Community Forums

jaminman · 07-10-2014, 04:53 PM

Got back from a trip last week and my Norcold 1200 worked fine. I turned it off when we got back and now it does not turn on. Even the inside light does not light up. Checked the 5amp fuse on the main MH board and it is fine. I did not check if there was power there though. Any suggestions? I had the recall done last year for the sensor I believe.

waroland · 07-10-2014, 05:00 PM

Sound like you are missing your 12 Volt power. Checked your disconnect switch?

jaminman · 07-10-2014, 05:01 PM

Which disconnect switch? I have power to everywhere else in the coach

vsheetz · 07-10-2014, 05:56 PM

Agree, sounds like 12v power missing. Fuse, etc. maybe.

Mine also has two 120 AC plugs into an outlet behind the unit. One is the ice maker the other the refrigerator.

Heber Eason · 07-10-2014, 06:14 PM

Check to see if the red light is on the recall feature added behind the ref.. You will see this addition from the outside door behind the ref.. I had three recalls and finally added more fans to decrease the heat which was the problem from the beginning.

jaminman · 07-11-2014, 10:38 AM

Ok, the recall that was put in, the light is not lit? I checked the main panel fuse and there is power, I checked the power going into the new sensor that they put on as a part of the recall and there is power going in, but not going out. The red wire is hot, but the blue wire has no power. The DC 12volt out has no power. That would explain why the light is not lit, any suggestions? Peter

jaminman · 07-11-2014, 12:14 PM

Ok update here. I rechecked the power coming in (red) through the recall part and the power going out (blue) and there is power on both sides. No lights when you open up the fridge door either, where is the fuse on the board located? Peter

jimmyt · 07-11-2014, 05:31 PM

Take a 20 amp fuse put blue wire on one leg of fuse put red wire on the other leg of fuse.if ref. works. The recall temp sensor is bad. I had to do this for three weeks.

jaminman · 07-11-2014, 08:38 PM

Thanks for the info Jimmyt. The light was not on with the black box they installed, and after I checked the fuse on the main board (what a job getting to it) the fuse was ok. For some reason the light came on in front of the black box but still no power on the 12volt of the fridge. I got a magnet and held it to the black box for about 30 seconds and the power came back on. Apparently that is the fix, it does a reset. Is this still a problem with the recall box? Should I disconnect it. Did not have any problems until they installed this box, Peter

Dr4Film · 07-11-2014, 08:48 PM

You have just been "bitten" by the most ridiculous joke of a recall for the biggest POS RV fridge ever built.

If it were me, I would remove the Norcold Black Box and install THIS device which is a FAR better device to have on the Norcold than anything that Norcold could ever dream up.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

hes4all · 07-11-2014, 11:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dr4Film

You have just been "bitten" by the most ridiculous joke of a recall for the biggest POS RV fridge ever built.

If it were me, I would remove the Norcold Black Box and install THIS device which is a FAR better device to have on the Norcold than anything that Norcold could ever dream up.

Dr4Film ----- Richard

I would have to agree with Dr. 4 Film on this. The ARP rv is a awesome product and puts the Norcold black box to shame.

And just for to share. There is a older couple that my wife and I have adopted as parents. They are wonderful people and we vacation when them often.

Got a call from them yesterday and they said the fridge wasn't cold (they live is there RV, 2005 Dutch Star) went over to look at the Norcold 1200 unit and the ammonia smell cleared out my nose in a second.

They keep trying to turn it on, first on LP then electric over and over. They had it on electric for the past few years.

Now I have a question for those of you that are smarter than me?
Isn't the recall black box supposed to cut the power to the control panel?

I thought it was suppose too. It had power the whole time they were trying to turn it on. Black box never cut the power.

I am just glad that it didn't catch fire. All of their belongings are in the coach and she is on oxygen and has several bottles in the coach.

We will pull the unit out tomorrow and go from there!

Muddypaws · 07-12-2014, 12:28 AM

The sensor attached to the black box detects excess heat. Apparently there wasn't enough heat to trip it, or combust. Seems that not every leak causes a fire. Good news and lucky for them.

Heber Eason · 07-12-2014, 08:58 AM

Now that you have power, check you two fans that were factory installed and be sure they are running. After three recalls, I finally asked the tech. if they were sure the fans were working properly and was told yes. I found one of the fans was not working and this was why the back box was cutting the freg. off . The recall only protects Norcold and does not resolve the real problem of improper cooling. I added two fans to the top coil,two new fans to the middle coil and one fan at the bottom of the ref to push the air upward. I also added two small fans inside the ref. I have ALL the fans on switches and control them based on need of cooling.I also added additional insulation 0n the top and sides of the ref.. I put temp. guages in the freezer and ref. I keep the freezer at zero and 32 F in the ref. It may stop working today, but it has worked well for
more than two years.

Muddypaws · 07-12-2014, 09:30 AM

I wonder if anybody has added a removable panel outside to allow for easier access to the fans and the back of the refer?

Clearly the RV industry is not thinking of 'ease of service' when they throw things together. They'll put an access door on the side with a TV or a kitchen in it, why not the same kind of door behind the refer? That might be a good idea for residential refers as well.

I've built hundreds of custom computers and have never had a 'name brand' fan fail. I wonder where Norcold gets them? Cheapest supplier no doubt.