Whether you own a motorhome, travel trailer, camper or rv refrigeration you know that your fridge is essential for keeping food and drinks cool and fresh. Fortunately, you don’t have to worry about your fridge malfunctioning or getting broken down in the middle of a trip if you take steps to keep it in good working order.
New Dometic Replacement Cooling Units
If your RV refrigerator isn’t cooling and smells of ammonia, it likely needs a new replacement cooling unit. The number one reason cooling units fail is because they rust out and start leaking ammonia. In addition, running the unit off-level can cause a blockage inside the cooling unit which prevents proper circulation of charge solution. Thankfully, repairing your refrigerator with a remanufactured Nordic Cooling Unit is significantly less expensive than replacing it altogether.
Thermocouple Troubleshooting
Your Dometic RV fridge thermocouple is a temperamental part that can have serious issues with high temperature fluctuations, so it’s important to check it frequently. Using a thermometer and a multimeter can help you find the problem quickly.
Thermocouples are also prone to electrical shock, so make sure you follow safety precautions while troubleshooting or performing repairs. Remove the power source from your fridge and wear rubber gloves, rubber-soled shoes, and other protective gear before opening it up.
When removing the old cooling unit, it’s important to take special care not to damage the tubing. Using a short wrecking bar can help with this task, as can carefully pulling the tubing off.
Be sure to transfer the boiler housing and electric heaters from the old cooling unit to the new one. This is the most important step, as the electric heaters can overheat and damage the new cooling unit.
Lastly, be sure to remove the old foam block that sits on top of the boiler. Leaving it in place will prevent the new unit from working properly on LP gas.
When installing a replacement cooling unit for your Dometic or Norcold RV refrigerator, it’s essential to use Blue Loctite Threadlocker on the screws securing the new unit to the back of the RV. This is especially true for Dometic and Norcold models that have a sheet-metal pan in front of the unit.