the refer in a slide room? Doug
mtnman1989
Explorer
Jul 18, 2023
I figured you were a tech, lucky to have someone like you on the forum!
mtnman1989
Explorer
Jul 18, 2023
Update:
I turn the 120 electric off and did the non scientific regulator test, it did fine. I left the fridge on LP gas after the LP regulator test. It has been on LP gas for 5 hours and the fridge temperature increased just 3 degrees from 27 degrees to 30 degrees! I think it is fine, what's your opinion?
mtnman1989
Explorer
Jul 19, 2023
Wed July 19th 5:30 am 15 hours later and the fridge is 30 degrees, FIXED! I think the compressed air was all it needed.
mtnman1989
Explorer
Jul 23, 2023
Sunday July 23rd, 4 days later. Turn fridge on LP yesterday and it was 33 degrees this morning, still working!

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Norcold Fridge Model N305R not cooling bottom

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