Red Light on retrofitted sensor R-010 for Norcold 1200. Fridge will not turn on.

[Larry H]

My Norcold 1200 will not turn on (nothing when I hit the on-off button). Opening the outside panel, I see a red light on the retrofitted R-010 sensor that I don;t remember seeing before. The frodge was retrofitted with the Sensor R-010 years ago when a recall came out. I know there are issues with the Norcold 1200 but mine has worked great during the many years I have had it. Please advise. I have called the 800 767-9101 number on the tag and left a message. We are planning on leaving on a 3d week trip tomorrow. I have searched but can find nothing about the R-010 sensor.

[Dr4Film]

A strong magnet will reset the black box. HOWEVER you will do this at YOUR own risk, not mine.

Try to find out WHY the black box triggered initially.

Did the box get wet possibly when you washed the coach?

Edited June 28, 2023 by Dr4Film

[Larry H]

Thanks. I will get a magnet and try it. Have not washed the coach and strong wind/rain not too likely given the sensor is mounted high in the box. It was working when I parked the coach 3 months ago.

[Dr4Film]

A 12 VDC power glitch will sometimes cause the same situation.

The box is there to detect a high temperature in the heating stack. if it gets too high it will shut down power to the control board.

[Chad A]

Mine kept doing this and I started carrying a big magnet, the one you use to pick up nails on the ground, around with me. 
 

This was a temporary fix until I could get home and ditched it for a residential fridge.  
 

When I swapped fridges I could see where the exhaust from the Norcold was burning the wood in the Coach. 
 

I felt very relieved to get that thing out of there. I have a fridge that works 1000 times better, holds more groceries and is a million times safer. 
 

As stated, figure out why it tripped. I knew mine was from getting hot and I had to turn it off every time I left the coach as I was afraid of it burning to the ground. 
 

If it was just a glitch and it does not happen again then maybe it was just that. I couldn’t sleep at night because of the dang thing though. 

[Larry H]

Thanks to all for the comments. The magnet did the trick, however I understand this might be a temporary solution. Currently running of propane until I get to where I have 30/50 amp service. I will post if the problem keeps happening.

[pulsarjab]

Sorry about this post, but I would not feel good if I ignored the issue and someone was hurt or worse.  You just bypassed a safety switch that was designed to prevent over heating and fires, and there is a history of fires that have destroyed units and had significant impact on lives. I would never take that risk.

[Tom Cherry]

14 hours ago, Larry H said:

Thanks to all for the comments. The magnet did the trick, however I understand this might be a temporary solution. Currently running of propane until I get to where I have 30/50 amp service. I will post if the problem keeps happening.

From a “PHILOSOPHY” of this site’s charter, please be aware that there IS a risk, HIGH,  of a fire.  How probable?  No one can say.  The comments here are “like grains os sand” on a beach.  People have died.  People have endangered their families.  People have endangered the rigs around them.

If, you intend to use the unit, then my advice, as a retired former Safety Director as well as the “Fire and Property Insurance” Coordinator….who regularly did safety inspections on 30 or so sites, about half international, I would not risk it.

 I  would purchase a “dorm refrigerator” and figure out some place to put it and make do.  If you do decide, after a long contemplation, then I would purchase TWO smoke and fire alarms.  Chose the ones that are battery operated and wirelessly connected so that when one goes off, the other will also alarm.  Mount one inside the rear area of the Norcold….put it as HIGH UP and behind the unit as you can.  You can use double stick tape and put it on a board of thin piece of plywood.  Then put a hole in the wood so you can hang it or attach it as high up as you can reach or see.  The other one can be placed on the nightstand in the rear.

That is the only way I would even contemplate…..and maybe decide NOT….to use it.  

There is a world of information here on how to REPLACE it with a residential.  Some have tried to salvage and have a new cooling unit installed.  Results, are spotty.  Most that have done a conversion have regretted it as the box is not worth saving….the door gaskets fail…no easy fix…

 

[jacwjames]

I did what Tom suggested and used a small dorm refrigerator when mine failed.  I did reset mine with a magnet and it tripped again.  When I checked it the next day there was Yellow powder over the entire bottom of the fridge underneath.  The tube ruptured AND I WAS d*** LUCKY IT DIDN'T CATCH FIRE.

If you have time you could remove the old fridge completely and install a larger small residential that fit in the hole. 

Long term I replaced mine with a Samsung RF18 residential.  I won't go back, works great. 

[Dr4Film]

One other thought that I forgot to include in my first post if you plan to keep the unit was to purchase the Fridge Defend and install that device.

The Fridge Defend is a much more sophisticated device than the Norcold Black Box.

https://www.arprv.com/

[Tom Cherry]

32 minutes ago, Dr4Film said:

One other thought that I forgot to include in my first post if you plan to keep the unit was to purchase the Fridge Defend and install that device.

The Fridge Defend is a much more sophisticated device than the Norcold Black Box.

https://www.arprv.com/

Richard is correct.  However, the logic that I used.  You spend several hundred dollars on a device that will tell you, HOPEFULLY, that it is gonna catch fire.  BUT the device is more sensitive and will be a better "alert" than the cheap retrofitted, freebie, Norcold.

SO....the deal is.  DORM....or spend $75 (Smoke Detectors) or spend around $1,000 (DIY) for a Samsung....or maybe $2,000 for an installed Samsung.

I had a Dometic, which is what Monaco switched to when the Norcold's started to burn.  It was OK, but after about 6 or 7 years, it started to not cool adequately and I added more fans and changed the controls and such. I finally said....ENOUGH....and put in the Samsung.

I should have done that 4 years earlier and not had my wife fuss when she would come home, on the road, from a shopping trip, and it took the Dometic hours to catch back up.   BTW...a NEW Dometic was over $4,000....and the Samsung was $1000 (on sale).  WHY would I spend $4,000 for 5 more years of happiness....

Hope this makes sense.  WE, the STAFF AND MODERATORS, want everyone to be safe and understand the dangers.....That is why, especially being a retired Safety Director, I am a bit more passionate (realistic?) about this...

[brokenarrow1244]

I had the same problem after cleaning and then running on propane, did a reset and switched over to shore power and the issue stopped for a while. I contacted my dealer and there was a failure on the recall part, They tested it and they supplied a replacement. That worked fine for a while then I had the total failure of the cooling unit and installed the Amish unit. So far it is okay.

Ask the dealer to check the unit and if it has been recalled again

[Georgia Mike]

It’s a tough decision if you boondock a lot. Having the propane option really cuts down on your battery drain. I got rid of mine and went with the Amish 12 volt compressor model and I do feel a lot better sleeping at night in Motorhome but I do miss that propane option. I just can’t believe after all these years they can’t make a propane fridge that isn’t a fire hazard and cools really good. 

[Dr4Film]

18 hours ago, Georgia Mike said:

I just can’t believe after all these years they can’t make a propane fridge that isn’t a fire hazard and cools really good. 

Mike, it wasn't the propane that caused most of the failures and fires. it was a couple of things. One was the electric heater elements were not built and installed correctly which caused a short which then caused arcing and eventually burnt through the cooling pipes releasing the mixture which then caught fire. Second, the cooling unit was undersized for the NotSoCold 12XX which put undue stress on a poorly built system. It was doomed from the beginning.

[Tom Cherry]

1 minute ago, Dr4Film said:

Mike, it wasn't the propane that caused most of the failures and fires. it was a couple of things. One was the electric heater elements were not built and installed correctly which caused a short which then caused arcing and eventually burnt through the cooling pipes releasing the mixture which then caught fire. Second, the cooling unit was undersized for the NotSoCold 12XX which put undue stress on a poorly built system. It was doomed from the beginning.

Richard has covered the basics.  Two things that I know, from all the comments and also talking to Norcold....right after the recalls and trying to get a technical description.

The tubing in the heaters were "supposedly" changed by the Mexican operation....which had received (closed the US plant) the refrigerators to build.  They cut back, ever so slightly on the wall thickness of the cooling coils or the bundle...which then left them more susceptible to joint failures as well.  We had a candid conversation....and he alluded to the fact that perhaps the thickness of the tubing(s) were not what was used in the US.  I moved several plants to Mexico and as the local purchasing and engineering teams took over, they then tried to purchase the stock metric equivalent.  Invariably, the US (English) was always in the middle of two stock or NO EXTRA COST sizes...and they went with the smaller one, as it was cheaper.  THAT may not be all the nuances....but that was what I discussed with the engineer and it was posted from other sources in other forums....

As to the "Cooling", the fact that the system is "self sustaining", they are designed for minimum DC current so you can boondock more.  My Dometic 1402 was marginal....and at over $4,000, should have been better...but I was NOT the only one experiencing issues.  I added a supplemental fan and also changed the ON/OFF of the two OEM Dometic fans from say 145/130 Deg to 130/115.  Dometic engineering told me NO....NADA.  WHY, it cools better....  OK, but it will NOT last as long on batteries and we specifically design them to be "optimum" with minimum current draw (the control board and cooling fans).  YES...it will improve but at a price....and that was why we chose these point for the internal fans to cycle.  However, What I put on was the Standard Norcold thermostat....and it was plug and play.

SO....that is the answer to the question....or at least mine.  Having to run a Generator once per day with a 4 bank set and a residential refrigerator is a small price to pay versus sinking big bucks in another gas system...

Richard also hit on a point that maybe the heaters were not correct...but I thought it was a matter of the coil tube thickness....the rated capacity (again...memory) of the burner is about 10 - 15% (in BTU/Hr) than the heaters....therefore the system gets hotter with the burner than with the heaters and folks often commented it cooled better on propane....  One would have to look at the specs and compare the two different sources.