What to Do When a Norcold Cooling Unit Fails

When a Norcold refrigerator cooling unit fails it’s important to know what you need to do. A lot of RV owners rely on these fridges for boondocking as they work efficiently off LP gas and 120 VAC.

A remanufactured Dometic or Norcold cooling unit from Ozark will provide superior performance compared to OEM or other aftermarket replacements. Our unique rebuilding process uses heavier wall seamless tubing and a boiler design that won’t rupture from thermal stress.
Quiet Design

Norcold is a company that is dedicated to designing products that improve the user experience for all family members. Their refrigerators are quiet and dependable, which makes them the perfect choice for mobile living. Their products are also made in the United States.

A Norcold fridge works in a similar way to a conventional cooler, but it uses gas absorption instead of a compressor. The ammonia in the fridge is in a liquid state when it enters the boiler, but propane or electric heat turns it into a gaseous state. This causes the ammonia to rise through the tubes, pulling the extra heat away from the transfer plates.

The Fridge Defend kit (kit 634737) works far better than the Dometic thermofuse for several reasons. Its patented design monitors the cooling unit boiler temperature and will shut off the fan and boiler under an overheat condition. Neither the Dometic thermofuse nor the high temperature sensor can do this.
Energy Efficiency

The latest refrigerator cooling units use significantly less power than residential refrigeration. They can save RVers money on energy costs while keeping their food cold and fresh.

Absorption fridges work by converting an ammonia-based refrigerant from liquid to gas through metal coils. This gas then absorbs heat from the air, which cools it down. It then reverts back to liquid and repeats the cycle.

One disadvantage of early gas absorption refrigerators was that they were not frost-free and required manual defrosting. But newer models are now available with automatic defrost, reducing the frequency of this task.

Another way that Norcold refrigerators are energy efficient is by using low-voltage battery protection. This protects the fridge against dangerous voltage spikes. They also have high ambient temperature shutdowns, which prevents the fridge from overheating. These features make the fridges ideal for use in off-grid RVs.
Reliability

Norcold fridges are designed to be used and enjoyed by families on the go. They’re quiet, reliable and made for the rigors of your journey.

Both Dometic and Norcold refrigerators use a distillation process to cool, they separate water and ammonia so that when heat (either electric heating elements or an LP gas flame) is applied it turns the ammonia into a gas and the water remains as a liquid. This is a very delicate and expensive process and it is easy for the cooling unit boiler to overheat and cause damage to the fridge.

The number one reason RV fridges fail is when their cooling unit rusts out and starts leaking ammonia. Our remanufactured Nordic cooling units are a much more cost effective solution than replacing your whole refrigerator.
Affordability

With the economy as it is, a new refrigerator can be expensive. That is why many RVers opt for a remanufactured norcold cooling unit instead of replacing their entire refrigerator. These units can be repaired for a fraction of the cost of a new one.

JC Refrigeration makes an excellent replacement for Norcold and Dometic refrigerators. Their units are designed to replace the original ammonia based cooling system and use the existing fridge electronics to control it. This converts your fridge to a Freon based system like those seen in residential refrigerators.

Their rebuilding process also includes heavier wall seamless tubing and a boiler design that won’t fail like those from Dometic or Norcold. With a few simple steps you can save hundreds of dollars by installing a remanufactured refrigerator cooling unit. Whether you are a weekend warrior or full timer, you need a reliable fridge that will hold up to all the rigors of travel.norcold cooling units