Refrigerator cooling fans

sundancer 87 · 05-25-2014, 12:47 AM

I have seen the fan switch located on the evaporator fins on my Norcold 12xx series box. I think I heard the fans run one time when I first started the refrigerator but that was last year.

However, in over a year of full time living in the rig I can't recall ever hearing them come on again. I may have mistaken the converter cooling fan operating for what I thought was the refrigerator fan(s).

The question is, do we have cooling fans under the refrigerator? I have the fan switch with wires but I haven't seen or heard any evidence that a fan is present. I think I've seen an exploded view of these refrigerators with two muffin fans located beneath the refrigerator.

Either the switch or fan is bad or not present or the evaporator hasn't been hot enough (even with high ambient temperatures) to need cooling.

Any input on this topic from you guys or gals?

Fanboy · 05-25-2014, 01:28 AM

Lol. I was getting to leave on current trip. I know I heard fans. I am going to take look at it soon.

arlan in arizona · 05-25-2014, 02:25 AM

Sundancer.

Your referigator is not in a slide therefore you will not have cooling fans. I believe your unit has a roof vent.

sundancer 87 · 05-25-2014, 12:56 PM

I was thinking that was the case so they must automatically stick the fan switch and wires to all the refrigerators, not knowing if it fits in a slide or not.

Do they put the four door in a slide?

Rig has a roof vent, that's how I saw the fan switch when I was replacing it.

Also, the open space above the refrigerator that makes the channel for the roof vent is poorly made and does require a real tape job as it is about as bad as the A/C duct work.

sundancer 87 · 08-08-2014, 01:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arlan in arizona

Sundancer.

Your referigator is not in a slide therefore you will not have cooling fans. I believe your unit has a roof vent.

Mystery solved! I do have refrigerator fan(s), I do!

Due to diagnostic processes I've been running the refrigerator on propane and indeed the fan or fans come on, runs for an amount of time and then shut down.

Never heard them after the first time because I've been using electricty to cool the thing.

DesertRat · 08-08-2014, 03:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sundancer 87

Do they put the four door in a slide?

Yes I have a 4-door Norcold in a slide on my V3605

sundancer 87 · 08-08-2014, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DesertRat

Yes I have a 4-door Norcold in a slide on my V3605

I was just about ready to order a residential to replace the 1210 Norcold but I decided to do some diagnostics first. I'm sure I have discovered the problem, a 20 dollar part that could and is probably missed many times and therefore causing an owner to replace the refrigerator or the absorption unit.

Camper2b · 08-08-2014, 07:39 PM

To my knowledge, ALL 1200 series have these fans. They work on electric, or gas whenever the a certain temperature is reached. Can't tell you what the temp may be, the button thermostat opens as shown in picture activating the fans. If you don't have these fans, or they're not working.... YOU have a problem!

You may, or may not hear them run. I could hear mine. If the temp sensor fails it can and will overheat .... thus activating the high limit switch installed as a fix all.. yea right shutting your unit down decreasing the chance of fire ... NOT eliminating it. Most fires to my knowledge are caused by cooling unit failures.

sundancer 87 · 08-08-2014, 08:05 PM

Thanks for the photos Slim. I didn't start hearing the fan(s) until I switched over to gas yesterday during the diagnosis, never heard them on electric for nearly the whole year.

Aha, just went out there and contorted myself like a dog scratching fleas and looked up there and there they are. So, slide out or not, a 1210 has them.

Camper2b · 08-08-2014, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sundancer 87

Thanks for the photos Slim. I didn't start hearing the fan(s) until I switched over to gas yesterday during the diagnosis, never heard them on electric for nearly the whole year.

Aha, just went out there and contorted myself like a dog scratching fleas and looked up there and there they are. So, slide out or not, a 1210 has them.

They are more likely to run in gas mode as more heat is created than when in electric mode. (heating elements).

sawpilot · 08-08-2014, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Camper2b

They are more likely to run in gas mode as more heat is created than when in electric mode. (heating elements).

ANNNNND.... if your fans seem to run all the time like mine did... you might check the vents on the outside of the coach, lower and upper. Annnnd, you might find that the mentally impaired painters at Dutchmen forgot to remove the tape they used to cover the inside of the vent while doing the full body paint. Is there really ANYTHING that they do well at Dutchmen?

Camper2b · 08-08-2014, 09:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sawpilot

ANNNNND.... if your fans seem to run all the time like mine did... you might check the vents on the outside of the coach, lower and upper. Annnnd, you might find that the mentally impaired painters at Dutchmen forgot to remove the tape they used to cover the inside of the vent while doing the full body paint. Is there really ANYTHING that they do well at Dutchmen?

WHAAAT! No Way. ?.

sawpilot · 08-08-2014, 09:58 PM

WAY!!! The fans ran all the time. When it was in for all the slide work I mentioned it to the tech's and they found the upper vent was still covered with tape on the inside. All the heat was being trapped inside the fridge compartment. I've said it before.... NEVER AGAIN!!!

eightydo · 08-08-2014, 10:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sawpilot

ANNNNND.... if your fans seem to run all the time like mine did... you might check the vents on the outside of the coach, lower and upper. Annnnd, you might find that the mentally impaired painters at Dutchmen forgot to remove the tape they used to cover the inside of the vent while doing the full body paint. Is there really ANYTHING that they do well at Dutchmen?

They are consistent at being poor workmen. IE: good at poor workmanship

Grdrod1 · 01-19-2020, 03:03 PM

I have a Norcold 1210. I have 2015 and the frig has never really worked right. I have had the cooling unit replaced. worked great for a while, and after a little over a year it is not cooling again. I think that they are a piece of crap and I am looking into replacing it with a residential frig. I have checked everything I can think of and think it might be a clog in the coil. Any thoughts???

dsol · 01-19-2020, 03:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grdrod1

I have a Norcold 1210. I have 2015 and the frig has never really worked right. I have had the cooling unit replaced. worked great for a while, and after a little over a year it is not cooling again. I think that they are a piece of crap and I am looking into replacing it with a residential frig. I have checked everything I can think of and think it might be a clog in the coil. Any thoughts???

I have not been a big fan of this fridge either. I love the larger size versus my last two much smaller, less fancy but non-problematic Dometics in my prior trailers but those never had issues.

One thing I have found I have to do is make sure the fridge is turned on and fully cooled down before putting anything into it. I usually plug in my trailer at home the day before I leave and let it run the fridge overnight (this also tops off the batteries too as a bonus). You don’t need more than a few amps so a lightweight extension cord works fine for this. I then load food in the fridge in the morning before we leave for a trip and make sure all food is already cold. I use my home fridge to keep everything cold before I load. Also, do not overload the RV fridge. Ensure there is good airflow between the fins on the top and bottom drawers.

Lastly, I have found that no matter what my fridge heats up during the day while in use. The hotter the days the more heat gain I notice. (I use a dual thermometer for the freezer and fridge that wirelessly sends to a receiver that I keep and watch it all day.

It also seems to me that on my longer camping trips the fridge seems to perform better after the first few days. I think it is likely because contents start to disappear from inside as we eat and drink but maybe it just does better after 48 hours or so of running.

Oh and one more thing. Keep in mind RV fridges just don’t work as well as residential fridges so do your best to minimize opening the doors—especially during the day when it is warmer. If you think about it the most use comes during the day when the entire family is in and out of the fridge all day and it is the warmest. A residential fridge runs on 110 volts and has a big compressor that draws quite a bit of power. Your RV fridge uses very little power when on 12 volts and even less when on propane. Obviously, if you switch to a residential fridge you will lose the ability to dry camp for any extended periods unless you run a generator or invest heavily in batteries and inverters. I am sure you can decide on your own if that is worth it.

Good luck.

You may also like: