Fridge light switch

[The Logans]

Hi,

Does anyone know what kind of switch controls the light in the Norcold N811 fridge? Is it manual or magnetic, and where is it located?

I'm trying to test the new fridge fan, and I want to make sure that it's still on when the door is closed.

Thanks!

[Camper_bob]

Set your phone to record video, hit go, drop it in the fridge near the fan and close the door. Wait 10 seconds, open fridge and play back video.

I've done this for all sorts of things, and it works amazingly well as a second set of "eyes" when you can't be in two places at once.

[The Logans]

WOW, gives a whole new meaning for when someone calls and tells you to "chill"!

Thanks! :-)

[abarkl]

Here is the factory parts list showing the Interior Light and Thermister Assy on page 8;
http://www.thetford.com/wp-content/u...Parts-List.pdf

Does the light in a fridge stay on when the door is closed and how do you know? (just kidding)

I really like the idea of the phone video. Thanks for that!

[The Logans]

The fridge at home has a manual button the the door pushes when the door closes, but I don't see anything like that on the Norcold. I guess that it must be magnetic... perhaps if I run a magnet around the edge of the inside of the fridge, and see if the light I can test it that way. There are 4 possible wires in the light fixture that I can connect to, so I'm trying to narrow it down to which is the correct one to use.

[hoppers4]

It's magnetic. It may be located in the eyebrow, which is the strip between the freezer compartment and the fridge compartment, that controls the fridge. Just remember that your magnet is polarized. If you can't find it with your magnet, turn it over and that may work.

[The Logans]

Originally Posted by hoppers4

It's magnetic. It may be located in the eyebrow, which is the strip between the freezer compartment and the fridge compartment, that controls the fridge.

Thanks! I'll try running a magnet over the area... who thought that installing a fridge fan would be this difficult?

[The Logans]

OK... Gave up on this project. I can't find any power in the fridge that stays on when the door is shut. So, no fan for us.

What a waste of money that was.

[hoppers4]

Wait, hold your horses! Run the hot wire through the fridge drain. That's the way I have done it and others also. In fact I bought a Fridge-fix fan and that's the way the instructions tell you to wire it. The fridge cooling fins can be used for the return side. There's 12VDC feeding the fridge control board. The control board is behind the lower vent where the drain hose comes out.

[The Logans]

Originally Posted by hoppers4

Wait, hold your horses! Run the hot wire through the fridge drain. That's the way I have done it and others also. In fact I bought a Fridge-fix fan and that's the way the instructions tell you to wire it. The fridge cooling fins can be used for the return side. There's 12VDC feeding the fridge control board. The control board is behind the lower vent where the drain hose comes out.

Thanks!

Two questions...

What do I attach the hot wire to in the back of the fridge (don't want to damage the control board)?

And, does that mean that the LED lights on the fan just stay on all the time?

Thanks!

[hoppers4]

Tried to attach the Fridge-fix instructions but the file is too large. The instructions state to splice into the red wire that goes to the control board. Not the large high voltage wire, but the smaller wire that's right next to another wire going to the board. If you would like a copy of the instructions I'll have to email them to you. You can private message me with your email address if you'd like them.

Yes, the fan light will be on when the fan is running. LEDs don't generate enough heat to be a concern.

[Robbbyr]

I too have the Fridge Fix and love it. Like hoppers4 I too ran the power wire down the drain line into the rear exterior area. I made a slight modification here, I went to an auto parts store and purchased a plastic vacuum line "tee" and run the power wire out of the short leg of the tee letting the original drain line run down into the cup.

My Fridge Fix came with a wire "tap" that I used to tie into the main power wire leading to the fridge's power module. If I remember correctly the connection on the module was even marked "12-volt +", or something like that making it easy to identify the correct wire. And like mentioned earlier, the ground connection is a clip in the fridge that attached to the metal fins near the fan assembly.

My Fridge Fix fans and lights can be turned on and off on the Fridge Fix unit itself by a small toggle switch. Whenever I turn on fridge, I turn on the fan/lights. If I were to accidentally leave the Fridge Fix switch on, it will shut down anyway whenever I shut off my coach master power switch, that kills all the power going to the fridge anyway.

[hoppers4]

Originally Posted by Robbbyr

My Fridge Fix fans and lights can be turned on and off on the Fridge Fix unit itself by a small toggle switch. Whenever I turn on fridge, I turn on the fan/lights. If I were to accidentally leave the Fridge Fix switch on, it will shut down anyway whenever I shut off my coach master power switch, that kills all the power going to the fridge anyway.

You don't have to worry about accidentally leaving the Fridge Fix fan on as it's wired to the fridge control board. When you turn off the fridge the fan power goes with it . I don't bother with the switch on the Fridge Fix.

[The Logans]

Allrighty then,

I pulled off the outside access panel to the Norcold N811... There are only 3 red wires. One is a large (115v) red wire, and 2 are small 12v wires. The problem is, both of the small wires go to the exhaust stack, and I presume, are for the temperature sensor.

I just don't see any other hot wires to use.

Help!

[hoppers4]

Those two red wires you see should lead to the control board on the other end. If they disappear out of sight, I'm at a loss. Not trying to be a wise acre, but are sure you're looking at the back of the fridge and not the water heater?

[LI-Camper]

I bought a frig fan on Amazon that uses 1 D battery. It lasts about 3-4 months and has a switch to turn it off when not in use. I don't have the part number but a search on Amazon will find it.

[The Logans]

The manufacturer suggests that if the power wire would cause the drain tube to stop up, to drill a small hole from the back of the fridge, into the inside of the fridge, to one side or the other of the cooling fins.

Has anyone tried that?

[North of 49°]

Originally Posted by The Logans

The manufacturer suggests that if the power wire would cause the drain tube to stop up, to drill a small hole from the back of the fridge, into the inside of the fridge, to one side or the other of the cooling fins.

Has anyone tried that?

I did that on our old pop-up. A small hole in the plastic to run the wires, sealed up again with caulking when it was done. I measured many many times to make sure that I wasn't going to drill into any part of the cooling unit. A small computer fan and another larger one in the back to exhaust the heat, both wired to the same switch and into the 12 volt supply. Each fan drew less than half an amp.

On our hybrid, I wired just one fan into the power supply for the light switch, right before the switch itself, so it was on whenever the fridge was turned on. And it wasn't permanent, so I just removed it when the trailer was traded in.

I haven't done anything with our current trailer; the fridge cools just fine the way it is, IMHO.