AH - so you say your RV refrigerator is bad eh?

[Gary - K7GLD]

WELL, so was mine...



The older,'88 Winnebago we just bought was in great shape - at least all we could see and realistically verify on inspection - the refrigerator was represented as in "good condition", and since all the other seller representations seem truthful, we accepted his word on the refrigerator as well. And indeed, the 2 first outing with it, showed it DID work, just not well. and there was the odor of ammonia inside after the doors had been closed for a while.



All other functions of the unit seemed fine - the box is a 3-way, 110,12 volt, and gas - and all the physical interior and exterior were fine as well - so what to do?



Our MH, a very clean 27 footer, was in otherwise great shape, but guys with similar older units needing a refrigerator, maybe new tires, and a few other high $$$ items or repairs, might think twice about refrigerator replacement - so what are the options?



No decent RV service outfits within 150 miles or so of here - so the choice seemed to be either pay about $1500 for a complete replacement unit - or else about $500 for just a rebuilt freezer section alone - and replace it myself.



I took the cheaper way out, I'm retired, so my time is pretty cheap! :-laf



This is not a pictorial "how to", just a simple example of what I did, the results, and impressions now that it's all over. Actual detailed replacement instructions can be viewed over on the website where I bought our specific Norcold 8683 unit:



Changing a Cooling Unit - Norcold Instructions



Here's the pulled, tired and leaking unit - note the upper section where the actual freezing/cooling coils are - they are embedded inside a 4 inch block of Styrofoam type material, and all that is installed into a matching cavity in the refrigerator back wall:



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This pic shows the culprit leakage area - in the lower cooling section coils



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Once replaced, here's a couple of shots of the repaired and reassembled box:



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Once reinstalled into the MH:



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Good-as - or better than - new. I made a few minor mods intended to enhance the overall cooling efficiency and heat transfer of the unit - it really seems to cool exceptionally well, and quickly, for this type of unit. The $1000 savings was easy to take, as well!



What did I learn - would I do it again, or recommend others to do what I did?



UMMmmmmm - maybe...



A 20 year old box like this, that sees lots of weather extremes, plus very corrosive operating conditions, CAN create very challenging conditions where removal of old hardware is concerned. Fortunately, I have LOTS of tools - quite a few of the out-of-the-ordinary sort used in other past unusual operations - and those were certainly required in this instance - extra long drill bits for DEEPLY recessed screw holes to secure the new unit - sheetmetal "nibbler", to make the OEM heat shield fit the modified/rebuilt new one properly - a die grinder, to grind heads off mounting screws and bolts that would NOT remove otherwise - and a Dremel tool for the same usage.



This (in my case, and on THIS unit!) is NOT a simple hammer, pliers, and screwdriver job, or one for the undedicated and/or non-mechanically inclined. This replacement , with all the associated cleanup and minor maintenance out in the cavity on the MH where the refrigerator lives, as well as the required cleanup, minor adaption and installation of the rebuilt unit, all consumed 2 days of relatively leisurely work - and all of one half of our 2-car garage - plus occasional help from my wife to turn the box over for various steps in the job, and the help of my brother in law removing and reinstalling the box in the MH.



Would I do it again? Perhaps - but not with great enthusiasm - nor would I recommend others to try it, unless they had the time, tools, and dedication/motivation to tackle what is a time consuming and sometimes challenging job...



YMMV!

 

[AClayton]

I would do the job for myself to save money as you did but,it is too much labor at standard RV charge rates to justify the expense of a head unit and its install. That is a huge undertaking but saving a $1000 bucks helps to remedy the anxiety. Good job!!



Alan

 

[HBarlow]

You deserve a pat on the back for that one, Gary. I've never heard of anyone doing that in all the years I've owned and used RVs. I've thrown away several refrigerators newer than the one you repaired.

Truth is I didn't even know they could be repaired.

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

You deserve a pat on the back for that one, Gary. I've never heard of anyone doing that in all the years I've owned and used RVs. I've thrown away several refrigerators newer than the one you repaired.



Truth is I didn't even know they could be repaired.

Thanks Harvey and Alan - it was as much a chore as I had expected, due mostly to the age of the unit and difficuly in getting some mounting hardware removed without major destruction of the parts I needed for reassembly - but that's undoubtedly pretty typical failure time for these. The Dometic in our Kit 5er is the same age - and so far, has always worked perfectly, but who knows, and that trailer is only worth about $2k on the market, making the decision to do repairs/replacements of this type a harder call. You really have to LIKE a specific $2k rig to invest so high a percentage of it's value back into it - I figured the MH was worth it, less sure about the 5er if that issue surfaced.



ANYWAY, figured that some in this forum might one day face the same situation - and what I put up here might help a bit along that line...



VIVA TDR! :-laf

 

[JNailor]

My fridge went bad when the Airstream was 9 years old. I also replaced the cooling unit myself. It was quite an easy job except prying the old one out. I think they install the piping and then foam it in place as it was kind of "keyed in place" in the box. The new one just fell into the hole. The RV store guy thought I was nuts for fixing it, but once I got it apart and realized that the new unit was 95% of a new fridge I was happy to have saved all the money. It's still working to this day.



Dana

 

[SRath]

For many, many years our old '83 MH fridge worked extremely well. You had to actually turn it down to keep from freezing items in the fridge compartment. During the motocross season, roughly May through October around here, we used the MH every weekend. Once at home, I would simply switch the fridge over to a/c and leave the contents in it. For years, this worked fine. It would run continuously from May to october.

Then one day two years ago, it quit working. No ammonia smell. Just dead. Gas went to $4 per gallon and we could no longer afford to travel to races and we quit after 10 years. The MH sat unused all last year. We just got done using it for a great vacation this summer covering 3600 miles.

I had ordered a new cooling unit and my uncle, who we were going to travel with, removed the fridge and the cooling unit from it awaiting the new one. UPS delivered it in pristine condition. The seller had asked if my model had the large or small burners, which this one model could have either. I told him which style. He sent the wrong one anyway and we were just two days from departure. No way to get the correct one in time.

So a small a/c fridge, bigger than dorm size but smaller than home size, and nearly the same size as the camper's, was purchased along with a 1500 watt inverter. Combined with our generac, it got the job done. Now I am faced with the decision of whether to re-order the correct cooling unit or not. I plan to sell the MH and buy a pickup camper. Though it is a very good camper (the fridge is the ONLY thing that does not work), it's age will mean a very low sale price. So low, I am tempted to remove the generator which I purchased only a few years ago and has very low hours.

The question is: Will spending the $500 necessary to fix the fridge result in a $500 better price for the MH? Or make it easier to sell? I doubt it.

When my uncle removed and disassembled the old fridge (while I was at work), the small copper capillary tube for the thermostat broke. It was thin and corroded where it passed through the foam insulation. A new one is about $75 in addition to the cooling unit. There is also the question of whether I can figure out how to re-assemble the fridge since I did not disassemble it. The cooling unit is not tough to figure out, but the burner and chimney assembly looks like a box of erector set parts now. My uncle is long gone still traveling the country.

On the other hand, I have little use for a MH without a working fridge. If it does not sell, I will probably use it from time to time, though not very much. It is hard to spend $500 on something that will likely not be used, at least the rest of this year, and that I want to simply sell.

Decisions, decisions...

I'm glad you got your old fridge working again, Gary. You have brought mine's problem back to mind and I do need to do something.

 

[Bob Cochran]

In my 2001 5er had a leaking cooling unit and replaced 2 times. On the 3rd time the extended warranty people did not want to pay for it. I don't normally buy extended warranty as I don't believe you will ever get the money back however I did on this one. Anyways after arguing with them I cut a deal. They give me the money they would pay for a new cooling unit and installation and labor and I would never call them again for a refrigerator problem. What I did was use that money and added to it for a new refrigerator. the one with cooling unit leaks was a Dometic and I bought a Norcold. So basically got the Norcold for half price!!!

My RV repair place I use up here is so honest and fair it is like you wish all places would operate. Anyway he felt depending on age mostly you had to consider newer units was probably more efficient, etc, etc, making replacement worthwhile. I had just lost faith in the Dometic so went with Norcold. My RV guy said it seems for a few years Dometic seems to have not problems then it reverses to Norcold!!! I never did figure out why so many cooling unit problems.

On this Norcold so far the only problem I had was it got and air bubble in it and stopped working. Don't know why this happened just after a tow and should not have. Yep took out and turned upside down for awhile the righted it and installed and started working again. Hope it don't make a habit of this though.

Changing cooling unit is a pain more than anything else not so hard just time consuming(labor). You sure can save monewyh if done by yourself. Years ago and I mean YEARS I knew a guy that repaired them for hardly anything cost wise if you took out and delivered to him. Doubt there is anyone that does that anymore and it is to bad. These refrigerators are so simple except today with the modern electronics there is really no reason they should not work for a long long time with no trouble.

I had a old Dometic in a 1964 Shasta was my Dads no electronics and a pilot light. Never had a problem cooling rather had a hard time keeping it from freezing everything even with just the pilot light only on!!!! One problem was 18 wheelers passing you going the opposite direction and a 2-lane would suck the pilot light out. We found a way to fix that but even that was never a problem.

Sometimes for the good old days!!!!

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

YUP - dealing with key item, high dollar stuff can really make decisions difficult. Pretty much ALL our RVing is summer time stuff, and a good working refrigerator and A/C are pretty much a must - but as Scott observes, the expensive repair adds little or nothing to the selling value of the RV.

 

[Bill Stockard]

I've never been one to buy extended warranties, but I found that an extended Dometic warranty policy purchased directly from Dometic has been worth the cost. I've had three Dometic fridges fail during the standard or the extended warranty period and I am far ahead in my favor. All three were repaired by my local Camping World in Denton, TX, an authorized Dometic warranty center.



I watched as the tech removed the fridge and freezer doors so it would pass through the RV door, removed the necesary interior parts in the fridge and freezer, removed the fridge from the RV, and lay it face down on a furniture pad on the shop floor. The tech knew which screws, parts, and lines to remove and where to cut the sealing RTV on the insulation block and yank the cooling unit from the box. He had the new cooling unit furnished by Dometic installed in the box, the fridge back in the RV, and cooling in less than 4 hours from the time he started. Each time Dometic covered the parts and labor 100%.



Bill

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Jeeze Bill, that's a LOT of failed Dometics for a single user!



I had sorta figured the Dometics to be of better quality than the Norcold - the Dometic is what we have in our '88 Kit 5er, and so far it has always worked perfectly.

 

[Bill Stockard]

Jeeze Bill, that's a LOT of failed Dometics for a single user!



I had sorta figured the Dometics to be of better quality than the Norcold - the Dometic is what we have in our '88 Kit 5er, and so far it has always worked perfectly.

These were all post-1990 fridges. The Dometic fridges we owned in RVs that were built from 1969 up until about 1990 never gave any problems. I've only owned one RV with a Norcold, our present one, which is 6 years old and so far isn't hasn't given any problems (knock on wood).



Bill

 

[Bug Out]

Gary, I have been following your posts since you lived in Vacaville,Ca and I in Oakley, Ca. Great post and thanks for caring enough to let us see whats involved.

I hope I don't have to do that.


Ed

PS: I moved back to Az for the second and last time.

 

[jelag]

Gary...

I've done this twice over the years. . and each time I've saved money... Great job...

For those of you who don't know... . the Ammonia gas and the other liquids used to make they type of refrigerator work has a problem from the start... the corrosive chemicals used means that the cooling unit starts to fail from day one... . from the inside out... and the weakest link is where that normally happens...

Because it easier to bend and weld tubing that's just a little thicker (by simple tools) the replacement units from rebuilders usually last a long time... the factory (domestic) uses highly automated equipment and to run down the cost use lighter weight material... . or so I've been told... .

BTW - Great photos...