Fridge fire burns 8 motor homes

[K7JV]

The Norcold 1200 on our '06 Dynasty failed, this past November, in Lake Havasu City. The first hint that it was in trouble was the fact that the "black box" modification is what shut the refrigerator down before any more damage occurred. We are grateful we had the recall modification done on our coach.

We replaced the cooling unit, and believe we are going to be good to go, hopefully for quite a few more years. FYI, Cowboy RV in Lake Havasu did the work. The actual bill we received was about $300 below the quote they gave us for the replacement. That is rare! We highly recommend the repair technicians at Cowboy RV Mart. I believe his name was Alex. Trevor was the service writer and coordinator for the repair.

[RileyCaton]

Originally Posted by IDAHO Jim

Riley, ... sorry to hear of your problem with the Norcold and glad that you found a solution with the residential install. Do you know of the circumstances that caused the failure with your Norcold?...... front or rear of the coach raised while being serviced, refrigerator on gas, Norcold black box installed etc.?
Jim

Greetings Idaho Jim,

The fire occurred two years ago. We had the typical 1200 series four-door Norcold that was installed over many years by Monaco and other brands.

We purchased our 2006 Diplomat 40PDQ in 2011 and I found that the fridge was under a recall. I took a look and saw that some wiring and a black box had been installed along with a tag that said that said there was a recall kit installed. It looked okay to me but I didn't know how it was supposed to be installed.

We're full-timers and used the fridge in electric mode, and on gas while dry camping around N. America.

The rig was sitting on a service bay apron when the fire occurred, with a slight slope away from the bay but close to level.

Just after the fire, I was standing with the techs while they looked at the recall kit and observed that there was a wire missing. The missing wire had disabled the recall kit.

The insurance adjuster looked at the fridge and simply told Alliance Coach to make the repairs and install a new fridge. You already know - we chose Samsung. We have two solar panels on the roof and with a little generator recharging in the morning we have no problems dry camping.

[Windecker]

We had a 1200 LRIM 4 door fridge in our 99 Monaco. It was recalled 2 times from 2007 when I purchased it till 2017 when we traded it.
The first one they put a new cooling unit on it, basically 1/2 of the fridge. The second recall is when they put the black box on it. We never had any issues with it not working correctly other than needing to replace the igniter (which is also the thermocouple) once.
All that said, we wanted a residential fridge on our new to us coach and absolutely won't go back.
The constant reading about fires in motor homes always bothered me and all but the switch was for more fridge room and more efficiency.

We dry camp a LOT and get by just fine with it. 400 Watts of solar on the roof, Honda EU2000 for small draw loads after dark and the onboard genset for heavier loads/charging.
The side benefit of removing a known fire source is worth it alone.
Windecker

[BigBillSD]

I will be installing an ARP controller from http://arprv.com in the coming weeks. The propane option allows us to run the genny way less often when dry camping.

-Bill

PS. Why would they leave the fridge on in a paint shop. Geez, your even supposed to turn it off when pumping fuel. I spent a summer cleaning a paint shop for a friends dad and its not a place you want anything with a flame to be in there.

[Scottybdivin]

After a long day of racing, one of my fellow rescue divers that was parked next to us came over and asked if we had any old towels. Said his RV fridge had just caught fire and he put it out with a fire extinguisher and a hose. I was in the shower and never knew about his struggle until it was over. Luckily he is also a fireman and knew what to do and also that we weren't still out on the lake or worse yet, sleeping.

[IDAHO Jim]

Originally Posted by RileyCaton

Greetings Idaho Jim,

The fire occurred two years ago. We had the typical 1200 series four-door Norcold that was installed over many years by Monaco and other brands.

We purchased our 2006 Diplomat 40PDQ in 2011 and I found that the fridge was under a recall. I took a look and saw that some wiring and a black box had been installed along with a tag that said that said there was a recall kit installed. It looked okay to me but I didn't know how it was supposed to be installed.

We're full-timers and used the fridge in electric mode, and on gas while dry camping around N. America.

The rig was sitting on a service bay apron when the fire occurred, with a slight slope away from the bay but close to level.

Just after the fire, I was standing with the techs while they looked at the recall kit and observed that there was a wire missing. The missing wire had disabled the recall kit.

The insurance adjuster looked at the fridge and simply told Alliance Coach to make the repairs and install a new fridge. You already know - we chose Samsung. We have two solar panels on the roof and with a little generator recharging in the morning we have no problems dry camping.

Riley, Thank you for the reply and information relative to the failure of your Norcold ... as I'm just trying to learn more of the commonalities of the failure modes. Just a couple more questions ..... if you don't mind.

Had your Norcold been performing acceptably prior to the failure and do you believe ambient conditions could have contributed to this event, ie., very hot outside temperatures and sun on the fridge wall. Was your Norcold contained within a slide, and do you know whether or not that your fans behind the fridge were working... have you heard them operating in the past. I hate to be a nuisance... just curious in the interest of safety. Thank you, Jim

[sanddan]

Is the fire issue only with the Norcold brand or also with Dometic? Is it only certain sizes or all sizes?

I only ask as I've had several RV's through the years and hadn't heard of any issues with the fridge in them before this.

[JGrosman]

Just go to http://arprv.com/ and put it on. Never worry again.

[cruzbill]

The ARPrV device is a good one, but it is still only an overtemp shutoff device. Two failure modes: overtemp burner caused by blocked refrigerant tubing. Fires caused by corrosion of tubing, creating pinhole leaks and release of flammable hydrogen gas. If you see any yellow dust/corrosion (leaks) on the back of your fridge, turn it off now and remove all power (12v and 120v) and find somewhere else to stay until you pull the whole thing out and replace it.

Neither a good situation, but the latter cannot be controlled by an overtemp shutoff device, no matter who makes it.

[2 Stroker]

The only good thing I can say about Norcold, they paid for my Samsung 197 with the recall checks, 1 down and 3 to go even if it takes 4 years.
2 stroker

[zo66]

Originally Posted by nehog

Are there any reports of new Norcold fridges catching fire, or ones with the recall having been done?

We bought our Camelot new in 2006, and later received a recall. Sometime after that we received a "recall to the recall".

It was our first RV, and somehow the part about having the coach level, or very close to level before using the propane fridge didn't sink in....there was a lot to learn all at once for a total rookie.

At home our street has a slight incline. We used to start the fridge a couple of days prior to leaving on a trip. Over time we did irreparable damage. Eventually the fridge struggled to keep cold on hot days. When we removed our Norcold, I noticed signs of yellow powder residue in the back of the fridge. Not Good.

If used properly, it probably would have fared better, but the new Samsung RF18 is so much nicer! Amazing upgrade.

[plasma800]

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f54/norco...ml#post2239693

[RileyCaton]

Greetings Jim, Here are the answers to your questions:
1) Had your Norcold been performing acceptably prior to the failure
- Yes
2) Do you believe ambient conditions could have contributed to this event
- No, it was a nice day with moderate outside temps.
3) Was your Norcold contained within a slide
- No
4) Do you know whether or not that your fans behind the fridge were working
- There were no fans behind the fridge that I was aware of.

[garbonz]

Originally Posted by BigBillSD

I will be installing an ARP controller from http://arprv.com in the coming weeks. The propane option allows us to run the genny way less often when dry camping.

-Bill

PS. Why would they leave the fridge on in a paint shop. Geez, your even supposed to turn it off when pumping fuel. I spent a summer cleaning a paint shop for a friends dad and its not a place you want anything with a flame to be in there.

YES! ARP RV is the way to go on older units, but maybe not necessary on new ones. I'm putting one on anyway.