The Norcold Fridge in my 2021 224BH seems to not be cooling. The freezer is working but the fridge seems to be only at ambient.
In my investigations I have tested the thermistor and it came back ok, and re positioned it at the top of the cooling fins, reset the control module and checked everything is clean, clear and attached.
My final check was the roof vent until I discover, my trailer doesn't have one! It has a framed hole in the roof but the roof covering has been laid over the top.
My unit only has one vent (which I don't think is enough) on the side of the trailer and I would have assumed there was a roof vent? I am wondering if the lack of this is enough to stop the fridge working efficiently, especially in Southern California.
Does anyone else have a unit without a roof vent? My only thought is to add a cooling fan to the side vent but I was expecting the unit (which is 2 months old) to be able to handle it.
Looking forward to hearing anyone's thoughts on this, thanks!
No venting for fridge? I would think that is a major no no. You should download the manufacturer's installation manual and see what is required for ventilation.
I attached a troubleshooting guide. Look over the fridge section for some tips.
Thermal, been through there many times going to Glamis before they put in the expressway.
__________________
Jim
Retired electronic technician (45 years in the field)
2017 Greyhawk 29W (solar & many other mods)
wife (maybe I should have given her top billing)
My final check was the roof vent until I discover, my trailer doesn't have one! It has a framed hole in the roof but the roof covering has been laid over the top.
Back to the dealer ASAP if not sooner if it is gas/electric...
The fridge is a standard 110v/Propane unit. It has a 12v supply but only for the propane ignition/control board.
My unit doesn't have a slide, and the fridge/kitchen is located on the nearside of the unit. I will take a photo of the roof which clearly shows a frame around a covered hole in the roof. Curious to see if anyone else has this?
I fear my camper was the "Friday afternoon" build!
Sounds like Jayco really dropped the ball on this one.
Yes, vents high and low are necessary. Cooler air enters the bottom vent and is heated by the coils near the top of the fridge and convection and on some units a fan moves the warmer air up and out the top vent. In your case the warm air has no place to go so the refrigeration suffers.
Short term you might get by putting a small room fan blowing up on one side of the lower vent. That might get enough circulation to get some cooling. Haven’t tried this, just thinking out loud.
Adding the roof vent should be pretty easy since it sounds like the roof hole is there, just covered by the roof membrane. The question is can you get a dealer or mobile tech to do this on warranty (or paid) or do you want to tackle it yourself?
If you tackle this yourself I strongly suggest you track down owner’s and service manuals. There may be a baffle required that didn’t get installed.
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2013 F-350 CC SB 2WD 6.7PS
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With the absorption fridges its all about air flow and ensuring the unit is level front/back, side/side. On previous trailer the Norcold was great and didn't have to be perfectly level. On the current Norcold in the Greyhawk just doesn't cool as well. Freezer works great, but the fridge is never great. I've added some PC 12v fans to the fridge metal cooling blades (just connected to the fridge light which is always on for my model) and I have a 120v 3-4" fan I plug into the same 120v outlet the fridge plugs into pushing air over coils. I can access the back where the plug is from outside the RV and opening the cover on the side wall.
It initially took the Greyhawk fridge 12-24hrs for fridge to get to reasonable temp, but with the fans it usually good in 6 hours now (using 120v). The Norcold in the old trailer would be always be good in 12hrs. Freezer is usually frozen before fridge is at a cool temp as well.
I haven't spent much any time trying to figure it out, but it cools better on propane vs 120v. Perhaps heat causes better/more air flow over coils.
So quick recap;
1) is it level?
2) has been on at least 12hrs? maybe wait 24 if this is the first time testing
3) tried propane?
I would suspect production forgot the roof vent if your fridge is in fact a 110/Propane. I've had good luck with the Norcold 2-ways. In fact, we got rid of our 12V to go back to the Norcold 2-way. But I agree, you either have the roof vent or double vents on the side for airflow.
I would suspect production forgot the roof vent if your fridge is in fact a 110/Propane. I've had good luck with the Norcold 2-ways. In fact, we got rid of our 12V to go back to the Norcold 2-way. But I agree, you either have the roof vent or double vents on the side for airflow.
When you mentioned getting rid of your 12v are you talking about a 12v compressor refrigerator? If so, why did you get rid of it?
I had similar issues with our old JayFeather and ended up installing a frig vent fan and a new Dinosaur control board.
Do check out the troubleshooting videos on My RV Works - Darren is super thorough and breaks down complex issues into step-by-step logical troubleshooting. I have resolved many issues over the years referencing his videos.
It probably wouldn't hurt to look up a brochure of that model to have a look at the roof layout which would show a roof vent if it was supposed to be there.
I have a 2021 (June 2020) Jayflight 29rks with the Norcold Gas / Elect Refrigerator. It has a roof vent. The cover over it is about 12” X 24” inches rough dimension. If your RV is a 2021 it is still under warranty, take it back to the dealer. If you try to fix it on your own you can void Jayco’s warrenty. You should be able to pull up another dealers model like yours that would show the roof. If you plan on keeping the RV for a while take out the Norcold extended warrenty. RV fridges are expensive to fix or replace.
Redhorse 1 ,,are you trying to say a Jayco Dumbazz assembly line worker did not do thier job ? YES,,,you are 100% correct. All Jayco factory workers should have to spend a weekend with thier family with 95 degree temps in one of the units they help build to keep thier jobs. I bet you we would see better units being built. I forgot to mention the campground should be at the end of 25 mile long pot hole filled dirt road.