RESOLVED: Fridge Won't Cool at All

[Greengas]

Hi

As always, an emergency problem. The fridge is on electric. The lights are all one. The display looks completely normal. No error codes. But, it is flat out not cooling. On the drive to our campsite, it was on Propane and again showed all normal. I even lit the stove to ensure gas was flowing. But, no cooling.

Help. Open to all suggestions.

 

[danemayer]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Ronn,

Is this a Norcold? Which model? Is the freezer getting cold?

 

[Greengas]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Norcold model 121X series. No, the freezer is not getting cold either.

 

[gasman]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Switch it to LP and then open the refrigerator door. You will find a white wire running from the light to the thermistor clip on the fins. Unplug this wire at the light and see what happens. The light will no longer work. This puts the unit into an override mode and causes it to run at its maximum with no thermostat control. If, in 24 hours, the unit is not cold, the cooling unit is bad and needs to be replaced. If it is cold then the problem is elsewhere and needs to have a technician continue troubleshooting. Been through this several times in the past. If it turns out to be a bad cooling unit, consider replacing it with an Amish unit.

 

[Greengas]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

ok, light disconnected, system in LP mode. Now, I have two chunks of dry ice in the fridge right now trying to keep everything cold, hoping it will act like a large cooler. Fingers crossed it is something simple.

Thanks for all the guidance. I really appreciate it, as always.

- - - Updated - - -

What is an Amish Unit? Never heard of that brand.

 

[boatto5er]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Another possibility with the Notcold. Remove the outside lower access panel. On the back of the fridge is a black control box. Run a magnet around the surface of the box. Some Norcold models have a relay that get stuck. If you hear a click then the relay may be freed up. Shot in the dark because I can't recall the specific Norcold models this trick works with.


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[happykraut]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Another possibility with the Notcold. Remove the outside lower access panel. On the back of the fridge is a black control box. Run a magnet around the surface of the box. Some Norcold models have a relay that get stuck. If you hear a click then the relay may be freed up. Shot in the dark because I can't recall the specific Norcold models this trick works with.


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I have done the magnet trick on my Norcold, and it got me going again.

 

[Greengas]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Another possibility with the Notcold. Remove the outside lower access panel. On the back of the fridge is a black control box. Run a magnet around the surface of the box. Some Norcold models have a relay that get stuck. If you hear a click then the relay may be freed up. Shot in the dark because I can't recall the specific Norcold models this trick works with.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'll give that a shot. I unplug the temprature control and nothing. So, magnet it is. Any suggestion on how strong a magnet it needs to be?

 

[Greengas]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Ran the magnet with the fridge in both the LP and AC mode. Nothing. But, on the good side, I know it was not a propane problem because I heard the gas firing and the parts were warm/hot. In the AC mode I heard what sounded like gurgling. Another question, there is a white what looks like a drain tube that ends in a plastic drip pan. Clearly, the pan has had, at one time, water in it. But when I looked at the end of the tube, there was a plug in it. Seems like the plug has been in there for a while so not sure how anything got into the pan. I don't want to remove it if it is supposed to be there.

I am going to call a mobile RV tech this morning but if I can avoid the expense, I will.

 

[Greengas]

Update- Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Hi

As always, an emergency problem. The fridge is on electric. The lights are all one. The display looks completely normal. No error codes. But, it is flat out not cooling. On the drive to our campsite, it was on Propane and again showed all normal. I even lit the stove to ensure gas was flowing. But, no cooling.

Help. Open to all suggestions.

Fridge is dead. I am told this is a fact because in the back when I open the panel, the bottom is covered with a nice yellow/green layer of... stuff. From what I've learned, that is the amonia from the fridge and when it goes, the fridge goes. I was hoping that it could be fixed like a car that has a leak in its ac but that is not the case.

If I'm getting bad information here, please let me know. We will have our rig back in Denver on Sunday but then we head out for another trip the following Wednesday. It seems that every RV repair facility has the same answer to my question: We are booked solid through the end of September. I am now going to call a few mobile places and see if they can get a fridge and install it for me.

Lucky for me (if there is any luck in this case) I have the Good Sam extended warranty so after my deductible, I'm covered. I look at the new item on the forum listing reliable mobile RV repair places and found 2 for my area of color ado (great idea Dan).

So, lets see how that works. Maybe its time to replace it with a residential.

 

[danemayer]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Ronn,

The Amish cooling units mentioned earlier may be a good choice. From what I've read, they're made of sturdier materials than the OEM and are considerably less expensive. Here's a link. You might be in for the better part of a day in labor charges.

You can probably find a residential unit that fits the space, but there's usually some cabinetry work involved at top and bottom. And for it to keep running during travel, you'll need an inverter to convert battery power to 120V AC. Heartland includes an automatic transfer switch so it runs of shore power when plugged in. There's a block diagram in the Residential Refrigerator Guide that will make this all clearer.

It's also possible to have a manual switch between shore power and inverter, but then you have to remember to switch it.

 

[Greengas]

Final (I Hope) Update

So, where were we. That's right, dead fridge as evidenced by that yellowish greenish stuff all around the lower outside fridge opening. So there we were, in Nebraska trying to set up to get our fridge fixed. Every place we called had the same message - Sorry, nothing thru the end of September. Then I went on line in the forum and saw where my buddy Dan had started a thread about the best RV repair places. I found DM RV Repair. The post said that they had a mobile service but I found out that they no longer offer that. But, they said that we could drop off our rig on the way home and it would be ready before we had to leave for Angel Fire, NM on the 30th of August! They even agreed to get the insurance company to let them install the Amish refrigeration unit.

So I went to pick it up today and it was all ready (early even) and running like brand new which basically it is. If you are in Colorado and you need to get some RV work done, look these folks up. DM RV Repair, 970-461-2424.

Here is a picture of the dead unit and the new one.



This is the old unit.



This is the new unit.

Sorry for not being able to get these aligned right. On my computer that are correct but when I post them to the site they go sideways.

 

[jbeletti]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Glad you are back in business Ronn.

I think this may be the same place in NE that Gregg W had his taken care of in a similar manner.

 

[gwalter]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

I had mine done at my dealer. Rich & Sons in Grand Island NE.


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[rjr6150]

Re: Help - Fridge Won't Cool at All

Don & Mariann are really great to work with. Not only are we customers but friends.

 

[Greengas]

The new fridge cooling unit worked great during our recent trip to New Mexico. In fact, the freezer stayed at 0 for the entire trip. My new concern is that the new unit sooooo much louder than the last one. You can hear the unit running while standing several feet away from it. You can also hear it get louder when it cycles on.

Is this normal?

 

[danemayer]

The new fridge cooling unit worked great during our recent trip to New Mexico. In fact, the freezer stayed at 0 for the entire trip. My new concern is that the new unit sooooo much louder than the last one. You can hear the unit running while standing several feet away from it. You can also hear it get louder when it cycles on.

Is this normal?

Hi Ronn,

On 120V AC operation, the typical noise is from fans, not from the cooling unit itself.

On propane operation, if it's noisier, the propane burner tube might be out of adjustment or out of position.

 

[wdk450]

The new fridge cooling unit worked great during our recent trip to New Mexico. In fact, the freezer stayed at 0 for the entire trip. My new concern is that the new unit sooooo much louder than the last one. You can hear the unit running while standing several feet away from it. You can also hear it get louder when it cycles on.

Is this normal?

I would contact RVCoolingUnitWarehouse.com about the noise issue. http://rvcoolingunit.com/ContactUs.aspx

On edit: I did some internet research and found this company makes what are called "Amish Cooling Units". Here is their contact page: http://jc-refrigeration.com/contact-us/

 

[Gary521]

If you have noisy fans, it is possible to replace with fans that are silent.