Norcold Lit and Hot, But No Cold

Trailpixie

In the past, my norcold has worked great (sometimes too great and it freezes food). On my last trip I had a little trouble lighting it (no big deal), but when it was lit, it didn’t cool the frig. The fins on the outside heat exchanger were hot, but the fins on the inside of the refrigerator never got cold.

(I didn’t think it was a good idea to let this situation continue for too long, so I went without a refrigerator for the weekend.)

My theoretical knowledge of refrigerators is admittedly shallow, but this seems like an impossible problem. If the outside is hot, I can’t imagine that the inside wouldn’t be cold—by default. 

I’ve poked around in the myriad of norcold threads, but haven’t seen this problem. Can anyone point me in the right direction or provide any suggestions. 

Thanks

Tross2023

Watching, I have same prob…no cold with dc, ac, or propane, heated it for over 8 hours and no cold whatsoever, N180.3 Norcold. 

Jpvert

Hello, had the same problem when running on propane last weekend but when we came back home we tried it when plug on shore power and worked fine. already heard that when the camper isnt leveled properly it might do that but im sceptical about that

Grumpy_G

Absorption fridges are a pressurized system and use a condenser to create liquid ammonia which then expands back into a gas thus creating the cooling effect. There are a few things that can go wrong:
- The pressurized system leaked. Terminal failure and the fridge needs to be replaced. 
- The fridge is too far off level. The condenser is at a slight angle to facilitate liquid going in the right direction. Keep in mind the fridge in the T@b has the cooling unit on the side of it so front/rear level is important. 
- Temperature inside the trailer too high. The process only works up to about 35C or 95F (dew point of ammonia under pressure). Minor improvements can be made by making sure the condenser gets enough airflow.