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General Discussion / Re: 12 Volt fridge replacement
« Last post by LRUCH on October 01, 2026, 08:59:46 pm »I waited a bit to reply, as I wanted to see what other ideas and advice was offered. I don't have any advice contrary to what's been offered above. I can understand needing a fridge+freezer that is dependable and versatile. With that said....
The Norcold line has been around for decades and will be for more, for good reason. When RV'ing you may have electricity at your destination, but you need a power source when traveling. Sometimes that needs to be a power source that is fiumeless (no propane in tunnels or on ferries) ... And you may be boondocking and reserving your electrical power for lights and AC. And that's where the 3 way Norcold excels. TBH, I find my 2way to be as good it better than a 3 way after I upgraded to L-ion batteries. At least I didn't spend additional money for the 3way... If the 2way quits one day, then I would consider it.
I also took the time to make some improvements to the installation of the Norcold. Cleaned it up. Added insulation. Added positive air flow on the back side. Improved the air baffles. It made a huge improvement. Full details here [size=78%]https://forum.phoenixusarv.com/index.php?topic=4820.0[/size]
This was a high return investment.
I would caution that just replacing a fridge could put you in the same place you are now, just less some cash paid for a new fridge because the problem more likely to be the cabinetry/air flow/insulation.
The entire purpose of the fridge is to take heat out of the fridge and freezer and keep your cold food cold and your frozen food frozen. On the really hot days if the fridge is not able to get the heat OUT OF THE RV, a newer fridge is likely to not do it much better.
I live in Texas and vacation often in Texas and the gulf coast Mexico to Florida on days over 100F and nights in the upper 80s. - - much hotter than California. (I used to live in Sacramento in the 90s) I travel with rock solid ice cream in the freezer and a fridge full of produce, meats, dairy and beverages. After these improvements I've never tossed food because it spoiled from being held at the wrong temp. And, maybe once a year I end up freezing some lettuce in the fridge because it works too well. I just learned to not put the lettuce in the top shelf near the fins.
If you haven't read my fridge improvements writeup yet, please give it a chance. I think it is better money spent... And whatever fridge you end up with will not work as hard and consume as much energy. I didn't record propane consumption so I can't provide evidence, but I now fill up the LP tank only once a year. I used to fill it up twice a summer and again in the winter. And I know for certain the interior of my PC is cooler since the fridge is not heating up the inside walls... I very pleased with the results.
Just my 20 cents (including inflation).
Larry
The Norcold line has been around for decades and will be for more, for good reason. When RV'ing you may have electricity at your destination, but you need a power source when traveling. Sometimes that needs to be a power source that is fiumeless (no propane in tunnels or on ferries) ... And you may be boondocking and reserving your electrical power for lights and AC. And that's where the 3 way Norcold excels. TBH, I find my 2way to be as good it better than a 3 way after I upgraded to L-ion batteries. At least I didn't spend additional money for the 3way... If the 2way quits one day, then I would consider it.
I also took the time to make some improvements to the installation of the Norcold. Cleaned it up. Added insulation. Added positive air flow on the back side. Improved the air baffles. It made a huge improvement. Full details here [size=78%]https://forum.phoenixusarv.com/index.php?topic=4820.0[/size]
This was a high return investment.
I would caution that just replacing a fridge could put you in the same place you are now, just less some cash paid for a new fridge because the problem more likely to be the cabinetry/air flow/insulation.
The entire purpose of the fridge is to take heat out of the fridge and freezer and keep your cold food cold and your frozen food frozen. On the really hot days if the fridge is not able to get the heat OUT OF THE RV, a newer fridge is likely to not do it much better.
I live in Texas and vacation often in Texas and the gulf coast Mexico to Florida on days over 100F and nights in the upper 80s. - - much hotter than California. (I used to live in Sacramento in the 90s) I travel with rock solid ice cream in the freezer and a fridge full of produce, meats, dairy and beverages. After these improvements I've never tossed food because it spoiled from being held at the wrong temp. And, maybe once a year I end up freezing some lettuce in the fridge because it works too well. I just learned to not put the lettuce in the top shelf near the fins.
If you haven't read my fridge improvements writeup yet, please give it a chance. I think it is better money spent... And whatever fridge you end up with will not work as hard and consume as much energy. I didn't record propane consumption so I can't provide evidence, but I now fill up the LP tank only once a year. I used to fill it up twice a summer and again in the winter. And I know for certain the interior of my PC is cooler since the fridge is not heating up the inside walls... I very pleased with the results.
Just my 20 cents (including inflation).
Larry
