Do I need a new refrigerator?

[martinandanne]

OK, did something dumb. Last Sunday we got home and I took things out of the MH. Emptied the frig and propped open the doors to the freezer and the frig. Shut everything down.

Or so I thought.

Last night I go out to the MH and discover that I never turned off the refrigerator. It had been running for 4 days with the doors open. And it has been over 100 degrees outside here in north Texas every day! I have a vent fan than run in the MH, but it was still in the 90's inside each day.

I closed the doors last night after putting some frozen gallon jugs of water into the frig and freezer. (I do this whenever I start it up before a trip.) Now nearly a day later, it does not seem to be cold at all - I suspect whatever 'cooling' that I can sense is from the frozen bottles melting down most of the way.

Is it toast? Or did I dodge a bullet?

I spoke to one person who suggested that I just turn it off for 24 hours and see what happens when I turn it back on.

This is a 2007 model Class C with a Norcold 6 cubic foot unit. Are 'current' models available any more efficient / better at cooling / keeping things cold than my 6 year old unit? If I am going to be facing a bill of 20-30% the cost of a new unit to repair, I would be inclined to replace if I could get better service from it.

Thanks in advance!

Martin

[martinandanne]

To answer the recent questions -

I bought a Norcold 641.

There was no code on the front. If you looked at the unit, you would think it was working just fine.

Martin

[dougrainer]

Travel2build wrote:
Thought the way to get rid of a blckage is to take fridge out and lay on left side for at least a day but a week is better.

You can NEVER get rid of a blockage. All Burping does is remix the Ammonia charge and sometimes the refer will cool for a few weeks or month, but NEVER to its full capacity because of the blockage. The Blockage is as hard as a weld and is "welded" to the upper tube area and cannot be knocked loose or removed. Rebuilders cut out the tubing where the blockage is and weld a new tubing section in place of the blocked tubing. Doug

[down_home]

Is there a code on the little dispaly on front of the unit?

[mena661]

Which one did you get?

[martinandanne]

If anyone in the Dallas area is interested, I now am the proud owner of a non-functioning Norcold refer. Sitting in the warehouse at my work. Would rather give it to someone who might have some use for it rather than just put it out and let a scrap collector take it.

BTW, putting in the replacement was really easy - after I realized that I was going to have to pull off the door frame and the door of my Class C to get it to fit! But with the help of another fellow RVer at work, I got it done in a couple of hours about 2 weeks ago. The new one - while expensive - is much nicer than the OEM model that came in the MH.

Martin

[RoadXYZ]

martinandanne wrote:
Turned it off on Friday afternoon. Drove it 250 miles Friday night. Saturday night we were parked overnight so we turned it on. Sunday morning the freezer was cold - not sure how cold. But the frig showed no signs of being cold at all.

To those who wrote in - the house batteries were never dead or disconnected. And it didn't run out of propane, nor was the propane tank shut off. So I am pretty confident that it ran for about 4 days severely out of level with the doors open. Martin

When our refrigerator was "toast" neither the refer or freezer was cold ... we just had the coil replaced by an rv service center.

We have a two-door refer and in the past we have had an issue with the refer door when we thought it was shut tight and it wasn't .. then the refer was not as cold as we thought it should be while the freezer door was shut tight and the freezer was cold.

And have had other times when our refer is on the afternoon sun side of the lot that it has appeared to be not as 'cold' as expected, but in the early morning hours it has been cold. Just my 2 cents worth.

[Travel2build]

Thought the way to get rid of a blckage is to take fridge out and lay on left side for at least a day but a week is better.

[pianotuna]

Hi,

Find a washboard road. DRIVE on it until the fillings are jarring out of your teeth. HOPE that knocks the blockage free. Test the fridge again. It if works--sin no more and keep the fridge level.

[martinandanne]

Turned it off on Friday afternoon. Drove it 250 miles Friday night. Saturday night we were parked overnight so we turned it on.
Sunday morning the freezer was cold - not sure how cold. But the frig showed no signs of being cold at all.

To those who wrote in - the house batteries were never dead or disconnected. And it didn't run out of propane, nor was the propane tank shut off. So I am pretty confident that it ran for about 4 days severely out of level with the doors open.

Martin

[wasatchmtnatvr]

Is green indicator light off, on, or flashing 5 times then pause?. N611 OEM entry model slide switches and 5 temp adj. and low tech diagnostics with green and red indicator led light. N621 OEM upgrade model has 9 temp adj., flush surface touch controls, can be accessed and cleared from optical, 1 character optical, and smart diagnostics for technician. N641 same as N621 except aftermarket supplied, and 2 character optics and slight raised buttons for selection. I think all interiors are same IMO, however possible 1 less door and/or wire shelf. IMO all door inserts will fit each other.

[wa8yxm]

Another thing that might work,, In that "Turn it off, wait, turn it on.

Add one more thing

Turn it off DRIVE, wait DRIVE turn it on.

[pianotuna]

Hi,

I always use the master disconnect switch "just in case" I miss turning off something.

[louiskathy]

I'd level it out. Give it a day to settle and then see if it works.
I wouldn't call it toast yet.

You said that you shut everything down except the fridge... well, if you shut the electric off and it was running on propane... it ran out of propane.

Also, the fridge NEEDS 12 volt to work. So if your house batteries ran dead, they need to recharge awhile. Plug the rig into shore power and let the batteries charge.

And the fridge has it's own fuse at the back of the fridge. (Not the regular control panel on the wall with all the other fuses.) This you have to get to from the OUTSIDE of the rig. At the back of the fridge is an outside vented door. Remove that and look for a black plastic box at the base of the fridge. Inside you will find the fuse I've talking about. If it's fried... replace it.)

[I_am_still_wayn]

If it ran off level for an extended period of time, it may have an issue. Turn it off for at least 24 hours. Then, with it level, turn it back on and leave it for another 24 hours. If it does not get cool, then I am sorry to tell you, it will need a new cooling unit.

Now may be the time to consider a conventional residential refrigerator. The new ones are so energy efficient that they can run off a battery for extended periods with an inverter and offer more interior space, better hot weather performance, and colder temperatures, especially in the freezer. As a bonus, they are much cheaper than a gas/electric refrigerator.