Community Forums

dpavlosky · 03-10-2018, 11:41 AM

Anyone having problems with the residential refrigerator in their Thor Aria 3601 or any other models. First the ice maker quit making ice, then the freezer would not stay cold and eventually the frig part would not stay cold. This is a 2017 with only 5200 miles on it.

And to add insult to injury the front roof AC quit working. Add these issues to the list of 52 things it’s been in the shop for and we haven’t even had it a year. JUNK JUNK JUNK

BFlinn181 · 03-10-2018, 12:15 PM

You didn't mention any brand names or details. I'd make sure the refrigerator will work on the inverter you have. Many inverters only have a modified sine wave output that doesn't play nice with 120v items made to work on shore power pure sine wave output.

I had to have our new LG fridge in our house worked on only a week after we got it. The tech said refrigerator quality has gone down trying to make them more energy efficient. In addition, he said that with the changing refrigerant technology, companies don't want them to last decades like refrigerators of old. Just a thought.

Get friendly with your technicians, you'll be spending lots of time with them.

cucotx · 03-10-2018, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dpavlosky

Anyone having problems with the residential refrigerator in their Thor Aria 3601 or any other models. First the ice maker quit making ice, then the freezer would not stay cold and eventually the frig part would not stay cold. This is a 2017 with only 5200 miles on it.

And to add insult to injury the front roof AC quit working. Add these issues to the list of 52 things it’s been in the shop for and we haven’t even had it a year. JUNK JUNK JUNK

My wife fell in love with the floorplan of the Aria 3901. But, I continue to be concerned about the reliability of these Thor products for fulltiming. Time will tell, but it is scary to keep hearing about these failures with Thor.

MisterT · 03-10-2018, 12:43 PM

I understand the aggravation, but 'blame' should not be angled toward anyone other that the actual manufacturer of the appliance, not the builder, they only install it and plug it in.

What might you mean when you say the front AC unit 'quit working'?

as for the question of the 'Inverter' type, it's just plain uneducated to make statements that a Modified sine wave inverter, like our Magnum ME2012, is not able to provide completely reliable and supportive power to appliances. Our residential fridge is working fine, for almost 4 years, and over 80,000 miles thru the US, Canada, and even the wilds of Alaska, on and off grid many many overnights on both the inverter, generator, or shore power, and has never given us a moment of concern.

twinboat · 03-10-2018, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisterT

as for the question of the 'Inverter' type, it's just plain uneducated to make statements that a Modified sine wave inverter, like our Magnum ME2012, is not able to provide completely reliable and supportive power to appliances. Our residential fridge is working fine, for almost 4 years, and over 80,000 miles thru the US, Canada, and even the wilds of Alaska, on and off grid many many overnights on both the inverter, generator, or shore power, and has never given us a moment of concern.

Are you stating that all 120 volt appliances will work, trouble free, on all MSW inverters ?

Are you basing this on a factual study or simply your experience with " your " inverter and " your " 120 volt appliances ?

What the poster said was

"Many inverters only have a modified sine wave output that doesn't play nice with 120v items made to work on shore power pure sine wave output."

He wasn't referring to " YOURS " in particular.

BFlinn181 · 03-10-2018, 12:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisterT

I understand the aggravation, but 'blame' should not be angled toward anyone other that the actual manufacturer of the appliance, not the builder, they only install it and plug it in.

What might you mean when you say the front AC unit 'quit working'?

as for the question of the 'Inverter' type, it's just plain uneducated to make statements that a Modified sine wave inverter, like our Magnum ME2012, is not able to provide completely reliable and supportive power to appliances. Our residential fridge is working fine, for almost 4 years, and over 80,000 miles thru the US, Canada, and even the wilds of Alaska, on and off grid many many overnights on both the inverter, generator, or shore power, and has never given us a moment of concern.

I assure you I am not uneducated. I suggested the inverter type might be an issue, not that it positively was the problem. Your comments are a bit out of line in reaction to what was said.

I'm glad you've not had an issue with your MSW inverter in your travels, but there are many reports of items not working properly or burning up when plugged into them.

The manufacturer of the RV can certainly be held accountable if the quality of the items they install are not top of the line.

dpavlosky · 03-10-2018, 06:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BFlinn181

You didn't mention any brand names or details. I'd make sure the refrigerator will work on the inverter you have. Many inverters only have a modified sine wave output that doesn't play nice with 120v items made to work on shore power pure sine wave output.

I had to have our new LG fridge in our house worked on only a week after we got it. The tech said refrigerator quality has gone down trying to make them more energy efficient. In addition, he said that with the changing refrigerant technology, companies don't want them to last decades like refrigerators of old. Just a thought.

Get friendly with your technicians, you'll be spending lots of time with them.

The refrigerator is a whirlpool and it worked fine up until this last trip.

dpavlosky · 03-10-2018, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MisterT

I understand the aggravation, but 'blame' should not be angled toward anyone other that the actual manufacturer of the appliance, not the builder, they only install it and plug it in.

What might you mean when you say the front AC unit 'quit working'?

as for the question of the 'Inverter' type, it's just plain uneducated to make statements that a Modified sine wave inverter, like our Magnum ME2012, is not able to provide completely reliable and supportive power to appliances. Our residential fridge is working fine, for almost 4 years, and over 80,000 miles thru the US, Canada, and even the wilds of Alaska, on and off grid many many overnights on both the inverter, generator, or shore power, and has never given us a moment of concern.

I said the front roof AC UNIT. there’s two on the roof. One in the rear and one in the front over the living room area.

Teblues · 03-10-2018, 06:58 PM

Whirlpools are know to ice up in the freezer, and stop the fan from turning which stops the cooling. Defrost the the frig and see if it works again. If not then call Whirlpool, and they should replace the fan. I have seen on the Winnebago sight that they have had problems, and Whirlpool replaced the fans.

Whats the problem with the AC? Not cooling or not running at all?

dpavlosky · 03-10-2018, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Teblues

Whirlpools are know to ice up in the freezer, and stop the fan from turning which stops the cooling. Defrost the the frig and see if it works again. If not then call Whirlpool, and they should replace the fan. I have seen on the Winnebago sight that they have had problems, and Whirlpool replaced the fans.

Whats the problem with the AC? Not cooling or not running at all?

Refrigerator is under warranty. It’s not frozen up and the fan is running.

As for the front roof AC the fan is running and blowing warm air only. The compressor is not kicking in or on

BFlinn181 · 03-10-2018, 07:07 PM

On the A/C, I'd check the starting capacitor. Do you have an EMS to monitor surges and electrical voltage? Perhaps you had low voltage in the heat and it caused issues. Does your rear A/C work?

dpavlosky · 03-10-2018, 07:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BFlinn181

On the A/C, I'd check the starting capacitor. Do you have an EMS to monitor surges and electrical voltage? Perhaps you had low voltage in the heat and it caused issues. Does your rear A/C work?

Rear AC is working fine. Still under warranty and at dealer.

iluvuk · 03-10-2018, 07:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dpavlosky

Rear AC is working fine. Still under warranty and at dealer.

Sorry about the problems. I agree Thor has some QA problems and QC problems. Most of mine have been minor things. Hinges without screws, doors out of alignment, loose pipe leaking, water line to ice maker dripping, etc. Easy things for me to fix without taking it to a stealer.

Fridge issue is something else. That is a Whirlpool problem most likely. I have worried about voltage dropping too low on my inverter and perhaps causing a compressor burnout on my fridge. I can't control my LBCO on my inverter as my Firefly system needs an update for which I am waiting. Is it possible you had a low voltage situation arise and burn out some compressors? Low voltage causes motors to draw larger amps which can burn out appliances. Just a thought. Also, could just be some faulty appliances; like has been said, that would be on the appliance manufacturer, not Thor in my opinion. Thank goodness for warranties. You should be fine once you get all the bugs worked out. Let us know what they discover so we can all learn from it. Thanks for contributing!

ThePowells · 03-10-2018, 09:07 PM

Thanks kinda strange that Thor makes A/Cs and fridges, because when we were in Elkhart and Wakarusa I saw cabinets and all manor of things being made at Thor, we missed those two items.

When I had a jack hydraulic line issue, I called LCI directly and handled it. I don't think my fridge is a Thor. If it quit tomorrow, I would be starting with the 800 number on that owner's manual. The same for the A/C. If they are not getting power, then I would be calling Wakarusa for help, but if they are, then I would be calling somebody else.