Norcold N841 Problem

[Rickochet]

I have a nine year old Norcold N841 two way. Outside of having the power board replaced during the first year it has work flawlessly, until this summer. The unit stays parked in the same place most of the time about 90 miles from home with the Norcold on all of the time. I leave the unit on manual AC with LP turned off. I am not comfortable leaving the LP on when we are not there. Three tiimes this summer when we got there we were greeted with the dreaded "no co" error code and spoiled food. The microwave clock was blinking indicating a temporary power outage. The first two times I turned the fridge off and on and it worked fine. This last time it did not. I guess the board is locked out and needs resetting. I have the Norcold service bulletin to do this but haven't tried it yet.

Someone in another forum suggested that Norcold redesigned the power board a couple of years ago to keep this from happening. An email from Norcold yesterday said this was not true and the board locking out after a power failure was normal.

So assuming the board resets I would seem to have two options. One is to leave the LP on and set it on Auto. Second option is to install an inverter with an auto transfer switch to keep AC power on. Oh, and a third option is ditching the Norcold and installing a Whirlpool AC unit from Lowes for $338 and installing an inverter.

Any thoughts on this issue would be appreciated.

Rick

[RV Wizard]

Rick, welcome to iRV2.com. We are glad to have you join us here and we look forward to reading of your adventures and experiences. I am sure you will enjoy this website and forums.
As long as your LP system does not have any leaks, it is a safely designed system, when used correctly. I would consider resetting the control board and opening the lp gas valve, setting the ref on auto mode. and not worry about it. Once the refrigerator finally dies then you can make a decision on a replacement.

[Rickochet]

Thanks Mike. I guess the first step is to try resetting the power board and see if the unit cools. I really find it strange though that I have used this unit the same way for nine years at two different locations and at the current location for 5 years and only has it kicked off three times this year.

Should I decide to go the inverter route I need to determine how many batteries to use. Do these types of refers have a "duty cycle?" I think it pulls 3A AC but does the AC heater stay on all the time or does it cycle like a compressor unit?

Thanks again for your reply and my compliments on a great website.

Rick

[Frank P. Martin]

Hi Rick:

I have a Norcold N841 that's about the same age as yours. I have to agree with RV Wizard when he says:

Quote:

As long as your LP system does not have any leaks, it is a safely designed system, when used correctly.

As I'm sure you already know, the design of the refrigerator is such that when in "Automatic" (AU) mode the unit will attempt to switch to propane anytime there is insufficient AC voltage for the refrigerator to operate safely and, once a proper AC voltage is achieved, switch back to AC again. I've experienced situations with my N841 where I had to switch it to propane only because the campground's electricity voltage fluctuated so badly that it constantly switched back and forth from electric to propane.

I see your point and agree that when running in AC only, the refrigerator should not shut down after a power interruption but merely restart itself. However, I don't think the engineering staff at Norcold is going to make any design changes anytime soon to a circuit board that's about a decade old and, probably, no longer made.

I think you should trust your propane system (Honestly, how often do you hear about RV fires caused by a problem in the propane system?) and run your refrigerator on the AU setting. With a fully charged battery and full propane tanks, it could run a long time if it had to.

I don't know how much you keep in your RV refrigerator when you're gone, but it might be cheaper simply to buy a small AC refrigerator to use when you're away (a 4+ cu/ft model is less than $150.00 in Sam's Club) and set it on the dinette table or floor. That's a lot less money and hassle than getting your Norcold to run off an inverter. The only problem I see is storing it somewhere when you're there. A bonus would be extra capacity and a backup if and when your Norcold goes kaput.

[RV Wizard]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rickochet Thanks Mike. I guess the first step is to try resetting the power board and see if the unit cools. I really find it strange though that I have used this unit the same way for nine years at two different locations and at the current location for 5 years and only has it kicked off three times this year. Should I decide to go the inverter route I need to determine how many batteries to use. Do these types of refers have a "duty cycle?" I think it pulls 3A AC but does the AC heater stay on all the time or does it cycle like a compressor unit? Thanks again for your reply and my compliments on a great website. Rick

Rick, to answer your questions; the heating element will cycle on and off to maintain the selected temperature. The heating element draws about 1.5 - 1.7 amps @120 vac. This means that the DC load would be about 10 times this and that is not counting the efficiency loss of the inverter itself or the small 12 volt load of the control board, and safety detectors already on the house battery bank.
The number of batteries will be determined by how long you will need to run the unit off 12 vdc. This will be determined by time period power is interrupted, ambient temperature and temperature setting. Be sure to not deplete battery bank more than 50% before recharging, so as to not compromise life of battery(s).

[Rickochet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frank P. Martin Hi Rick: I see your point and agree that when running in AC only, the refrigerator should not shut down after a power interruption but merely restart itself. However, I don't think the engineering staff at Norcold is going to make any design changes anytime soon to a circuit board that's about a decade old and, probably, no longer made.

Actually the board is still available from Norcold. Dinosaur Electronics also has a replacement board, but neither does anything different than the original board.

Quote:

I don't know how much you keep in your RV refrigerator when you're gone, but it might be cheaper simply to buy a small AC refrigerator to use when you're away (a 4+ cu/ft model is less than $150.00 in Sam's Club) and set it on the dinette table or floor. That's a lot less money and hassle than getting your Norcold to run off an inverter. The only problem I see is storing it somewhere when you're there. A bonus would be extra capacity and a backup if and when your Norcold goes kaput.

I actually have a small ac/dc chest refer I keep beverages in that we use in a pinch but it is a PITA to move food back and forth every weekend.

Thanks for the input Frank.

[Rickochet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RV Wizard Rick, to answer your questions; the heating element will cycle on and off to maintain the selected temperature. The heating element draws about 1.5 - 1.7 amps @120 vac. This means that the DC load would be about 10 times this and that is not counting the efficiency loss of the inverter itself or the small 12 volt load of the control board, and safety detectors already on the house battery bank. The number of batteries will be determined by how long you will need to run the unit off 12 vdc. This will be determined by time period power is interrupted, ambient temperature and temperature setting. Be sure to not deplete battery bank more than 50% before recharging, so as to not compromise life of battery(s).

Thanks for the info Mike. I am going to try to reset the power board next week. If it does not reset I will probably replace the Norcold with an AC unit and go the inverter route. With what little time we spend on the move an inverter and our genset should do just fine.

Rick

[Ray,IN]

Additional information from Recall Info:
Norcold has voluntarily recalled N841, N821, N641, N621 and 1082 gas/electric refrigerators built in 1999. Affected models have a cooling unit serial number (found on the solution chamber and viewed through the refrigerator vent door outside the RV) from 1038000-1099000.

[Rickochet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ray,IN Additional information from Recall Info: Norcold has voluntarily recalled N841, N821, N641, N621 and 1082 gas/electric refrigerators built in 1999. Affected models have a cooling unit serial number (found on the solution chamber and viewed through the refrigerator vent door outside the RV) from 1038000-1099000.

Thanks but my refer is not in that recall.