Fridge Won't Light for Nothin :-(

jgram2

Thenorcoldguy.com, mentioned at the beginning of this thread, has a techie blog. Skimming the questions, there are several about the fridge not cooling, but I wasn't paying attention to the models being discussed. http://thenorcoldguy.com/norcold-technical-blog/

JasonC424

Thanks Two J, I'll have a look

JasonC424

Additional note, last night I used the porch light and inside light and noticed that they were flickering a bit, kind of like a fluorescent lamp. I'm sensitive to light and especially to fluorescent, so it appears that this is something new.

Sharon_is_SAM

Jason, adding a signature with your TaB year and model and your TV Is helpful.  Do you mean the main overhead light?  Were you on shorepower, battery, solar?  Depending on your model year, they may be LEDs or not.  

JasonC424

SAM, thanks for the response.  It's a 2016 T@b 320 S with 200 watts of solar.  We rarely plug into shore power, so are using solar and propane for our needs.  I believe that all the lights are LED.    I attempted to change my signature with no luck, but would be happy to add it if someone would guide me. 

jgram2

@JasonC424 tap the settings "wheel" to the right of your user name in the black banner, select Edit My Profile, select Signature Settings  and add/change whatever. LAST, Tap the Save button !

Sharon_is_SAM

I do know that the porch light has the highest draw so I wonder if that had any impact?  Anything loose?  When that happens, turn on more lights and see if they are all flickering.

ScottG

@JasonC42, if your fridge ignitor was running full time, that I would almost expect your lights to flicker. Every time the ignitor clicks it places an increased load on the battery. The rapid load fluctuations are evident in voltage sensitive devices such as lights.

In short, I suspect your flickering lights are a side-effect of your fridge problem.

mona

Forgive me if this has already been mentioned. Have you tried replacing that fuse? 

Jeannie

jkjenn

mona said:

Forgive me if this has already been mentioned. Have you tried replacing that fuse? 

Jeannie

Jeannie - ah...yes, the fuse - good call. 

JasonC424

ScottG said:

@JasonC42, if your fridge ignitor was running full time, that I would almost expect your lights to flicker. Every time the ignitor clicks it places an increased load on the battery. The rapid load fluctuations are evident in voltage sensitive devices such as lights.

In short, I suspect your flickering lights are a side-effect of your fridge problem.

Scott, I would agree that they may be related.  The light flickered even with the fridge completely off, so I'm wondering if there is an issue affecting the fridge somewhere else in the T@b, would that be possible?

JasonC424

mona said:

Forgive me if this has already been mentioned. Have you tried replacing that fuse? 

Jeannie

Thanks Jeannie, we had a look at it and it seems fine.  Also we disconnected the wire leading to it and the pilot light went out and the ticking stopped.  My guess is that this means that the fuse was doing its job.

ScottG

JasonC424 said:
...

Scott, I would agree that they may be related.  The light flickered even with the fridge completely off, so I'm wondering if there is an issue affecting the fridge somewhere else in the T@b, would that be possible?

Sounds like a power fluctuation from something, but if it's not the ignitor then I'm out of ideas. My knowledge of the fridge circuitry is also pretty skimpy, so I can't say if the flickering is a cause, an effect, or a coincidence with regard to the fridge issue.

JasonC424

Ok folks thanks for all the tips.  Norcold called back today and suggested that the problem is the relighter board (ignitor board).  A friend and I tinkered around and can't find a reason to disagree, so I'm ordering one to ship to me in Why Arizona.  They don't look too difficult to install, so will try it and let you know how it works out. 

ericnliz

@JasonC424, Thanks for the update! I hope you're on the right track to a resolution!

JasonC424

Hey friends, thanks for all the input on the fridge issue.  I replaced the ignitor board, which was not an advanced job, and the fridge is working properly again.

Verna

That’s great news, Jason!

jkjenn

Excellent! Thanks for circling back!

FuzzyYanni

Heads up for anyone needing to change their thermocoupler - back in Oct 2016 I sucessfully removed and replaced the thermocoupler on our T@DA 2009 FD without having to remove the fridge at all.
Once replaced the fridge worked perfectly. So it IS possible !

ChanW

Cool, Fuzz. Thanks for that.

Where did you find the thermocouple? I might want to have one on hand, just in case...

FuzzyYanni

ChanW

Great @Fuzzy. Thanks!

FYI, note that the Tab's down-the-road vibration can loosen the thermocouple nut. After tightening mine numerous times, I put a drop of blue Loctite on there. It's been fine ever since.