2020 311BHS Norcold 1210 Fridge warm, freezer cold.

[larry0071]

It is a Norcold 2110T, SN NR00NUZ
About 5 weeks ago I turned off the fridge for a week (it was empty), turned back on and this is what I have now. Since turning it off, propping doors open and resting it a week, the fridge portion will not get down and stay down where it has held for 2.5 years even on the hottest days.

I have unplugged the thermister inside the fridge for 24 hours to forc, no change.
I have swapped to AC only for a week, no change.
I have added a pair of 44mm fans to the inside of the upper slide vent for the fridge, facing out. I cut 4"x4" holes in the wood panel to allow them to suck air and blow it out. No change.
I had a mobile tech come look at it today, he said that he see's nothing obvious, may be the cooling unit.
This is a unit that does not travel and sits at a seasonal site all year since new, always level.
There is no yellow residue or any indication of leakage.

I do run freezer and fridge remote thermometers connected to a display that I have mounted above the microwave, I have had that for 2 years now. It records min, max and current. I have never had an issue with the fridge or freezer, typically in the 8-15 degrees in the freezer, and 33-36 degrees in the fridge. For the last month I am seeing 40 at night in the fridge and 55-62 degrees in the days. Near Pittsburgh, so hottest we see is around 90 degrees. Even on a 70 degree day we are climbing into the mid 50's.

I went into diagnostic mode to read the thermister temp, I typically see around 36-38 degrees on the thermister read out (Diagnostic menu option 3).
I have went to diagnostic mode 6, no codes showing. I have reset the microprocessor from within the diagnostic mode. Powered off, powered back on and get no changes.
I have run straight LP and run straight AC for days on end without opening the fridge, no change.

I am at wits end. Am I missing anything that would allow the freezer to work, but not the fridge? I would think that if the cooling unit was blocked, that the freezer would also not function?
The mobile tech said that he is tapping out, he does not pull fridges out and replace cooling units, told me to drop with a dealer for a few months for that or replace it myself.

I am also starting to consider pulling it myself and swapping on an Amish Cooling unit from JC Refrigeration in Indiana https://jc-refrigeration.com/

If anyone has some good ideas, I am game to hear it. A 3rd season fridge should not be dead. I am a bit surprised that this thing worked great and then does not.

Oh, just got off the phone with Norcold, the cooling unit for my SN NR00NUZ is now obsolete and Norcold has no old stock left, they consider it unrepairable, replace the entire unit. That swings me back towards the JC Refrigeration Amish Cooling Unit.

[Hoopy Frood]

Were you running it on propane before you shut it down, or electric?
Are you now running it on propane or electric?

I would certainly be looking at going the compression cooling unit, rather than spending big bucks on a replacement absorption unit, if the price discrepancy is large enough. Going 12V compression may mean taking a hard look at the battery/ies you have.

[Always Learning]

Check with Rob the moderator about this problem. He has a reboot procedure that stirs up the ammonia in the pipes. Something about beating the coils with a rubber mallet, ask him. As I recall if one of these fridges sit and doesn’t move there can be problems with the flow of the ammonia.

[Second Chance]

Check with Rob the moderator about this problem. He has a reboot procedure that stirs up the ammonia in the pipes. Something about beating the coils with a rubber mallet, ask him. As I recall if one of these fridges sit and doesn’t move there can be problems with the flow of the ammonia.

Thread moved to Appliances.

Here's what I posted some years back - hope it can be of some help.

Our absorption fridge quit cooling last winter (had been in one site without moving for a couple of months). I called our trusted RV tech for advice... I posted the following after that experience:

RV techs call it a "refrigerator reboot."

When your absorption fridge quits cooling (cooling unit less than two years old) and an experienced RV technician tells you to do a "fridge reboot," listen to him/her. Late last week and over the weekend our Norcold 1210 fridge started not maintaining proper temperatures. I tracked it with a fridge/freezer thermometer and my infrared thermometer and got an ever-tightening knot in my gut. First thing Monday morning I contacted our favorite technician here in Las Cruces, NM, Richard's RV Service, fearing the worst. He asked the following questions:

• Is it the same on AC and propane? Answer: Yes.
• Did the problem come on suddenly - like flipping a switch? Answer: No.
• Did you smell ammonia? Answer: No.
• Do you see any yellow residue around the boiler, coils, or any of the other tubing on the cooling unit? Answer: No.
• Do you hear the cooling fans in the back cycling on and off? Answer: I haven't noticed them like I usually do - but the weather has been cooler.

Richard's instructions: Turn the fridge off for at least five hours and let everything get down to ambient temperature in the back. Using a rubber mallet, periodically tap on all the pipes, tubes, and other refrigerant conduits I can reach, both while it's cooling down and after it's completely cooled. This process took until about 2:00 Monday afternoon. I then turned the fridge back on and continued to do the "rubber mallet frappage" periodically while the fridge was warming up/cooling down. I turned the fridge back on mid-afternoon and by the time we went to bed Monday evening, both the fridge and the freezer were getting back down in normal ranges and the infrared readings on the fridge fins and the back walls of the freezer compartments were very good.

I kept a log and updated Richard a couple of times on Tuesday and he dropped by yesterday (Wednesday) to check. His diagnosis... an air bubble or chemical membrane in the refrigerant system. He said, "Congratulations!" and pronounced the fridge healthy. We both think the issue occurred because our RV hasn't been moved since we pulled onto this site on 10 November and the jostling an absorption refrigerator gets bouncing down the road helps keep the refrigerant stirred up and moving.

Rob

[pnoetzel]

FYI
I had my norcold 1210 declared dead on 3/14/24 paid a technician 239.00 to tell me that everything was working correctly, he checked all aspects of voltage and switches.
Parts, an entire cooling unit are not available from norcold because they declared this 2 year old fridge discontinued, obsolete.
I tried this method after 3days, and it came back to life!!!
Actually working too well as we are now out of Arizona heading north. I had to turn it down to 3 fridge was 29 freezer 0 degrees.
My dealer found a complete “cooling unit” for 3,200.00 installed.
I don’t know if I can trust this fridge again.
Any suggestions????
Thanks

[Second Chance]

... Any suggestions????
Thanks

JC Refrigeration:

https://jc-refrigeration.com/

They do 12VDC (my preference) and 120VAC compressor conversions for the Norcold fridges. They are excellent units and many members on the forum are very happy with their conversions.

Rob