Norcold fridge not powering on

[Carvhors]

I have a 2016 Norcold N306RM8 fridge. It has been working fine. That last time out we ran the fridge on propane for 4 days. Fast forward to yesterday: Getting ready for a trip this weekend and turned on the fridge to get it cool before we leave, and there is no power. The power indicator light is not powering on on the front panel. I checked all of the breakers and fuses in the main panel - are all good. I checked the DC outlet the fridge is plugged into and that's fine. I checked the AC power coming into terminal board on the back of the fridge and I'm getting a reading of 13.5 volts. I'm connected to shore power. The battery bank is fully charged, and all other 12v items are working fine. I even unplugged the fridge overnight to see if that would reset something. No go. Any other ideas I can check? This is a low-end model and pretty basic. I really don't know what else to troubleshoot. At least I'm able to run it on propane for now. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[Carvhors]

No worries. That's all part of the process and how we learn. The heat is what I noticed once I pulled the unit out, plugged it in and started running the multimeter. I figured if that heating element was on then the unit is probably working.

[turbojimmy]

Yeah I probably should have mentioned that. My "eyebrow" lights never worked but the fridge does. You can easily tell if it's working on propane. When on electric just feel around the area of the heating element. It gets hot pretty quick.

[Carvhors]

UPDATE: The fridge is working. After pulling out the fridge (and finding the wiring diagram taped to the top of the unit) I went ahead and tested all fuses, circuits, heating elements and switches, and everything checked out fine. The only thing that is not working is the power indicator light. So, I plugged in the unit and let it sit over night and it in fact did cool down. With this type of unit not having a fan or compressor it's difficult to know when it's "ON" and working. The power indicator light is the only way to know. I probably should have have just turned it on and let it run in the first place and saved myself, and those you nice folks that responded with your ideas as to what to check, some trouble. Thanks again for all of the input, and have a great weekend!

[Carvhors]

Thank you for the great information, OB! I'm in the process of tracing this circuit and checking all parts and switches for continuity. Hopefully I can pinpoint the culprit. I'll check back in with the results of my findings. Much thanks!

[Old-Biscuit]

DC is used ONLY for FAN (1A fuse) and DC heater element if equipped (20A fuse)
NOTE:
DC NOT needed for propane operation
Burner/gas control/flame meter-----piezo spark and thermocouple

AC has 3A Fuse on HOT from terminal block ----that HOT goes to the 'Selector Switch' (OFF/GAS/AC-electric/DC-electric==battery)

AC Power Indicator is only lit when Selector Switch is in AC-Electric position AND AC Thermostat is NOT in OFF Position.


120V AC Circuit:
AC to terminal block then to/thru 3A Fuse to 1A on Selector Switch..then out of Selector Switch on 1B to Thermostat (Pin 4) AND to AC Indicator then from Indicator back to terminal block (neutral)
AC from Thermostat (Pin 3) to AC Heater Element then back to terminal block (Neutral)

AC not working...
3A Fuse
Selector Switch AC Position
AC Thermostat in ANY Position but OFF
AC Heater Element BAD

[Carvhors]

I'll take a look at those next. Thanks!

[turbojimmy]

Carvhors wrote:
There doesn't appear to be a circuit board listed in the parts diagram for this model...just a terminal block...am I missing it?

https://www.thetford.com//wp-content/uploads/2015/02/PL_N305N306_637106_20180208.pdf

Yeah I don't see a circuit board in that list either. I checked thenorcoldguy site and they don't show one either. That parts list does show 3 fused wires though. Did you locate 3 fuses? I don't know if "fused wires" mean that there are fuses or if they're fusible links like on cars. When they cook you have to replace them.

[Carvhors]

There doesn't appear to be a circuit board listed in the parts diagram for this model...just a terminal block...am I missing it?

https://www.thetford.com//wp-content/uploads/2015/02/PL_N305N306_637106_20180208.pdf

[wnjj]

DC outlet and AC 13.5V? I think you typo’d your terminology.

I agree with the above. If there’s power to the board it’s a fuse on the board or failed board. With no reason for the fuse to fail, it’s probably a board.

The older models had a board in the back and another up behind the controls.

[Carvhors]

There is an inline fuse in the back. That's fine. As far a board goes, I can't locate it on this model, if there is one. It's pretty basic in the back. Not sure how to post a pic there. All wiring is going into pretty much a basic terminal strip...doesn't look like a circuit board that is on other models.

[donn0128]

Volts are good. 13.5 is a normal battery voltage.
Look on the main board for a fuse. There should be at least one. If fuses are good, then its a good chance the board is toast.

[Carvhors]

The dual 6v battery bank has been on float charge (plugged into shore power) for several weeks, so showing a 13.5 is normal. It will need to settle out with no charging or load for 6-12 hours to get a true reading.

[Carvhors]

Let me double-check that. I took that reading in the dark at 1:00 a.m. this morning.

[K_Charles]

If the AC power is really 13.5 volts, that would be bad.