RV Refrigerator Cooling Performance Issues - Installing A Baffle To Shed Heat From The Cooling Unit.
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- čas přidán 30. 05. 2021
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In this video, Certified RV Technician, Darren Koepp, installs a field improvised air baffle to an RV absorption refrigerator to direct the air through the cooling unit properly.
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always had a cooling problem with my norcold RV refrigerator. I watched your video and saw exactly what was wrong with mine. I installed a baffle on the top to redirect the air through the eveporator and it made the temepeatrure cool 18 degrees cooler. Thank you so much for the help. I live in mid New York State.
2016 Pleasure Way XLTD with Dometic RML 8330 refrigerator not cooling very well. Tried cleaning but the burner tube is rusted beyond repair, while waiting for the replacement I ran it on AC over night to stabilize and got 28F in the refrigerator section. Then I looked at the vent and Pleasure Way is much better than the one in the video but does have a big gap for air to flow around instead of through the heat sink fins. I fashioned sheet metal ducting so almost all the air now flows through, and left it overnight to stabilize again. Checking again today and it is 21F! 7 degrees colder! Just from this one simple hack! That cost me nothing but time, since I had everything on hand! Today I realized I didn't clean the tubing and heat sink fins. Probably good for maybe 1 degree, I'm not gonna bother checking that. This vent flow hack is the bomb! Thanks!
Both fans on our fridge siezed up and caused the 5amp fuse to blow. Norcold sells the fans for $80 each. Pure insanity. I'll be replacing the fans with 2 120mm ball bearing fans from Amazon for $16 each. I'll also be using your method to add baffling for maximum air flow. Thank you for your videos.
Another great and very helpful video. Thank You. Dakota is a great helper too.
Thank you so much for taking the time to make and share this video. It was exactly what I needed to do.
I replaced the thermistor in my 1210 and my fridge is now cooling. But per you could be better, so I followed your instructions and installed the the baffling your way and I am now running the fridge on 5. It is cooling like new at 35 degrees. You are the master instructor.
Great video, very helpful, as usual. Dakota seems like a great helper.
After some early season cooling problems with my fridge not cooling, I took Darren's advice and reduced the amount of dead air space around my refrigerator.
I ended up insulating 3/4" on one side and 4" on the other, the entire height of the RV. One piece of sheet metal was added to direct the heat, up the "chimney".
Camping last weekend, Saturday the fridg was 37 degrees and Sunday it was 32 degrees when we woke up.
Initial results are positive.
A big thank you to Darren for sharing and putting in the time and effort to help us/we/I out.
Had done that very thing to my Alpine except I added 3 more 12v fans to push more air through the fins. Refrigerator cools down to 32- 34 . Freezer will freeze ice cream 🍦
Really enjoy your videos . Learn something new every vid. Great work. Much appreciated.
Thank you. It is our pleasure to help others to enjoy their RV camping experiences. Happy camping!
THANK YOU! I have understood what I need to check and "possibly" do! ☺
Awesome video as always! Thank you Darrin!
Our pleasure. ;) Thank you for watching!
Awesome job showing how the air should flow Darren!
Thank you.
This is what I needed to see I'm going to bookmark this so when I get back home from my camping trip I will be doing this, thank you.
Excellent video. To the point without the chatter. Thanks!
Hey Darren, just wanted to say what an invaluable service you provide.
I’ve watched several of your videos now, and absolutely appreciate the amount of information you give. And explanation. I have yet to find anyone else on you tube who has such expertly crafted informative videos.
Thank you
Excellent video! Simple and effective solution to a common issue. Your experience and teaching is hugely valuable and appreciated! Thanks
I think Dakota (sorry if its mis-spelled) is doing a great job on the camera!
Great Job Once Again. I keep referring folks from a Facebook Group to your CZcams Channel. You've taught me loads.
Fantastic video’s, Easy to follow and great info have got our 3 way fridge working a treat, Love your video’s
cheers all the way from Australia
Thank you for watching in Australia! One day we will visit you.
Great job Darren, I'll be doing this to my rv refrigerator next weekend. Got the same setup. Temperatures start climbing when hot outside. Just subscribe, first time view great job again 👍.
Thank you sir. I have a Norcold 1200 series in a slide on my Itasca class A. Working OK right now, but want to improve the cooling as much as possible. Getting tired of "soft serve" ice cream. Great tip to optimize the airflow over the evaporator. Definitely a new subscriber now. And a shout out over to your buddy at AZ Expert for sending me your way.
Id like to see more slide-out repairs and levelling issues.
I put baffles in for my rm2193 and installed another fan to move more air during hot weather. It did help the fridge cool faster and a few degrees lower. Thanks for the information and video.
Darren, you never cease to amaze! Loved it. Too bad it wasn't done right the first time.
Your welcome! That is why we feel called to do these videos to help so many others and hopefully the manufactures too. ;)
Missed you Darren, Glad you back, nice tip on the airflow, keep the 10-min Tech coming.
Lots more videos coming! Keep on watching! ;) Thank you.
So glad I found your channel, of course we're having fridge cooling issues in our Rockwood 8327SS. The dealer replaced the whole back side of the fridge a couple years ago and now coming back from a trip it started to heat up again. We found the thermistor slid down the little holder (cheap plastic) and slid down the cooling fin. It got as warm as 57F so we emptied the fridge and turned it off and secured the thermistor and turned it back on a day later and so far its been 36F with an empty fridge. Going to test the thermistor for the correct ohms and check the baffling. Thanks for making your videos!
Good video. I have seen where some people see that piece of luan when they remove the top vent cover and then cut it out
Great video Darren !!! Thanks for sharing 👍👍✌️🇨🇦✌️🇨🇦✌️
Outstanding video ! Great job Dakota...... :)
Thank you. Yes, Dakota is very gifted with fixing things like Darren is. ;) Dakota is our #1 helper and fixer!
Excellent video. Thank you.
Great video as usual. I have had to do this also to a few customers rv's and seems to be an issue with the MFG's rush to build and cutting time and cost IMO.
Darren,
Nice air flow management. Folks I bought a simple outdoor remote digital thermometer. Sensor goes in fridge, receiver is in trailer or truck while towing and even at home monitoring the pre trip cool down. Knowing the interior fridge temp is a good thing.
Gary
That turned out nice. I can imagine it's much more efficient!
Yes sir it is! ;)
a definite project on our trailer! thanks
Nice venturi suction effect created with the baffles.
Thank you for this tip.
Handy trick.
Thank You! The information explains a lot and answers several questions I had. Thank you for your video as seeing is very helpful!😊
Thank you so much Darren...I've learned a ton of stuff from you. Unfortunately I'm in Abbotsford so you can't come here to service my 5th wheel....I sure wish you could!
Perfect timing. As the temps in the PNW are heating up our fridge is having a hard time keeping up. Stopped by Harbor Freight on my way home from work. Getting ready to tackle my ongoing issue. Also thank you for the cut in and cut out temps.
Our pleasure!
Thank you. Answered a issue I didn't know existed. But our frig has never gotten really cold. Ours had insulation that had fallen behind the frig covering the fan, a huge gaps everywhere else. So the heat has been flowing around the sides to reach the top vent.
Wow nice work. Back in 2015 I bought a brand new travel trailer with the fridge in the slide. when I got home upon checking things out and removing the top plastic vent cover I noticed that they had screwed in a thin piece of Birch wood to the outside wall. Sent a photo to the dealer (thought it was a mistake maybe needed to be removed upon shipping) but not only did I learn it's suppose to be there but the dealer had cut it about two inches too high above the coils. So I fixed it plus they never like this unit had any baffle on top which I also made one just like in this video. Used a fair amount of foil tape too 😁 The fan that would come on automatically was annoyingly noisy.
Thank you for another great video I was very suspicious that my thermostat was bad on my coil because my fans were not running I took one fan out and tested the fan work properly now I've got to replace the thermostat
Hey DArren, nice job with the baffling. I had exactly the same issue last year on our Holiday Rambler Class A where there were NO BAFFLES from the factory, nor did the last repair tech add them when changing our Norcold 1200 cooling unit a few years ago. I made baffles out of similar material but on mine, I had put a nice 2" radius curve in the baffles instead of the sharper bend via the bending brake. Problem solved - also used A/C tape to finish off the job. I think I sent in some photos to you of my solution. Feel free to refer to the design. Keep up the good woik!!!
Nice Job
I see comments on Facebook on some manufactures pages that the manufactures tech actually removed the luan boards on units that were not cooling properly. The customer said it fixed the problem. On mine the frig is much wider than the vents as it is a double door 12 fc Norcold.
Thanks so much. We just bought a $130,000 2023 GDRV and the fridge has never worked properly. Everything you’ve shown that can cause problems is what I’m looking at. We are out on our big family camping trip and I will be heading into town to pick up some flashing and fix what should have been done at the factory.
Thanks darren great info!!
Thank you for watching. ;)
Excellent. Perfect common sense solution.
Thank you.
Thank you for taking the time to show what to do with a slide frig. I have some work to do to get my frig in shape.
Get it done! ;)
Just finished this project. Thank you again for sharing your knowledge.
Frig was doing great till a automobile coil spring dented the back. Went right through the upper vent, missed the piping. It still works just need advice on what to use to repair a small crack the spring made in the back.
Great video
brake Press is handy. Makes for building flashing for great wheel well protection for blowouts. Recent customer had fire cords blow though deck and rear out plumbing lines and electrical.
Excellent!!
Very good video. Hopefully someone from DRV is watching this video. Just image that refrigerator trying to cool in the summer in Florida or in south Texas without your modification.
Praying it helps everyone. ;)
I had the same problem with my Fun finder 189 FDS. Adding the flashing wasn’t enough, we had to lower the fridge so the cooling fins where near the bottom of the opening. Cruiser RV didn’t follow Dometic’s installation requirements.
Thanks!
Thanks
Good video.
Awesome bro... thnks
Good video
Looking at my 07 FW I notice its missing the Recall, after doing some research IMO that "Fridge Defend" is a better option than the recall. Currently having no issues with Norcold 1210 and have validated what you show in this video. The Fridge Defend is made by ARP products. Not associated with them but all my research leads to them.
I added two 12v computer fans to “suck” air thru the condenser fins and expel the air out the upper door.
How about the hot air which departs the upper chimney? Some aluminum-foil tubing (AC and Furnace supplies) connected to the top of the chimney to direct that hot air away from the cond-fins and directly to the upper door might lower the temps in the compartment…? Thanks for the good videos.
Our Norcold NX8 refrigerator just stopped working .There are no codes flashing and I hear it switch from electric to propane .The heating element and the burner are working . I have checked for power both 120 volt and 12 volt and there is power . I was thinking that maybe it's a fan problem because I don't hear a fan . I can't see a fan because of the baffle at the top compartment but maybe with a mirror I can . Your explanation of the thermostat on the coil at the top is what I will check . I hope it's bad and the fan isn't working . I felt the coil getting somewhat warm . I was thinking that the sodium chromate in the system was seized up and was thinking about buying a new refrigerator . I can't wait to go test the thermostat . Thanks for all your videos .
Thanks for the tips! I have only gone through four of your refrigerater videos, so I may still find the answer by watching the rest, but my problem is that my brand new RV refrigerator cools well in the freezer part and very poorly in the bottom half when running on AC. When I switch to propane, it works like a champ. We first noticed this on our walk-through at the dealer, but we were assured that it just had not had enough time to really start working. Well, the freezer part was pretty cold and the lower half was warm, so I should have noticed something. I am sorry, but my RV and all of the manuals are at the storage lot, but I know it is a Norcold and it is installed in a Sunset Trail 222RB. Maybe the RB stands for Refrigerator Bad.
OK...lol! I found the video that you made on my question. I guess I need to go get a meter and start testing some things out!
Amazing what I learn from your videos! How do you "see" if there is correct baffling on a non-slideout type that goes straight up?
I wish you would consider doing a video installing an after market fan in the top of the cooling unit, like Titan RV vent fans. I'm thinking of putting in baffling like you did and then another baffle with holes only for two fans so all the air had to go through the fans and when they are on they will pull all air out creating a vacuum in the system and remove any dead hot air spots. Cheers
It helps. Thanks. Would a fan or two help? I see that has already been answered. Thank you.
I live in Mesa AZ in small rv trailer last summer we had like 50 days of 110 degrees temperature I put two frozen water bottles in the refrigerator with a fan blowing across the bottles that helped a lot. I had to switch the bottles out two or three times a day
Does the RV struggle to cool in those extreme temperatures I live in an apartment in Arizona and I want to live in an RV instead but I have been told that they do not cool down very well do you have any issues with that
@@iair-conditiontheoutsideai3076 I live in a Winnebago Micro Minnie 1706fb when I came home 6 1 2021 4:30pm it was 110 degrees inside my account is not on a thermostat on or off manually operated. I think if I had a thermostat it would be better. I am in Mesa if you live close we could meet if you have more questions
@@bobfincher1767 interesting well I will keep that in mind thanks again 🙂
One other thing I've found about my rm2193 fridge (small size) is that the boiler tube seems to be dropping tiny rust particles on the burner and partially clogging it (not the burner jet) making it act like it's been turned down to medium or low. A blast of compressed air on the burner solves the problem. Removing the burner is the proper way to clean it, when not in the field.
Great videos, im a new fan ! no pun intended! did you mention that drilling in the back of the fridge was ok ? or shoud i look for specific locations to drill into ? Louis from Quebec Canada
This might be a better option - check out this video:
2 Essential RV Fridge Fan Upgrades | DIY RV Remodel | RV Living Full Time | Valterra
Great video Thank you so much for all this information. We are in the process of lining ours, and we are having trouble with the right side of the unit. I have a picture for you to see, but any suggestions on how to inclose this side would be greatly appreciated, your video didn't show the right side of yours. Do I enclose it all above the tubing?
If you want a really good answer, the question will be in the service manual for your refrigerator under installation. On our website we have a lot of manuals for refrigerators here's a link for you.
myrvworks.com/manuals/
But I'll just go ahead and tell you they want zero on the sides, less than 1 inch to the back wall, and a perfect chimney going through the top condenser fins. And zero voids on the top of the refrigerator. I've used expandable foam, stuffed the sides with pink Panther insulation, and in a pinch even foil tape. You just want to visualize the chimney and get that air to go through that top condenser fin - no shortcuts allowed. That's the goal.
Outstanding video, thank you. My fridge has been having issues and I've already gone through your diagnostic video and now I'm taking a look at this to aid in running more efficient.
Would it be beneficial to add fans to help move the air through the "chimney?"
Yes.
Hello, thank you very for this video. At 6:06 About the fan thermostat, do you have a link or a part number for replacement?. I see on mine that it is a KSD301 250V 10A. No temperature range on it. There are so many on Amazon.
Normally Open, Normally closed,
They dont specify the temperature range that you mention fans should turn on at 135 Fand turn off off at 105 F.
I would think the thermal switch should be N.O. for normally open?
Hello sir I really like your video and I wanted to ask what size flasher should I get I was at the Homedepot and was wondering thank you?
Insulation foam board, foil tape, and extra fans will also work.
My RV Fridge came with this type of baffling but it was secured with sikaflex as well. Do you ever see cases where a hard sideways blowing rain will get water into the fridge compartment through the access vent covers (the ones you opened) and then leak down. I have this issue.
Darren, I have a Norcold 2118 that is maxed out on the temp setting inside at 9. Will adding the baffles help low the number? The temp is right at 40 degrees. Freezer is fine.
I installed small fans (zip tied) to the upper access plate, too, to force air up and through this section. Ultimately the answer was to ditch the absorption refrigerator and install a residential. :) Really like your videos--link them all the time on Grand Design's Technical Forum.
Trying to put insulation on sides of refrigerator. Very difficult from the back can I pull trim from front and put it in from front the put trim back in.
Your videos are very helpful. In a previous video you showed the sensor for the fans on the right side, in this video it's on the left. Is there a difference?
If that thermostat were an electrical connection on an electric chair, would it matter??
Sir, would what your showing be better than adding fans to that area to help vent that area like you see on so many video's out there, or in addition to what your doing, or are the fans a waste of time, and adding the flashing is the best answer? Hope that makes sense.
You should market that kit for retail.
Sir I own a 1984 chevy lazydaze class C motorhome my refrigerator stopped working I replaced the electric clicker egnitor but the new part only making 1 click and my old part made 3 or 4 clicks to ignite the refrigerator do i have the wrong part that my refrigerator really calls for and the spects is a little lesser than my origanal part has is this what has been the true problem why i cant get my refrigerator back to up and running again for us is because they sold me the wrong sized igniter in the first place?
I have been having issues with my Dometic. Freezer works fine...fridge won't cool. Dometic actually suggests removing the baffle on the side vent Grand Design models. Not sure what to do now!
I have a fridge in a slide out and added two fans to the vent at the top with that would i still need the baffles?
Did you check the door seals too? If the are bad, how do you fix.
Hello what would cause my dometic refer to get hot inside instead of cold on lp or shore power level no yellow residue got a flame and no gurgling?? It’s a 2021 trailer 4 door refer
We have a 2008 Fleetwood Excursion with a dometic fridge. The fridge was working. Now it's not getting power. We checked breakers, nothing , we have power to the outlets in the back of the fridge. Any ideas?
Great job again. Any way you can do a slide out maintenance video?
Have a look at this playlist:
czcams.com/play/PLk44vSl27TRACutZDskQco5pzU6phS4je.html
Thank you.
What screws and length did you use to screw into the back of the refrigerator ?
We have been seeing alot of Jaycos with Norcold N8Xs installed in slide outs the baffle is not doing its job due to how they did it. May put a video out on it soon
2020 and 2021 jaycos
Please do
🤙🏼🙏🏼
I have an Atwood helium fridge, the freezer got cool, about 29 degrees overnight. The refrigerator portion didn't seem to have cooled at all. What causes that?
Hi. Great video & info. I have an older class B campervan. The fridge, in a slide room, has worked great since I got it a decade ago. Now it barely cools on gas or electricity. I've checked for the yellow residue etc & there's none. I went to an RV dealer & he told me the fridge was "worn out" & needed to be replaced. Ummm how does a fridge with no moving parts get worn out? I installed a fan & the fridge is almost back to its normal cold levels. I'm going to install the baffles like you suggest in this video. My question is, how can it work fine for 11 years & suddenly quit, & then improve with the addition of a fan? Question 2, if I install the baffles as you suggest, will it channel all the very hot air from the lower heating tubes over the condenser fins I'm trying to cool? Are we trying to cool down or heat up the fins at the top of the fridge back? Thanks for your videos & help.
Those cooling fans are trying to flow air over the condenser coils to REMOVE the heat. Remember, the fans kick on at about 130Degs and off at around 105degs.
Ill be sure to make this modification on my unit. Thank you for the details you give. I am experiencing a problem with my Norcold N611. The temperature in the freezer and the lower section varies from 50 degrees to 30 in the lower section. 10 to 30 degrees in the freezer section. Ive replaced the thermistor and positioned it in the same spot on the fin as before. Switching the unit from gas to electric does not change the temperature variance. Will you help me?
When diagnosing refrigerator cooling performance issues one of the first things I address is the ventilation issue up the back side of the cooling unit. It must be designed to the refrigerator specification. Often times I see RV manufacturers not following the refrigerator installation specs. So start there and see what happens.
Could you use foam and maybe wrap it with a/c tape?
Nice job! Amazing how the RV manufacturer didn't install things properly. As you say, this one of the higher end ones too!
What is your take on additional fans being installed in the intake and exhaust vents? Several channels have videos showing this done, due to the refrigerator having problems maintaining proper temperature during high heat weather temperatures.
I have found that anything you can do to help flow air up and out over those condenser fins IS GOING TO HELP. Some folks also sell the simple pancake fans like you might find in computer servers or other electrical components needing cooling air, and install them to the upper outlet vent! Think about that.
Can anybody recommend what fans and thermostat to use if my RV didn't come with any.