Forum Discussion

rtate's avatar
rtate
Explorer
Jun 05, 2013

WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON WITH MY REGERATOR!

I pulled out my Norcold refrigerator to replace a vent fan on the back. I tested out everything prior to slidong it back into its opening and things seemed to work fine.
After slidong it back in place i couldnt get it to turn on, so I started checking things..
No 120 volt power hooked, just 12 volt.

Where power goes to the frig I only got 5.7 volts. I disconected the the 12 volt power feed and checked power at the feed without being hooked up to the frig. I got 11 volts. At the battery I got 13 volts.

Looks to me like I have two different problems. First the power drop from the battery to where it feeds the frig. I need to trouble shoot that, but why the heck am I getting a 5.7 volt reading when hooked up to the frig? Not sure I know where to start. I disconnected the connection to the eybrow but didnt seem to make any difference.

HELP!!!!!
  • rtate's avatar
    rtate
    Explorer
    Jun 05, 2013
    rtate wrote:
    I pulled out my Norcold refrigerator to replace a vent fan on the back. I tested out everything prior to slidong it back into its opening and things seemed to work fine.
    After slidong it back in place i couldnt get it to turn on, so I started checking things..
    No 120 volt power hooked, just 12 volt.

    Where power goes to the frig I only got 5.7 volts. I disconected the the 12 volt power feed and checked power at the feed without being hooked up to the frig. I got 11 volts. At the battery I got 13 volts.

    Looks to me like I have two different problems. First the power drop from the battery to where it feeds the frig. I need to trouble shoot that, but why the heck am I getting a 5.7 volt reading when hooked up to the frig? Not sure I know where to start. I disconnected the connection to the eybrow but didnt seem to make any difference.

    HELP!!!!!


    Sorry but I gave some bad info on my oroginal post. If I disconnect the plug on the board that feeds the eybrow ( temp control, off/on switch etc) I get a voltage of 11 volts where the 12 volt power connects to the frig. So, I assume there is a problem with the eyebrow. Why does it give me a voltage reading of 5.7 volts at the power connection to the frig with the eyebrow hooked up but 11 volts with the eyebrow disconnected? Any ideas would be welcome.
  • Chris_Bryant's avatar
    Chris_Bryant
    Explorer II
    Jun 05, 2013
    It sounds like the problem is external to the fridge- unhooking the eyebrow just removes the load of the fridge from the circuit, which lets the voltage increase.
    Trace the 12 volt line and find where the voltage drop is.
  • tenbear's avatar
    tenbear
    Explorer
    Jun 05, 2013
    You have a high resistance connection somewhere in the 12v line from the fuse panel to the eyebrow. Check the voltage at the fuse panel on the refrig side of the fuse. May be a loose screw where the wire to the refrig is connected to the fuse panel. Could be any place in the refrig wire that 2 wires are joined.
  • tenbear's avatar
    tenbear
    Explorer
    Jun 06, 2013
    prolandsurveyor wrote:
    Sounds liked got a bad ground but it's hard to diagnost on the internet

    Yes, if you are measuring between the + and - 12 volt wires, it could very well be the ground. Try measuring between the +12 volt and a known good ground.
  • rtate's avatar
    rtate
    Explorer
    Jun 06, 2013
    I think what I will do in the morning is to run a wire directly from the battery to the frig. And see what happens. If it runs with no problem then I know the problem is in the eyebrow. Will let ypu know in the morning what happens
  • tenbear's avatar
    tenbear
    Explorer
    Jun 06, 2013
    rtate wrote:
    I think what I will do in the morning is to run a wire directly from the battery to the frig. And see what happens. If it runs with no problem then I know the problem is in the eyebrow. Will let ypu know in the morning what happens

    I suggest you put a fuse in the wire so you don't burn the RV down if something goes wrong.
  • rtate's avatar
    rtate
    Explorer
    Jun 06, 2013
    This project is turning into a nightmare. I have tried tracing the 12v wire from the frig back to its source. After dismanteling most of my rv I am unable to trace it. I even went thru my dc fuse panel one fuse at a time. Nothing killed the connection to the frig.

    I finally decided I would run a new wire to the dc fuse panel (looks like there about six extra circutes). Thought I would check a direct connection back to the battery and got it wprking except that now I have lost my 120 v connection to the frig.

    I just came back inside before I blew a gasket to rethink the whole project. Then my wife asked me what the original problem was and I had almost forgotten.

    I think it was to replace the 12v fan on the back of yhe frig.

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