Dometic 4 button comfort control center

[Restless]

The comfort control center in our dutchstar is very hard to change zones. Service man says if we change to new 5 button style, the boards in both air conditioners have to be changed. Has anyone changed these boards and installed the 5 button comfort control center? If so how hard is this job to complete

[Romeo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Restless The comfort control center in our dutchstar is very hard to change zones...

I just went through what sounds like maybe your problem. Here is what I was told:

"Ron - The 4 button switches are not air sealed so there is a slight amount of arcing that causes the contacts to corrode and they only get worse. My process cleans or replaces the contacts or switches as needed by function testing. The 5 button thermostat will not work with the 4 button control board(s). If you go to 5 button (sealed switches) you need to change the control boards also ($200 for 1 air, $310 for 2 air). William"

William rebuilds the DuoTherm 4-button thermostats. I just replaced mine through William and am very happy... I can now change the modes as if it was new. His charge was $85 plus $10 shipping. His email is: whendrix@aol.com. Contact him and he will explain how to do the exchange.

[RVhauler]

Few years ago my board went south (fortunately there had been a recall and so mine was replaced under warranty). Upshot was I had a 5 buttton with one A/C (and furnace) which the warranty changed to 4 button stat/board

[Brian in MO]

I just went through this in sept. It really isn't that big of job just plug and unplug (however we were out of town working and I had a mobile rv service do the work). You are right about changing the board in both a/c units and the thermostat, by the way my wife loves how easy the new one is to change zones on. Our problem was a little different we had a board bad on a a/c unit and wanted the new thermostat also, so spent the money and got all new.

["007"]

Welcome Brian to the Newmar forum & irv2.
Thanks for your first post, enjoy the forums and do post often.

[LABergo]

Restless,
A few years ago, I had the same problem with my Dometic control in my 2000 DSDP. I found an article that explains the problem and tells you how to fix it. I tried to find that same article....but sorry I could not find it. But, the procedure is to open up the control and get access to the very small springs inside that provide electrical contact when you push the button. It is pretty straight forward once you open the control. Many of the contact springs are not used and I exchanged them with the ones giving me the problem. I never had another problem with the control after that. It is a good fix and you don't have to change controls....

[Romeo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by LABergo ...the procedure is to open up the control and get access to the very small springs inside that provide electrical contact when you push the button... Many of the contact springs are not used and I exchanged them with the ones giving me the problem.

Having worked on electronics as a hobby, and knowing that the problem with the buttons on a thermostat was most likely due to poor contact, I thought I would try to fix my t-stat myself. It was easy to take apart and see the contacts, but the contacts were so small and fragile that I was not able to effectively clean them, and I was afraid of breaking one and then not being able to get a replacement contact. I did not see any contacts that were not being used in my 4-button model. At any rate, I decided that the price of a rebuilt t-stat was resonable, so went that route and saved myself the trauma of trying to fix it myself.

[1rvfulltimer]

Not one of the previous posts actually answered your question. It is correct that if you need to replace the four button thermostat you must replace it with a five button. You must also replace all the control boxes in each of the a/c units. This is all a very easy project and should take less than one hour to complete. The thermostat is a simple plug like you find on a telephone line. The control boxes are very similar. A couple of plugs at most and they only plug in one way. The 120v lines are the only real work. Make sure the breaker is turned off before disconnect the old control box. One screw gives you access to the a/c hook ups. Disconnect the lines and reconnect to new box exactly as the old one was. Depending on the ceiling assembly you have you may have to remove that as well. That comes off by removing just a few screws. The entire job should only take thirty to forty minutes. Another twenty for an additional air conditioner. Follow the instructions to set up the zones on the control boxes. There are some dip switches that you move to set this up manually when installing. The thermostat must be reset to program it to the set up you have as well. It will read "E" if this has not been done.

- Mike