Norcold Model 1210 Cooling Fan Replacement and Modification

[Reflective]

I'm sure many of you may have experienced the issues of cooling fans that stop blowing on the fins inside the back of the Norcold Model 1210 like I have. They will overdraw on the 12V source and pop the 5A auto fuse on the circuit board in the lower access panel. You can replace the fuse and get it to work temporarily but then the fans will eventually cycle up and draw too much current again and blow the fuse.....yet again. If you look at the mounting bracket for the fans under the fins it is a direct fit to a 120mm cooling fan from a computer. So I swapped out the fans and now the Norcold has been running perfectly for a few days now without issue.

I also went back and wired in a third fan that attaches directly to the louvers on the upper plastic cover of that part of the Norcold on the outside of the trailer to do a better job of exhausting the hot air from within the refrigerator compartment of this 2020 Reflection 287RLTS.

The swap itself is actually pretty simple, you just open up the top plastic cover where your fridge is on the outside and then cut open the panel that is designed to keep the air drafting across the cooling fins so that you can gain access to the fans. Then, you simply wire in your new fans and attach them to the exact same place that you removed the old ones from and then you're all set. Then just tuck the wiring back inside the corrugated insulation piping and use a jumper wire on the thermo-resister on the cooling fins to make sure that they run properly before you close everything up. I used aluminum tape to re-seal the panel that I cut out from the board that ducts the airflow across the fins and everything closed up just fine.

[Redapple63]

Very interesting concept. Is it pulling air only on the sides through the grate. If so, seems like a very nice and simple solution. Pulling that extra little bit and then forcing it over there condensing coils. Nice

Bill

[Dakota]

My fans quit working and the fridge is basically useless. it’s still under warranty and it’s been over two months since I started emailing Norcold. Grand Design customer service has gotten involved and Norcold is still unresponsive. I’ve had enough. Looks like I’m going to have to try your solution. Can you tell me the manufacturer of the fans you bought? Thanks!

[Dawgfever]

Great post. I have the same model Notcold 1210 and have had a lot of issues lately so bad that I hung a 10” box fan on the outside to save the food and the trip. The two factory fans on the coils seemed not to be working. So I bought two fans to mount in the top vent but there was the same clearance issue between baffle and the cover. Not good.

So the next step was YouTube. I found how to clear error codes via front panel and Boom, fans running and 38F next day. However, I consider this a temporary fix. I want to cut out the baffle so I can get more air movement that I can control.

Question: what tool did you use to cut out the baffle and what kind of clearance is between the baffle and fins? Anything else hiding behind there such as wiring that I might cut through?

Thanks,

[Reflective]

My fans quit working and the fridge is basically useless. it’s still under warranty and it’s been over two months since I started emailing Norcold. Grand Design customer service has gotten involved and Norcold is still unresponsive. I’ve had enough. Looks like I’m going to have to try your solution. Can you tell me the manufacturer of the fans you bought? Thanks!

You can use a basic set of PC fans from Amazon, just make sure that it's a 2-wire 120mm fan because you only need a power and ground because you're not attaching it to a fan-speed controller like you would on a PC.

[Reflective]

Great post. I have the same model Notcold 1210 and have had a lot of issues lately so bad that I hung a 10” box fan on the outside to save the food and the trip. The two factory fans on the coils seemed not to be working. So I bought two fans to mount in the top vent but there was the same clearance issue between baffle and the cover. Not good.

So the next step was YouTube. I found how to clear error codes via front panel and Boom, fans running and 38F next day. However, I consider this a temporary fix. I want to cut out the baffle so I can get more air movement that I can control.

Question: what tool did you use to cut out the baffle and what kind of clearance is between the baffle and fins? Anything else hiding behind there such as wiring that I might cut through?

Thanks,

Fortunately, there isn't much in-between the baffles, and you can use your phone to peek into them from above to make sure that you won't have any issues. I used a sharp serrated knife to cut the baffles at the time because I was rushing to save the game-meats I acquired in Montana. Ideally, I would have used an oscillating blade and been more precise. Just make sure that you arrange your fans in a way that maximizes your air flow over the coils and out of the side vent. That's why I wired in 3 fans instead of the original 2, this way 2 fans draw air up from the bottom and push it up across both halves of the fins and the third exhausts it through the side cover on the rig using the aluminum-tape channel I made in the middle.

[Scott'n'Wendy]

Just fyi, there are hundreds of PC fan choices. Variations of fan speed and noise. Before ordering any fan, check it's cfm and noise rating. Fans are not created equal.
I have two 120mm 90cfm Enermax fans mounted right on the fins blowing out. You will hear them more than the factory fans.

[Bamaman]

I replaced my Atwood OEM refrigerator with a comparable Dometic.

Grand Design's baffle design that directed hot air out the top louvered side vent was poor. The entire cavity inside of the cabinetry was full of hot air. I just redesigned and installed a new baffle design to correct the deficiencies, and my fridge just works great. The fans look just like those in personal computers.