Norcold Refr problem

[bearpawpa]

I have a 4 door Norcold refrigerater....I have had more than my share of problems with it, replaced all circuit boards last year and last month had the cooling unit replaced. Now it's in the shop again $#@!%^
It failed to start, I got a code of no co, I called the dealer from a trip to Northern Calif. and was told it means NO COLD, which means the unit is not working and locked out to not start.........Now this is what the service dept said today, You have 2 tries to start the refrig and if they fail it goes to a lock out mode and only a dealer can reset it. Thats sounds like a rip off to me.
Has anyone out there experienced or know about this ?

I'm losing my faith in my RV service dept...They charge $120 per hr, is this the norm ?

Sorry, but I had to vent!!!

Bearpawpa

[RV Wizard]

First off, how old is the refrigerator? Do you have a Surge Guard or similar electrical protection for the coach? Do you keep it plugged in or run it on LP gas mode most of the time? What was the reason of the failures in the past? Let us know so we might be more helpful. $120 is not out of the ordinary but for that kind of money the facility should be well trained and repairs should be done right the first time. If the control board goes into a lockout it is true that a qualified person can reset it. This again can only be done s few times before the board will no longer reset and replacement would be necessary. The root of the problem should be found as to why it does not begin to cool properly before giving another NO CO error code.

[Gary RVRoamer]

The NoCo lock-out is to prevent the possibility of fire if the the cooling unit is running on LP but the fridge is not getting cold. That's why it takes a tech to reset it after the first time or two. Resetting it isn't difficult, but you have to find and fix the problem for it to do any good.

From what I am told, you can trigger a NoCo by running in LP mode with no propane available (tank goes empty or valve is shut off). Apparently the board is not smart enough to realize the burner is no longer lit.

[bearpawpa]

Thank you for your replies to my post, the service dept. said I had a low voltage error reading and maybe my converter is bad ?, after I told them I have all new batteries installed 3 months ago and I allways keep a check on the amp's on the master board....they said they cleared the error message and it started and ran for about 8 hrs then quit again. Im waiting for a call from the service deptment as I write.
I just hope they find the problem...it gets expensive eating out when traveling.

Bearpawpa, 2001 36A Itasca

[Gary RVRoamer]

As I understand the Norcold 1201 service manual, a low voltage error is a separate trouble code from NoCo and low voltage will not cause the NoCo lock out. It is fairly simple to determine if your battteries are still good and if the converter is charging them - no more than 20 minutes work for a competent tech.

[RV Wizard]

The repair facility needs to find the problem as to why it is not cooling or if it is why the control board thinks it is not cooling. If they continue to reset the board, it will only reset three times and then a new board would be needed. I would let them know that if they cannot find the problem before the last reset and they allow it to fail with a "NO CO" and it cannot be reset; THEY buy the replacement control board.

[JC2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by RV Wizard The repair facility needs to find the problem as to why it is not cooling or if it is why the control board thinks it is not cooling. If they continue to reset the board, it will only reset three times and then a new board would be needed. I would let them know that if they cannot find the problem before the last reset and they allow it to fail with a "NO CO" and it cannot be reset; THEY buy the replacement control board.