What is the best brand of rv fridge

[James R Williams]

I need to replace the little fridge in my 13' Scamp trailer & would like to know what is the better brand: Dometic or Norcold, & why. Thank you Jim W.

[floyd]

You can now buy a 12V fridge with a Danfoss compressor for a price competitive with ammonia fridges.
Something to consider...
Dometic Electric Coolmatic CR 1080U F 12V 110V Van RV Refrigerator 2 8 CF | eBay

[Donna D.]

They're all crap if you're expecting for an RV frig to work as efficiently as your home refrigerator. They don't. NONE of them. Norcold has a huge recall going on. Dometic has their own issues. WHY won't Dometic sell the tropical RV frigs in the US?

If you don't believe me, check out some of the other "massive" forums. People that are spending $$$$$$$ on their RVs are unhappy with frig performances. The only model I've found (in all my reading) is the Dometic "Americana." Not perfect, but better. Doesn't come in "small" sizes so be prepared for that.

QUIT shoving all your food/beverages in the frig. Protein and daily need to be kept COLD. Fruits and vegetables just need to be cool. Remember, how you buy your food is the same way you store your food. When was the last time you bought a whole onion or potato when it was ice cold? Like never... Take a cooler, prepare to buy ice. Don't sweat the small stuff. You bought a big asset for your family, but in the big picture.... pay attention. Your unopened can of soup doesn't need to be refrigerated and your refrigerator isn't a big black hole waiting to be filled with "stuff" because you can't figure out a better method to pack food.

[Backwater Bill]

I had a Norcold which worked well after the recall to replace the thermocouple wiring. Biggest issue was pulling it out to clean the flue and burner annually.

I now have the 3 cu. ft. Dometic in my Escape. I would have preferred the larger optional model but there were just too many reports of problems with them. I believe it is a 'Tropical" model. It keeps food cold and freezes well too. It got a good test in Death Valley. Temperatures were over 40°C (104°F) and it was on the south side of the trailer, the wind prevented us from using the awning to shade it but all our food survived. Maintenance doesn't seem to be as onerous as with the older Norcold but it's still new.

[Donna D.]

Bill, Dometic doesn't sell their tropical model frig in the US or Canada. HUGE topic on the Escape Forum. A lot of us have hair-on-fire because WHY NOT? Your frig is working because it's small. Getting into the bigger sizes (6 cu ft and up) and the frigs... struggle.

[Mary F]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

Protein and dairy need to be kept COLD. Fruits and vegetables just need to be cool. Remember, how you buy your food is the same way you store your food. When was the last time you bought a whole onion or potato when it was ice cold? Like never... Take a cooler, prepare to buy ice. Don't sweat the small stuff.

On our recent 2.5 weeks, meat and milk went in the ice chest, while produce, salad dressing (balsamic vinegrette, not the faux mayonnaise type) and mustard went in the fridge, cooled by block ice...

[stude]

LUcky us we have a 16 year old Norcold and so far it has done wonders for us so I just keep wacking myself on the head saying the wood is still working.
I just spent a few days checking out WInnebago in Forest City Iowa, and a huge car show and shine with short cruise in Clear Lake, Iowa 1000 cars and trucks great show.
While we got free spot to spend a couple days this couple two over who have a 2015 but new model as not more Itasca's are being built now they are all Winnebago. Anyway he has a brand new fridge never been used they like dummies did not get it checked out before paying for it. Guess what the fridge they have is a Norcold and they headed off into the wild blue and wonder. They parked reach in and the fridge and everything in it is spoiled from the heat so back they go to the Builder not a dealer but it is Friday so have to wait until Monday so well never hear the end of this story but once u have bought somethin I would think you would go to a dealer where they have repair techs who can order what you need to fix the unit??? Winnebago is a Builder not a fixer and they do not have repair people but they can only paint peoples units etc.
One lady has a 2007 Model with a bum water pump, she said she replaced it with a new one already but is not happy with either I said to her she should go to the dealer she bought it from not the Builder, when are people going to understand.
Stude

[Donna D.]

I'm sorry Mary, this RV frig stuff continues to be a HUGE problem. I'm following the Open Road forum on RV net and IRV2 and there are so many people unhappy and they've spend a whole lot more for their RVs than ANY all-molded-towable owner, including the "O" and "B" owners.

[Mary F]

No sweat, Donna. We'll get it sorted out. I'm hopeful that we can tweak the position of the thermistor (whatever that is) and then maybe the orifice to get more oxygen so it'll work on propane at the higher altitudes of the Rocky Mtns. It'll prolly invalidate the fridge warranty if we fiddle with it on our own, but that still seems preferable to convincing a Dometic repairman that what needs doing really needs doing.

And as you suggested on Escape Forum, we're also going to look into trying it with a different propane regulator...

The Americana series in our Casita worked better (and was smaller) but even it couldn't keep up in 100F weather. Plus, it froze the produce the other three seasons of the year.

[stude]

Originally Posted by Mary F

On our recent 2.5 weeks, meat and milk went in the ice chest, while produce, salad dressing (balsamic vinegrette, not the faux mayonnaise type) and mustard went in the fridge, cooled by block ice...

: in the RV & camper section type in fridge at the top when you open it up and it should bring up any for sale, Texas is Big State so you have a lot of work cut out for you and you just might find a real good used one from days gone by that works just fine. But before going tell him he has to have it running and cold when you get there as it takes up to 4 hours todo this on a hot day. Remember the coolant in a house fridge is totally Different the a RV firdge, my old MH had Alcohol coolant have no idea what is in my Norcold but like I said it is 17 years old now. Just found out that everything ordered from Norcold is on a 3 month back order and more if they cannot find the part.
In my eyes I wonder if they are being made in China now and this is the cause for the problems, what we need is to get the Manufacturing of parts back here in the Good Ole USA or Canada!
Like I said everything at Winnebago is made right on site except for Fridges and items like that, the rest is made there even the painting is done there.
Winnebago is just one big family and they all work together to make it a better product. I hope they never start sending to china to have this stuff built there.
Stude

[Raz]

Originally Posted by James R Williams

I need to replace the little fridge in my 13' Scamp trailer & would like to know what is the better brand: Dometic or Norcold, & why. Thank you Jim W.

I have a Dometic 2193. I believe it is the unit Scamp installs in the 13'. I'm very happy with the way it performs. At 1.9 ft^3, it's quite small. I believe it works so well because there is no freezer and the energy overhead a freezer demands. It has no electronic controls so there is no DC requirement when operated on propane. It's perfect for off grid use.

If you camp where there are electrical hookups, I would recommend a dorm fridge. You will get the same performance as your kitchen refrigerator (complete with freezer) without the high cost of RV in the name.

The 12 volt RV compressor fridge like the Danfoss Floyd mentioned work very well but require additional battery capacity and charging support . Living in Arizona, with abundent solar, this could be a good choice for you.

What you chose depends on your type of camping and what compromises you make. Good luck, Raz

[Joe Romas]

On our 2 and a half week recent trip our 17 year old Dometic stayed in the mid 30's and only got up to 40f once despite daily temperatures in the 90's and I didn't use either the inside or outside fans I put in.
All it takes is following Dometic's basic installation procedures concerning venting and a little creative vent additions. There's a long thread on the Casita forum (you need to be registered)
http://www.casitaforum.com/invboard/...ge-run-better/

Or you can get online and complain about the poor performance, your choice

Joe

[Alf S.]

Originally Posted by Joe Romas

On our 2 and a half week recent trip our 17 year old Dometic stayed in the mid 30's and only got up to 40f once despite daily temperatures in the 90's and I didn't use either the inside or outside fans I put in.
All it takes is following Dometic's basic installation procedures concerning venting and a little creative vent additions. There's a long thread on the Casita forum (you need to be registered)
http://www.casitaforum.com/invboard/...ge-run-better/

Or you can get online and complain about the poor performance, your choice

Joe

Hi: Joe Romas... We have one of the dreaded single door Dometic's RML8551 with removable freezer. I leave the freezer slid out 1/2" and it still makes ice cubes and keeps the fridge in operating range. A big help is a nice steady wind to keep the heat going up the chimney. I have also tweeked several areas of the fridge. Biggest one was removing the thermistor from the cooling fins to the water drip tray. This fridge uses a simple evap cup to catch the water and also to prevent the warm air from entering the fridge while under tow. A little understanding of how they work goes a long way.
Alf S. North shore of Lake Erie

[LindaandPat]

Originally Posted by Donna D.

I'm sorry Mary, this RV frig stuff continues to be a HUGE problem. I'm following the Open Road forum on RV net and IRV2 and there are so many people unhappy and they've spend a whole lot more for their RVs than ANY all-molded-towable owner, including the "O" and "B" owners.

Hi Donna maybe when Dometic gets finished getting rid of their crappy refrigerators , They will come up with something better . Pat

[redbarron55]

Small 12 volt computer fans (low power) can help draw the required air across the coils of the fridge.
I added one to my Norcold 704DE swing 12/120 volt unit to improve the efficiency.
I am about to add a larger one to the Norcold 1200 to get the temps a little lower in the 100f temps here in LA (lower Alabama).
The large 4 door fridge with ice maker already has two factory fans under the coils, but with the slide out the vent is not on the top of the camper, but rather on the side and has less chimney effect working for it.
The Lack of a tall chimney also limits the draft of the small refrigerators. A small fan could help lots.
My Norcold setup turns on and off with the compressor and the large unit with the factory fans that are on a thermostat.
They turn on when the temp in the back goes higher than normal. (All the time in the hot summer when the heater (electric or gas) is heating.


Sent from my SCH-I605 using Fiberglass RV mobile app

[Darral T.]

Of course I have a 1.9 Dometic in my Scamp. In really hot weather (to which we RARELY camp), it struggles in the 40's. But one thing I've noticed too, the cooler I keep my Scamp, the colder the fridge will stay. Insulation? Probably. So a possibility (if you're not on the road) is when you're out of the Scamp or trailer, keep it COOL in there and possibly leave the cabinet doors open (or the side of mine sits inside of my cabinet. Just some thoughts.

I wonder what a fan would do outside or in the vent dept. help pulling hot air out the top??? Hmmm.

[Mike Magee]

I would expect a larger ammonia (rv) fridge to stay cool better than a smaller fridge, simply because it has a greater volume of cool air to start with... slowing the temperature swing. But that's just my supposition. I've had a 3 cubic foot Norcold and a 2 cubic foot Dometic, and neither one could keep their cool when the weather was hot. A fan placed over the upper outside vent to draw more air across the fridge's backside did help (10 to 15 degrees colder), but when it was 90* out that made the fridge interior 55*-60* instead of 70*, big whoop-te-doo.

This summer I used a big cooler. I needed to add ice about every 3 days. Everything stayed ice cold. The milk I bought on departure day still smelled totally fresh on return day (12 days later). Block ice worked beautifully.

If I were to buy a fridge, it would be one of those Danfoss compressor units for 12V (no LP), because they will actually achieve and hold the temperature you set. And I'd have a pair of batteries and 100-150 watts of solar to support that fridge.

[Cathi]

We have the RMD8555, two-door, and no problems as I have mentioned on the Escape forum many times. Mary, you said you were in high altitude areas where it is not supposed to work, however, others reported that theirs did work in that case (but maybe not always as high as you were, although I think Alan or someone was).

We were in Texas, Mary! While you were somewhere else. At 95F and even 100F, the refrigerator, a 6.7, worked. Opening the door a number of times, however, causes the temperature to go right up. Have to limit that as much as possible.

Since it was so hot, I used a big container full of water to have cold water. I would put it in the refrigerator in the morning and presumably it would become cold before afternoon temps hit. Perhaps that helped to keep it cold in there. Obviously, the temps would not be as low if the refrigerator side were in the sun, and/or the outside temp was above 95F, but would go to 35F or 32. (Often goes to 28F in cooler outside temps).

We had a new fan that we never took out of the package for inside the refrigerator and we never changed or moved any refrigerator parts. Others have reported similar with this refrigerator. Some have had problems where it was obviously just not working but they sometimes are referring to gas. We were plugged in, if that makes a difference.

I could not be happier with this refrigerator because I thought that the specs were that it would only work to 90F.

[Thelless]

The best place depends on the brand and type of fridge you are buying.

90%+ of compressor fridges (for RVs etc) are DC native. When they are listed as AC/DC this means that they have a power converter (like the one that powers your laptop) built in. This converts 120VAC to 12VDC.

If you have a shore power charger, there is no need for the AC option (it usually costs more). Your shore power charger will keep the batteries topped off and supply all the power the fridge needs.
I think a 60 liter fridge is a good size for a 7-10 days for 2 people. Any longer and you need more space. Of course this is highly individual dependent.

I have seen a few good reviews of the Whytner AC/DC portable fridges https://bestoutdooritems.com/best-outdoor-refrigerator/ I cannot speak to power usage though.

Fridges with the Danfoss/Secop compressor system are quite reliable. Though they may not be as efficient as the Sawafuji compressors used in the Engel fridges.I like to watch YouTube videos of a similar theme when I'm looking for information about the right product. I hope this helps someone in the future. Good luck!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAoWpNmsotg

__________________

[Thelless]

The best place depends on the brand and type of fridge you are buying.

90%+ of compressor fridges (for RVs etc) are DC native. When they are listed as AC/DC this means that they have a power converter (like the one that powers your laptop) built in. This converts 120VAC to 12VDC.

If you have a shore power charger, there is no need for the AC option (it usually costs more). Your shore power charger will keep the batteries topped off and supply all the power the fridge needs.
I think a 60 liter fridge is a good size for a 7-10 days for 2 people. Any longer and you need more space. Of course this is highly individual dependent.

I have seen a few good reviews of the Whytner AC/DC portable fridges https://bestoutdooritems.com/best-outdoor-refrigerator/ I cannot speak to power usage though.

Fridges with the Danfoss/Secop compressor system are quite reliable. Though they may not be as efficient as the Sawafuji compressors used in the Engel fridges.I like to watch YouTube videos of a similar theme when I'm looking for information about the right product. I hope this helps someone in the future. Good luck!