Refrigerator Not Working, Whoops!

Last year while in Daytona Beach the OE refrigerator finally packed it in so I was faced with a choice. Go back with a dual power plug and play marine unit or go cheap. No surprise I went cheap and bought a Danby 7.3 cf for $250 from of all places, Office Depot. They dropped shipped it for free to a retail store and I flew down form NC for the install. Rented a Home Depot truck for 19.95 and carried it to Halifax River Marina. The Danby was narrower and slighty taller so after I made the modifications, installed it and had ice cubes by suppertime.

I don't know about the rest of you but every so often I reminded myself that I had replaced a $1,500 marine unit with a $250 dorm style fridge. When would it it quit?

Well Tuesday I got my answer. Instead of taking the boat to FL this year I left it in Edenton NC to do the Albemarle Loop in the Winter. (There is always a free slip) After the recent cold snap I went to check on the boat and when i arrived the cabin temp was 31 degrees and the refrig was 34 and not running and the ice had melted in the freezer. Once again my cheapness had followed me down a blind alley attacked and left me for dead.

Since it had a 1 year warranty I called the factory to see what could be done. They needed the serial number which is on the back of the unit so I had to uninstall it and wrestle it out into the salon to check. Upon calling back they walked me through the trouble shooting questions: Is it plugged in? Duh yes. Is it installed inside or outside? Inside a boat. Is the boat heated? Not recently. What is the temperature inside the boat? 31 degrees. Well skipper the refrigerator is plenty cold w/o the compressor running so turn your heat on and see if the fridge doesn't start working. If it doesn't call us back. I did, it did and I didn't call back. I had ice cubes before I left.

I know that 95% of the people on this site knew my problem halfway through this post. To the other 5% accept this cautionary tale of what happens when you don't think things through!

Don

steelydon said:

I know that 95% of the people on this site knew my problem halfway through this post. To the other 5% accept this cautionary tale of what happens when you don't think things through!

Don

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EASILY something I would have gone through also......

Thanks for the heads up on this one. I wouldn't have figured that one out either but it makes sense now that you've explained it to me.

Cheers!

What do you do when you're away from the dock? Run the fridge on an inverter?

Yes, the 110V refrigerator circuit is wired to an inverter which automatically switches over to shore power or the generator when running. Even the OE fridge was not wired to the 12V DC circuit so the dual power option was never utilized.

Speaking of refrigerator failures, my 19 year old Nova Kool finally stopped working. Replacement cost, roughly $1200 plus shipping from one coast to the other.

Following the troubleshooting instructions on their website, I determined that it was the Danfoss control unit. Calling them confirmed this. The part and shipping was $237. Refrigerator is like new again.

So - replacement is not always the only option.

You are absolutely right! Glad it worked for you. I would have rather kept the old fridge and prior to replacement the electrical component board had been replaced and exhaust fans installed but it just struggled with NC summers.

ours seems to have trouble switching from 120 to 12 v. after switching to 12v it will quit working turning it off and good kick it will start working on 12v . I think it may be a relay.

if you store food in your freezer while away from the boat it's a good idea to put an ice cube in a cup . check it when you return to be sure it still has cube form . you could have a problem that corrected its self before your return.

I have 3 Engles. I live aboard. I do not have them plugged into AC at all.. 3+ years and not a hiccup. 2.5 amps @ 12v while running. 2 swing door and one used as a freezer, raise lid. Happy!

timb said:

if you store food in your freezer while away from the boat it's a good idea to put an ice cube in a cup . check it when you return to be sure it still has cube form . you could have a problem that corrected its self before your return.

Click to expand...

oohhhhh....... that is one scenario i have never even came close to thinking about......not sure i would leave anything for any length of time but that trick with the ice cube is burned into my memory banks if i ever do

Mule said:

I have 3 Engles. I live aboard. I do not have them plugged into AC at all.. 3+ years and not a hiccup. 2.5 amps @ 12v while running. 2 swing door and one used as a freezer, raise lid. Happy!

Click to expand...

Mule....
common sense should tell me the answer but is that 2.5 amps each? or total ?

how long does it take them to come down to temp from a "cold" (warm) start ?

i think i just came close to hijacking my first thread, lol

......... dammit, i said hijacking, now im on a list somewhere....

The temperature here dropped a while back and this caught us too. Ice cream melted and re-frozen all over the bottom of the freezer.

This beats the ice cube trick. It's magnetic and sticks to my fridge door.



https://smile.amazon.com/AcuRite-00...id=1516380841&sr=8-1&keywords=AcuRite+00986A2

FlyWright said:

This beats the ice cube trick. It's magnetic and sticks to my fridge door.

https://smile.amazon.com/AcuRite-00...id=1516380841&sr=8-1&keywords=AcuRite+00986A2

Click to expand...

I just bought one of those (a dual model) for my home refrigerator/freezer which somehow managed to fail the same day as the boat refrigerator.

It just arrived yesterday and seems like a good solution. I'll try to find a single for the boat.

The dual model can be used in fridge and freezer, or in my case with 2 fridges, I use one in each fridge.

That's a coincidence...I had a similar dual fridge failure with boat and home units about a year ago. Brought the 2nd boat fridge home to save the day until the new home fridge was delivered.

Just like leaving a city water hose connected to your boat, this is a topic that generates great controversy, marine refrigerator vs. dorm refrigerator.

In my opinion, the marine refrigerator earns its higher price by being more energy efficient, something that's important for those of us who spend time on the water and at anchor with no genset.

For others, efficiency may not be as important and the dorm refrigerator works as well and at a lower initial cost.

FlyWright said:

The dual model can be used in fridge and freezer, or in my case with 2 fridges, I use one in each fridge.

That's a coincidence...I had a similar dual fridge failure with boat and home units about a year ago. Brought the 2nd boat fridge home to save the day until the new home fridge was delivered.

Click to expand...

Apparently, that manufacturer does not make a single unit for a refrigerator.

timb said:

ours seems to have trouble switching from 120 to 12 v. after switching to 12v it will quit working turning it off and good kick it will start working on 12v . I think it may be a relay.

if you store food in your freezer while away from the boat it's a good idea to put an ice cube in a cup . check it when you return to be sure it still has cube form . you could have a problem that corrected its self before your return.

Click to expand...

Our 12 year old Nova Kool started having the same problem. After talking to the manufacture tech (super nice people) and doing the trouble shooting it was determined I would have to replace the Danfoss unit.
I turned off the AC power breaker for the fridge and it has run flawlessly for two years on 12v. While on shore power the battery charger has no problem covering the needs of the fridge while remaining in float mode.
I am unaware of any negative impact operating this way.

Experienced similar problem with our boat's Keurig coffeemaker. If the water source is too cold the machine won't operate. Keurig customer service suggested we first warm the water in the microwave oven...sure enough, it fired up and brewed a perfect cup of Peet's Major Dickinson blend. (I know, pods are bad for environment, but can't beat the convenience...)

Steveg353 said:

After talking to the manufacture tech (super nice people) and doing the trouble shooting it was determined I would have to replace the Danfoss unit.
I turned off the AC power breaker for the fridge and it has run flawlessly for two years on 12v.

Click to expand...

I don't see how that tracks. The Danfoss compressor runs on DC (sorta) anyway, even when you provide AC to the power supply. Unless they meant the power supply (which converts AC when present to DC) is physically part of the Danfoss compressor? and the reason you needed to replace the Danfoss is because the converter isn't working?

-Chris

ranger42c said:

I don't see how that tracks. The Danfoss compressor runs on DC (sorta) anyway, even when you provide AC to the power supply. Unless they meant the power supply (which converts AC when present to DC) is physically part of the Danfoss compressor? and the reason you needed to replace the Danfoss is because the converter isn't working?

-Chris

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My original fridge was a Norcold DE828.

Yours may operate differently, but that model was actually AC only, with its own inverter to get the AC when DC only was present.

When it failed (a relief, as it turned out) I went to the local Marine Fridge guru, "Freddy Freezer" in North Vancouver. He had enough experience with Marine fridges that he immediately knew the solution. My present fridge is the old box, plates, doors, but the built in power supplies and the AC units have gone. In their place is a 2.7 amp (when running) Danfoss unit.

Now, instead of a draw measured at over 10 amps, that required a second set of house batteries, I was able to add a freezer (another 3 amp Danfoss) and lose the excess weight and expense of that second house bank.

Replacing the AC/DC with DC only cost more than a Costco AC fridge, but way less than a new Norcold but I continue to save on battery replacements.

Thanks to the OP for posting. Our marina currently sits about 3 hours away and has endured sub freezing temperatures last week the likes of which have not been seen in many years. Marina update emails indicate broken water pipes on almost every dock. If there are signs that the fridge stopped working this will be my first assumption.

Ranger....it was the control unit not the compressor Nova Cool suggested replacing.
Troubleshooting started with them sending me an LED testing harness (at no charge) and a pretty extensive troubleshooting phone call after I received the LED. I cannot say enough how nice and helpful the Nova Kool guys were. He also told me to unplug the AC plug under the the fridge even though I had turned off the breaker.
We were preparing for an extended cruise and hemorrhaging $$$ on other items so when they suggested do nothing and run on 12v only, I stopped asking questions...LOL

TugYacht_33 said:

Mule....
common sense should tell me the answer but is that 2.5 amps each? or total ?

how long does it take them to come down to temp from a "cold" (warm) start ?

i think i just came close to hijacking my first thread, lol

......... dammit, i said hijacking, now im on a list somewhere....

Click to expand...

Each one pulls 2.5 amps @12 volts or 30 Watts. I generally shut down the 2 refrigerators at bed time, often running the Genset for hot water and battery charge for awhile before. Come AM my house bank is @ 80%+ then solar takes over.

Going from warm to cold seems pretty quick empty or lightly loaded.

FlyWright said:

This beats the ice cube trick. It's magnetic and sticks to my fridge door.

https://smile.amazon.com/AcuRite-00...id=1516380841&sr=8-1&keywords=AcuRite+00986A2

Click to expand...

I had an Engel branded unit with battery powered remote in the freezer. There was some tiff between the sender and display units, they would cease talking to each other and require constant reintroduction. Ditched it and got a wired sender unit instead.

The AC units by Frost King really look good, I guess the most efficient units out there. Even after using an inverter. Pretty pricey though.

ranger42c said:

I don't see how that tracks. The Danfoss compressor runs on DC (sorta) anyway, even when you provide AC to the power supply. Unless they meant the power supply (which converts AC when present to DC) is physically part of the Danfoss compressor? and the reason you needed to replace the Danfoss is because the converter isn't working?

-Chris

Click to expand...

There is a power supply that converts 120 volts AC to 12 volts DC if there is AC power or just passes the 12 volt battery power through if there is no 120 volts AC present. The boat's 12 volt battery power and the 120 volt power connect to the power supply.

Two wires carry 12 volts DC from the power supply to the Danfoss control unit. There's a short wiring harness and socket that connects to the compressor.

I think there was a misunderstanding somewhere along the line. If it runs on 12 volts but not 120 volts, the problem is with the power supply.

aboatman said:

There is a power supply that converts 120 volts AC to 12 volts DC if there is AC power or just passes the 12 volt battery power through if there is no 120 volts AC present. The boat's 12 volt battery power and the 120 volt power connect to the power supply.

Two wires carry 12 volts DC from the power supply to the Danfoss control unit. There's a short wiring harness and socket that connects to the compressor.

I think there was a misunderstanding somewhere along the line. If it runs on 12 volts but not 120 volts, the problem is with the power supply.

Click to expand...

Steveg353 said:

Ranger....it was the control unit not the compressor Nova Cool suggested replacing.
Troubleshooting started with them sending me an LED testing harness (at no charge) and a pretty extensive troubleshooting phone call after I received the LED. I cannot say enough how nice and helpful the Nova Kool guys were. He also told me to unplug the AC plug under the the fridge even though I had turned off the breaker.

Click to expand...

Got it, Steve, that sounds more better.

Good to hear the NovaKool folks were so helpful. I've spoken with them, but only to order replacement door seals, very friendly encounter.

-Chris